Tsuruga Red Brick Warehouse

 is a pair of warehouse buildings located within the Port of Tsuruga in the city of Tsuruga, Fukui Prefecture, Japan. The buildings are preserved as a historical monument, and have been renovated for use as a restaurant hall (south-wing) and a diorama exhibition depicting Tsuruga during the Shōwa era with a model railroad (north wing).
Overview.
In 1905, the warehouses were built by Standard Oil of New York for the storage of petroleum. Between mid Meiji era to the early Shōwa era, Tsuruga flourished as a major seaport. These warehouses are remaining examples of red brick warehouses which were common in ports around Japan. The warehouses were designed by a foreign architect and feet was used as the unit of measurement. Other notable features are the use of imported Dutch bricks and a hidden columnar structure. On January 2009, the north and south wings of the building as well as their surroundings were designated as a registered tangible cultural property of Japan.
Current status.
In October 2015, 110 years after construction, the warehouse was renovated and opened as a tourist attraction. Today the south wing is a restaurant hall, the north wing is a diorama hall, and the south side is an open garden. In the diorama hall, the heyday of Tsuruga from the late Meiji period to the early Showa period is reproduced by using a HO scale model railroad.
In order to further attract tourists, the city of Tsuruga decided to highlight its railway heritage. As a part of effort in May 2018, a Kiha 28 Series diesel train was installed on adjacent land on the north side of the warehouse.
In addition to these, Kanegasaki area is indeed rich in railway heritage, including the Tsuruga train museum housed in the former station building of Tsuruga port station (reconstructed), a lamp house, and the Tsurugako line (operation suspended). The city plans to utilize these resources to further expand visitor attractions in this area.
Visitor information.
Restaurant wing is free of charge. Open at 9:30, closes at 22:00. Admission fee incurs in diorama wing. Open at 9:30, closes at 17:30 (last admission at 17:00). Closed on Wednesday. If it is holiday, next day will closed instead. Also closes 30 Dec. – 1 Jan.