Banqiao

Bǎnqiáo (板橋) is the administrative seat of New Taipei, a densely populated district immediately across the river from Wanhua. The name derives from a wooden bridge or Pang-kiô-thâu (枋橋頭) built during the Qing dynasty; Japanese authorities simplified the characters in 1920. The district owes much of its early development to the Lin Ben Yuan family, not a person’s name, but a business title combining the trading houses of brothers Lin Guohua (本記) and Lin Guofang (源記). Their mansion and garden, completed in 1853 and now a national monument, ranks among the finest Qing estates in Taiwan; the adjacent Daguan Academy served as the family’s private school.

The Japanese colonial era left the 1930 Broadcasting Station, designed by architect Kuriyama Shunichi and now restored as a heritage theater venue. As the district grew into a commercial hub, it supported a remarkable concentration of cinemas—at least 16 have been documented, most now demolished or repurposed.