蘆竹大華空軍眷村

Luzhu Dahua Air Force Villages

June 3rd, 2024

All That Remains of Jianguo No. 19 Village (建國十九村) — The roadside sign for Jianguo No. 19 Village, one of the only remnants of the Dahua villages.

ROCAF military dependents’ villages inside the former restricted zone of Taoyuan Air Base in Luzhu, within the former administrative village of Dahua (大華村). Apart from a few families who had lived on the land for generations, Dahua was made up of air force officers, NCOs, and enlisted men who arrived with the Nationalist government in 1949, along with their dependents. Anyone entering had to pass a guard post, which kept the community closed off from its surroundings. Dahua was split from Dazhu (大竹村) as a separate administrative village in 1970, but military control remained in force and the villages kept their own self-governing committees. A market built in 1971 drew residents into closer contact with local farming households. Most of the villages were first numbered as generic Taoyuan Air Force dormitories and later renamed in the Jianguo (建國) series, which continues north of the base at Jianhua in Dayuan. Demand for housing grew after the base expanded into the 5th Wing and converted to F-86 fighters from 1953, as single airmen married and families grew, and new villages were still being added here in the 1960s. All were cleared over the course of the 2010s.

Sign For Jianguo No. 19 Village (建國十九村) — A closer look at the sign for the village.

Oblique View of Jianguo No. 19 Village (建國十九村) — An angled shot to show that one of the original gateway pillars also remains behind the fence.

Map

Points

Jianguo No. 19 Village (建國十九村)—Remnants (遺跡)
Home mainly to pilots and maintenance crew of the 12th Squadron. Demolished over the course of the 2010s; its roadside sign and one of the original gateway pillars remain amidst empty lots.
Jianguo No. 2 Village (建國二村)—Vanished (已消失)
Established in 1950 for 48 households as Taoyuan Air Force Quarters No. 2 (桃園空軍第二號眷房), a name that survived locally as simply “Number Two”. Its first homes were the wards of a field hospital left behind by the Japanese. Its residents were mainly 5th Wing headquarters staff. Rebuilt with newer housing in 1971 and demolished in the early 2010s.
Jianguo No. 4 Village (建國四村)—Vanished (已消失)
Home mainly to maintenance personnel of the 4th Squadron.
Jianguo No. 5 Village (建國五村)—Vanished (已消失)
Home mainly to personnel of the photographic technical unit.
Jianguo No. 6 Village (建國六村)—Vanished (已消失)
Home mainly to personnel of the 5th Base Service Group.
Jianguo No. 12 Village (建國十二村)—Vanished (已消失)
Timber, brick, and tile housing on Daxin Road (大新路) built in 1957 by the 5th Base Service Group for about 112 households, mostly officers and NCOs of the maintenance group. Residents were rehoused in the redevelopment of Luguang No. 2 Village (陸光二村).
Jianguo No. 16 Village (建國十六村)—Vanished (已消失)
Home mainly to officers and NCOs of the 6th Group.
Jianguo No. 20 Village (建國二十村)—Vanished (已消失)
Built from September 1965 by the 5th Base Service Group for around 63 households, mostly 5th Wing headquarters staff. Its position behind No. 2 gave it the local nickname “behind number two” (二號後面). Residents were rehoused and the village was demolished in the mid-2010s.
Ci’en No. 1 Village (慈恩一村)—Vanished (已消失)
Lingyun No. 1 Village (凌雲一村)—Vanished (已消失)
Built with Lingyun No. 2 Village (凌雲二村) in the 1960s as the base outgrew its existing housing, and later redeveloped to rehouse residents of No. 20.