Doegwanjeong site in central Seoul: from imperial guesthouse to Japanese commander's residence, now a parking lot
Creatrip Team
2 months ago
In central Seoul at 103 Sogong-ro (between the Bank of Korea and the Westin Chosun), the site once housed the Daegwanjeong (大觀亭) — originally built in 1898 by missionary-journalist Homer Hulbert and later purchased by Emperor Gojong as the Korean Empire's state guesthouse. It hosted ceremonies like Gojong’s 40th regnal anniversary in 1902. During Japan’s occupation era the building became the residence of the Japanese garrison commander Hasegawa Yoshimichi (later the 2nd Governor-General), and the area was known as Janggokcheonjeong (町). After the garrison moved in 1911, the site became the Gyeongseong Municipal Library in 1927 and developed into a cultural hub with cafés and salons frequented by artists and writers. Following liberation it served as Namdaemun Library, briefly housed a political party office in 1966, and was demolished in 1976 to become a parking lot; ownership changed hands over decades and the plot is now under construction for a Boyoung (부영) hotel. A newly published research book from the National Museum of Korean Contemporary History, “Buried Daegwanjeong, The Memory of That Space,” is the first monograph about the site and argues for remembering the layered, often painful modern history of this location even as new buildings rise.
