Japanese Heritage Shōya House

The compound has been reconstructed on a 2-acre site, which includes a newly constructed gatehouse and courtyard based on the original structures. Visitors can walk through a portion of the house and see how inhabitants lived their daily lives within the thoughtfully designed and meticulously crafted 320-year-old structure.

The house has two main entryways: The formal entrance on the left was originally for samurai and government officials, and the doorway on the right, which Huntington visitors will use, was for daily use by farmers and craftspeople. 

Sliding doors can divide the space into small rooms or be opened to create one large room. Evidence of fine craftsmanship abounds throughout the house: Tatami mats cover the floors; decorative plates hide joinery; and ornate ranmas, or panels made of carved wood, are positioned to allow for ventilation in the home.

The room where special guests were once received, at the front west side of the residence, looks onto a formal garden containing carefully shaped pines and camellias, as well as cycads, a plant that was considered a symbol of luxury in 18th-century Japan. 

Explore the grounds to view a small garden with a pond, an irrigation canal, various agricultural plots, and other landscape elements that closely resemble the compound’s original setting. The rocks in the garden came directly from the original property and were placed in the exact same spots in relation to the house and a koi pond.

Outside of the house, visitors can peek into what was once the pit lavatory; a water drainage canal nearby shows how water runs from a reserve to the crops, which include rice, buckwheat, and sesame.