水里北埔郵便局

August 27th, 2024

Shuilikeng Post Office (水裡坑郵便局) was established in 1933 in what is now Shuili, a rural township with a rich history in landlocked Nantou, Taiwan. It was constructed mainly out of Taiwanese cypress (Chamaecyparis taiwanensis), which would have been readily available here at the gateway to the mountainous interior of the country. In its early days of operations this combined post and telegraph office bore witness to a period of rapid development in central Taiwan, particularly with the ambitious Sun Moon Lake Hydroelectric Project reaching completion in 1934. The many power company employees stationed in Shuili would have kept this post office busy in the those early years.

An oblique look at the old post office on Minzu Road.

After the war the post office was absorbed into Chunghwa Post (中華郵政), the Republic of China’s state-owned enterprise overseeing postal services and telecommunications in Taiwan. Administrative boundaries shifted in 1950, and Shuili became an independent township after being carved out of neighboring Jiji in 1950. In 1965, as Shuili surged toward its peak population of 33,000¹, a newer and more modern post office was opened on Zhongfu Street (中富街), closer to Shuili Railway Station. This branch was renamed Beipu Post Office (北埔郵局), the name by which it is most widely known, and it continued to serve the residents on the south side of town.

An explosion of greenery at the side entrance.

Disaster struck in 1999 as the 921 Earthquake ripped through this part of Taiwan, killing thousands and inflicting considerable damage on an incredible number of buildings and other structures. This post office was not spared the wrath of nature; it was so heavily damaged that operations soon ceased, and the building was left to the elements for decades, neglected by the postal company, and presumably ignored by the landowners and most townspeople.

A customer’s view across the front counter. Original knob-and-tube wiring is fainly visible on the beams above the false ceiling.

Time had certainly taken its toll on this old post office by the time I breezed by for a visit in September 2023. I was actually in search of the site of Meidu Theater, replaced long ago by the Cathay Life Insurance Building (國泰人壽大樓) north of the post office on Minzu Road (民族路), but the flashy green exterior caught my eye. Although it was not on my list, I stopped to take a closer look, and quickly realized what it was.

It is easy to imagine this post office once being a busy place, a portal for communication with the outside world.

An ominous breach in the roof. The decay will only accelerate now that the elements have such ready access to the interior.

A hasty examination of the interior revealed a potential heritage site in extremely dire condition. The roof had partly collapsed, and with that the rest of the structure would likely soon follow. I was somewhat heartened by the signpost out front, which reads “Mountain City Under Yushan” (玉山下的山城), as in Taiwan’s tallest mountain, and Small Town Story (小鎮的故事). Perhaps the city would be restoring this building some day soon? Colonial post offices have become popular attractions in several other parts of Taiwan, most notably the Nanzhuang Post Office (南庄老郵局) in Miaoli.

Behind the counter at the old post office. Chunghwa Post logos can be seen in reverse on the glass doors that once lined the entrance.

Postal order boxes near the front entrance.

Next the post office I found an old wooden dormitory, almost certainly the residence of the postmaster or other employees of the post office. This residence followed a standard pattern, with elevated floorboards to provide cooling over the long, steamy months of summer. Although this building also showed the passage of years it was structurally intact, though every surface was covered in dust and grime.

The entrance to an old postal worker dormitory just next door.

The side of the old dorm facing the post office building.

A study of some of the building materials used in the dorm.

The exterior of the post office, with the original wood exposed.

Unfortunately, this story has a sad ending. Despite the tireless efforts of local culture and history enthusiasts², Beipu Post Office was demolished on August 26th, 2024. Details provided to the Central News Agency (中央通訊社) suggest the joint landowners, the Taiwan Postal Association (台灣郵政協會) and Taiwan Telecommunications Association (台灣電信協會), consulted an architect who declared the building too far gone to salvage and repair. The landowners argued that the structure was dangerous, and the risk of collapse (and possible personal injury), justified tearing it down³. While it is true the post office was in poor condition, I’ve seen buildings in worse shape successfully restored. Perhaps all that was lacking in this case was an interest in doing so, or some measure of protection from the Ministry of Culture⁴.

One final glance at the now-vanished post office.

I realize not all heritage buildings in Taiwan can be saved—but this one really should have been spared. Every weekend untold scores of holidaymakers from the sprawling urban centers of the western plains drive by Shuili en route to the innumerable hotels and resorts of Sun Moon Lake. Imagine this old post office renovated into a vintage café or restaurant with a small museum to postal history in Nantou. Give people a more of a reason to stop in Shuili and they certainly would—but this specific site, with all its obvious potential, is now lost forever, and we are left with only photographs and memories.

The Chinese language Wikipedia entry for Shuili features census data showing a familiar pattern for smaller towns in Taiwan: a boom in the 1960s followed by steady decline to only about half the peak population. In the case of Shuili the lumber industry likely brought workers here in droves as the interior was opened to exploitation in the 1960s. ↩
I am deeply indebted to the manager of the Love Shuili (戀戀水里) page on Facebook for the historic details featured in this and many other entries about Shuili on this site. I share their sorrow that this old post office was not preserved for future generations to appreciate and enjoy. ↩
This story reports on the demolition and prints some quotes from the owners of the building as well as an impassioned rebuttal from the aforementioned page owner. ↩
That being said, I am surprised that there is so little written about this old post office online. Usually when preparing a post like this there are a dozen history enthusiasts who have already covered a site, but not this time. How was it not more widely known? I regret my meager contribution arrives too late. ↩