Minquan Ancient Street

Minquan Ancient Street

Minquan Ancient Street stretches from Dajiantou in the west (today’s intersection of Yongfu Road and Minquan Road) to Jiulingding in the east (the area around the North Pole Temple and Temple of Heaven), approximately 15 meters wide and 300 meters long. This section corresponds to today’s Section 2 of Minquan Road and was Taiwan’s first fully planned European-style boulevard. For over 300 years afterward, it served as the center of Tainan’s city streets and also an important cradle of development in Taiwan.

Though the old street has quieted down, older residents of Fucheng still vividly recall its historic street names. The areas around Minquan Road and Minsheng Road still feature scattered Qing Dynasty traditional structures or Japanese-era Western-style buildings, including many aged buildings that were among the first of their kind. Walking along the street, you can explore sites such as Taiwan’s first Western-style medical clinic, the first newspaper office, the oldest weather station, the Temple of Heaven known as Taiwan’s first temple, and the birthplace of the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan — all of which still retain historical traces, living up to the title “Taiwan’s No. 1 Street.” Strolling here allows you to experience local religious culture, educational activities, and geographical changes, as if flipping through a history book of Taiwan’s development.

Kuanhsi Street Church

In early times, the Kuanhsi Street area was close to the Taijiang River and served as a key hub for the shipping activities of the Five Ports. Most buildings faced east toward the river, hence the name "Kuanhsi" (meaning “look west”). In 1865, British Presbyterian missionary Dr. James Laidlaw Maxwell arrived in Taiwan-Fu and set up a mission station on Kuanhsi Street (today’s Ren’ai Street), where he began medical and missionary work, marking the start of Presbyterian missionary efforts in Taiwan. As a result, Kuanshi Street came to be regarded as the birthplace of the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan. The current Kuanhsi Street Church was relocated and rebuilt after 1951. It features Baroque architectural elements, with its most striking features being the dome, colonnades, and the cross atop the roof. Aside from worship services, the church regularly hosts community health lectures and parent-child education programs, making it a vibrant “century-old shop” in the neighborhood.

Temple of Heaven

After Koxinga reclaimed Taiwan, he built an altar outside Chengtian Prefecture to offer sacrifices to heaven, aiming to prolong the Ming dynasty’s legacy. Locals called it Tian Gong Ting (Heaven’s Platform). In the 4th year of the Xianfeng era during the Qing Dynasty (1854), officials and citizens jointly funded the construction of the Tian Gong Altar at the original site to worship the Jade Emperor. Due to its long history, it is honored as Taiwan’s First Temple. Although the Temple of Heaven has undergone multiple renovations, the site still houses refined ancient relics, especially the famed “One-Character Plaque” in front of the worship hall and the many pairs of dragon pillars in the front and rear halls.

Tainan Weather Observatory

During the Japanese colonial period, to monitor weather across the island, the Governor-General of Taiwan established weather stations in Tainan, Taipei, and Penghu in 1897. These were the predecessors of post-war weather stations. The Tainan Weather Observatory is one of the few original structures that still retains its appearance, giving it strong historical significance. Designed to meet meteorological observation needs, the observatory was built as an almost circular eighteen-sided building, with three concentric circles inside interlocking layer by layer. At the center, an observation instrument extended upward — making it the tallest building of its time. Due to its unique shape, locals nicknamed it the “Pepper Tube,” and it was once a prominent local landmark. The weather station has since been moved elsewhere, and the site is now planned to be converted into a weather museum.

Kuilou Academy

During the Qing Dynasty, over 60 academies were established throughout Taiwan, with 18 located in the Tainan area alone. Kuilou Academy is one of only two surviving academies in Tainan. Originally named Zhongshe Academy, it was founded in the 4th year of the Yongzheng era (1726) at a location near today’s Yongfu Elementary School. It served as a venue for local scholars and literati to share poetry and discuss current affairs, distinguishing it from conventional academies. During the Japanese colonial period, it was relocated to its current site due to urban redevelopment. The academy still preserves cultural relics such as plaques, column ornaments, and stone lions from the Jiaqing and Daoguang eras.

Tainan Theological College and Seminary

In 1876, Reverend James Laidlaw Maxwell, based on preaching classes in Tainan and Qijin, founded Tainan College (now Tainan Theological College and Seminary), becoming a key training ground for clergy within the Presbyterian Church. Dr. Thomas Barclay served as its first principal and also launched the church gazette here, which became Taiwan’s first newspaper. The New Building Hospital behind the seminary, constructed in 1900, was Taiwan’s first modern medical institution. Its current appearance is the result of post-war renovations.