臺北市政府文化局

Strange as it may seem, opposite Neihu High School on Shitou Mountain stands a classic-looking brick-built two-storey mansion. This Minnan-style Western mansion is the Guo Ziyi Memorial Hall, also known as the Neihu Red House and Neihu Guo Family Estate. It features the traditional Taiwanese layout of a central main section and two wings, but also incorporates elements of Western Baroque in the protruding curved balcony on the second floor.

The square tiles at the center of the white-washed terrazzo were introduced to Taiwan from Japan during the mansion’s construction in the 1920s and became frequently used in the building of residential houses and temples. In modern terms, this is an “understated luxury”, where closer inspection reveals the meticulous details of the historic residence.

The previous owner of the house was Guo Huarang, the first mayor of Naiko Shō during the Japanese colonial era. The Guo family arrived in Taiwan in the early 18th century (during the Yongzheng period of the Qing Dynasty). Through a century of cultivation and management, the Guo family transformed 

Neihu (now known for its tech park) into a vast farmland and their own family into a prominent clan, which enabled them to construct their mansion on Shitou Mountain. However, political change and wartime turmoil meant the Red House was rented out to farmers or used by temples. When the last temple moved out in the 1980s, the property fell into disrepair. 

Fortunately, in 2010, the mansion was accidentally discovered by Kuo Shih-chi, then chairman of Kuo Yuan Ye Foods. He contacted descendants of the Guo family, and after a year and a half of renovation, the plaque on the wall was changed from “Bifeng Temple” to “Fenyang”, an honorific title of Guo Ziyi, the family’s ancestor.

Visitors can start by following the steps up the hill through the archway that reads “Guo Ziyi Memorial Hall”. After looking around the hall, take the mountain path down, and in less than 20 minutes, you’ll reach Bihu Park, home to a small white palace by a lake. Looking at Dapi Lake, which once irrigated the Neihu area, and feeling the gentle breeze by the lake, you can imagine the densely packed farm landscape that once characterized Neihu.