七股鹽場

Qigu Saltworks

June 26th, 2014

Last updated July 17th, 2026

Qigu Saltworks (七股鹽場) was the largest salt field in Taiwan, covering more than 2,800 hectares of coastal Qigu and Jiangjun on the sunny southwestern coastline of Tainan. Initially developed by Japanese industrial salt companies from 1935 to 1942, it was expanded in the 1970s with the addition of the Qingkunshen Fan-Shaped Saltworks (青鯤鯓扇形鹽田). The final harvest in May 2002 brought 338 years of solar salt production in Taiwan to a close, and the land was returned to the state when Taiyen (台鹽實業) was privatized the following year. Several structures scattered across the former saltworks were collectively registered as a historic building in 2009 under the name Qigu Saltworks Capital Reduction Building Group (七股鹽場減資建物群) and much of the administrative center of the saltworks was converted for tourism in the early 2000s. Public interest has waned into the late 2010s and many sites are now semi-abandoned.

Taiwan Salt Museum (臺灣鹽博物館), previously a major tourist attraction in the area. It closed for renovations in 2022.

Prior to closure the saltworks was organized into four production areas: the 1st Production Area (第一生產區) in Dingshan (頂山), also home to Dingshan Watchtower (頂山鹽警槍樓); the 2nd Production Area (第二生產區) in Zhongliao (中寮), documented in this entry; the 3rd Production Area (第三生產區) in Taiqu (台區) and Xiqu (西區); and the 4th Production Area (第四生產區) in Qingkunshen (青鯤鯓), more popularly known as Qingkunshen Fan-Shaped Saltworks (青鯤鯓扇形鹽田). This entry encompasses sites scattered around the 2nd Production Area (第二生產區) in Zhongliao (中寮), home of the administrative core of the saltworks, the former Taiwan Salt Museum (臺灣鹽博物館), and the Railway Workshop (鐵路工廠).

A renovated structure opposite the main office of the saltworks. It is unclear what this building was in its original capacity, and it was already derelict when I visited in 2017.

A set of worker dormitories numbers 1 through 8 can be found in the vicinity. Some units showed evidence of recent occupancy in the mid-2010s, others were left exposed to the elements.

The area in front of the main office of the saltworks is one of several showing signs of decay. A set of eight numbered worker dormitories, some showing signs of occupancy as recent as 2015, lay derelict here. Another larger structure looks newly renovated but unused. From old articles about the area it seems some of these buildings may have once been used for community meetings or other activities, but I saw little evidence of that when passing through in 2017.

The most famous sight in the area: the salt mountain. The scale is indeed rather impressive.

A statue of Sagittarius, the Centaur of the Zodiac, stood in front of the mountain when I visited in 2017.

Back at surface level the salt mountain also features a visitor center with rotating exhibitions. I ducked inside for some air conditioning and browsed the salt sculptures on display.

The view from the top of the salt mountain looking east. Much of this would have been producing salt decades ago.

Beyond the areas redeveloped for tourism the saltworks landscape quickly reverts to desolation. Salt evaporation ponds west of the salt mountain immediately caught my eye, but the entire area has since been redeveloped into a solar farm.