Xiangshan

Xiangshan (香山), originally called Fānshān (番山), literally “barbarian mountain”, is the largest district in Hsinchu City, comprising over half its total area. Originally the territory of the Taokas Indigenous people, it developed as a port after other harbors in the area silted up in the early 19th century. The coastal wetlands are now protected as an important stopover for migratory birds and host the largest fiddler crab population in Taiwan. The district retains several heritage sites from different eras: Xiangshan Tianhou Temple dates to the port’s heyday; the Japanese colonial era wooden Xiangshan Railway Station is a designated city monument; and the Haishan Brick Kiln, likely dating to the 1960s or 1970s, is the last surviving Hoffmann kiln in the city.