Chiayi Forestry Culture Park is enlightening the public on Taiwan’s timber boom and its lingering legacy, spotlighting the engineering feats and urban development that enabled the country’s logging industry to thrive.
The southern Taiwan park traces its origins back to the Japanese colonial era (1895-1945), when Japanese officials began harvesting cypress trees in the Alishan area. With the launch Alishan Forestry Railway in 1912, felled trees could be transported from the lush forests at altitudes of over 2,200 meters down to the plains of Chiayi City for processing, thus giving rise to the largest of the three mountain logging sites developed during the period.
Down in the city, Chiayi Sawmill and housing units for workers formed small communities dedicated to the industry. Today, two groups of historical buildings in the area, Alishan Forestry Village and Hinoki Village, form CFCP.
Chiayi Sawmill is a prominent attraction in Chiayi Forestry Culture Park. (Staff photo / Chin Hung-hao)
Renovation of structures on the two sites commenced in 2009. The sawmill complex has since opened to the public, offering visitors a glimpse of how the facility functioned decades ago.
Visitors can also ride Alishan’s famous train, which remains Asia’s highest narrow-gauge mountain railway. It still looks much like the original, a testament to the skill of its engineers and construction crew over a century ago.
The former employee settlement now known as Hinoki Village is the largest grouping of Japanese-era houses in Taiwan, with 29 restored buildings that operate as retail and exhibition facilities. Having attracted over 17 million visitors in the past 10 years, it has become one of the most popular attractions in Chiayi.
Hinoki Village boasts the largest grouping of Japanese colonial era structures in Taiwan. (Staff photo / Chin Hung-hao)
In 2019, Chiayi Sawmill, Hinoki Village and logging infrastructure such as the Alishan railway were collectively designated an important part of the country’s cultural landscape by the Ministry of Culture. At the same time, the nongovernmental organization Alishan World Heritage Association is enhancing awareness of the cultural significance of the local industry, with the ultimate goal of getting the facilities added to UNESCO’s world heritage list.
“We don’t know if the site will be accepted by the U.N. agency,” said AWHA Director General Kuo Ying-liang. “What matters most to us is the process of raising the profile of Alishan’s history, which creates consensus that these assets are valuable and worthy of attention.” (E) (By Oscar Chung)
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The Forestry Club in Hinoki Village is built in a Western architectural style. (Courtesy of Alishan Forestry Railway and Cultural Heritage Office)
(This article is adapted from “Full Steam Ahead” in the May/June 2023 issue of Taiwan Review. The Taiwan Review archives dating to 1951 are available online.)