Hirosaki Gakuin Foreign Missionary House

Overview

The Hirosaki Gakuin Foreign Missionary House was built as a residence for female missionaries sent by the Woman's Foreign Missionary Society of America to Hirosaki Gakuin. Listed among the buildings considered "worth preserving" by the Architectural Institute of Japan, it is an example of American-style Western architecture from the Meiji period. Designated as an Important Cultural Property of Japan in 1978, it was relocated and restored to its current site between 1978 and 1980 with government approval. The fireplace inside the house was recreated based on the one in the Togo Gakuin Foreign Missionary House. The interior shows a Japanese influence; fusuma (sliding doors) have different designs, such as maple leaves or birds, on their front and back sides. Books donated in 2004 by the family of Bunzo Aizawa, an emeritus professor at Hirosaki University, are preserved as the "Aizawa Collection." A blue-eyed doll, "Elizabeth Hutton," is also on display. It's said that the doll was a gift to Aiko Kindergarten, which was affiliated with Hirosaki Jogakko (girls' school). In 1986, the centennial anniversary of the school, a teacher from Sei-ai High School inquired about a blue-eyed doll, and it was discovered by chance during a cleanup of the kindergarten's storage room.