Echoes of Taipei's Military Past: Two Former Dependents' Villages Find New Purpose as Living Heritage Sites

TEXT　Han Cheung

PHOTOS　VISION, Home Village, Department Of Information And Tourismcover

The Taipei area was once dotted with nearly 200 military dependents' villages, mostly built after 1949 to house military personnel and their families. These compact communities were known for narrow lanes and evocative architecture. Most were torn down during the 1990s, but a handful of these retro-architecture treasures have been preserved, some transformed into art and cultural spaces with trendy boutique shops.

Four Four South Village

Just steps from the iconic Taipei 101 tower, Four Four South Village is the city's oldest military village – a surprising anachronism tucked amid the financial district's shiny skyscrapers.

Built in 1948 for employees of the 44^th Arsenal of the Combined Logistics Command, the community housed technicians, engineers, and their families, who had relocated from China after the Chinese Civil War. It stood alongside the Four Four East and Four Four West villages, which accommodated officers and soldiers. Like most early military settlements, the houses were made with wood, bamboo, and concrete with tiled roofs, neatly arranged along narrow lanes. The village remained frozen in time until a partial demolition in 1999 sparked a movement to preserve what was left.

Today, four of the original buildings have been restored and repurposed as exhibition spaces, boutiques, and cafés. Visitors entering from Zhuangjing Road will notice a small concrete fort near the entrance – a relic from the site's military past. Beyond the entrance, the village opens up into gently sloping lawns and courtyards framed by restored single-story houses, their 1950s façades contrasting with the towering Taipei 101 tower in the background. This is a popular spot for watching the fireworks show of Taipei New Year's Party.

Housed in Building B, the Military Families Community Hall showcases the daily lives of the former residents through photographs, furniture, and personal items. Back-to-back with it stands Building A, a free indoor play space for children. Across the central courtyard of the complex, where live music, pop-up markets, and cultural events are frequently hosted, Building C is home to the PLAYground, while Building D was a café before, but is now closed for historical restoration.

By day, the PLAYground doubles as a bookstore, with thousands of titles and design goods. After dark, it transforms into a vibrant performance stage, showcasing all forms of performing arts.

Four Four South Village 四四南村 

🚩50, Songqin St., Xinyi Dist.

📞(02) 2723-7937

🕝Tue-Sun 9:00-5:00pm (indoor spaces)

Home Village

Nestled along the banks of the Xindian River, Home Village is a tranquil refuge from Gongguan Shopping district. Its mix of wood and concrete houses, many adorned with classic green window trims and bright-red doors, offers a glimpse into Taiwanese architectural styles spanning the Japanese era through the 1960s.

Originally part of a park, the site was revamped into a Japanese military compound during World War II, serving the Artillery Regiment and the Taiwan Military Education Team. The area included several barracks, stables, pigeon lofts, and other support facilities. In 1949, it was taken over by the ROC's Combined Service Forces, which used it as a communications repair factory. The first residences were built by factory employees and their families.

In 1956, the compound was repurposed and allocated to military figures according to rank. Families modified existing buildings or constructed new ones, giving the settlement an organic character unlike the typical military villages with their orderly, identical rows.

The last residents moved out in 2014. Although many buildings were thereafter removed during redevelopment, several surviving structures were preserved and restored. The first building opened to the public in 2022, and the rest in 2024. Today, this is a family-friendly heritage site preserving military-village culture through exhibitions and performances.

The Home Village Storyeum serves as the main exhibition hall of this complex, showcasing facets of daily life in the former settlement. This edifice was once home to a general's family, and the architecture blends Japanese and post-war Taiwanese stylistic elements. The current special exhibition, open until June 2026, focuses on the memories of Chang Ching-chin, the general's daughter and a celebrated Peking Opera scriptwriter. Through her story, visitors explore how the military trained traditional opera troupes to perform for soldiers, using tales of loyalty and righteousness to boost morale. It also delves into the cultural life of the settlement, including military village literature and popular radio dramas.

The structure behind the Storyeum – once used by the general's family as kitchen, dining room, and painting studio – now functions as a parent-child activity center, introducing coming generations to this fading past.

Although some of the buildings feature incorporated Japanese architectural elements, only one structure from the Japanese era survives: an Ohiroma (a spacious open hall, the classic layout of a Japanese mansion) with a distinctive green wooden façade, now used as a performance and event venue known as Ryotei Theater. During the 1960s, partitions were installed in this structure to convert it into conjoined homes for two colonels' families. Each family expanded its side, resulting in the front and back entrances differing in style – a testament to the site's layered past.

Another residence, once the Military Law Division office, was also later split between two families. To mark their separate spaces, each painted their side of the exterior wall a different color. This building is now home to the Artist Village, frequently used for rehearsals and intimate theater performances.

One of the village's most curious structures is the cylindrical concrete air-raid shelter, which was later adapted into a dwelling. With 40cm-thick walls, it was said to be cool in the summer and warm in the winter. The occupants reportedly compartmentalized the interior into separate living areas and even built adjacent extensions, creating a one-of-a-kind hybrid home. Today, the place is also used as an art exhibition space.

Home Village 嘉禾新村

🚩1, Ln. 131, Yongchun St., Zhongzheng Dist.

📞(02) 2365-2530

🔗homevillage.taipei

🕝Tue-Sun 11:00am-6:00pm