Yixian Park Introduction
Yixian Park, also known as the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall, is located near Taipei Main Station. This small park commemorates Sun Yat-sen. The Republic of China chose this location as one of the parks to honor the Father of the Nation, primarily because this site was where Sun Yat-sen stayed in a tea house during his visit to Taiwan in 1913. It was also where the Governor-General of Taiwan, Sakuma Samatat, held discussions with Sun Yat-sen about political matters. The current address is No. 46, Section 1, Zhongshan North Road, Zhongzheng District, Taipei City, bordered by Civic Boulevard on the north, Zhongshan North Road on the east, and Taipei Main Station on the west. Yixian Park covers an area of approximately 3,025 square meters, and the main building within the park is the "Ume House," which measures around 50 ping. The Ume House, named for the "plum trees" planted in the garden, was built in 1900 and originally operated as a tea house by the Japanese operator Yamato Soji. The Ume House was a famous high-end tea house in Taipei during Japanese rule, located in Beimen Town, where various dignitaries like the Governor-General of Taiwan, business tycoons, and social elites were guests, and geishas could also be summoned to entertain. The tea house is a rectangular traditional Japanese-style building with a roof covered by old-fashioned dark-colored tiles. It is said that the tea house once used performances by geishas from the Takasago clan as a form of promotion to attract tourists. The Ume House not only hosted notable political figures such as Sun Yat-sen and Hu Hanmin in the early 20th century, but it was also featured in the 1907 film "Taiwan Actual View," directed by the notable filmmaker Takamatsu Toyojiro, commissioned by the Governor-General's Office, which listed the performances of geishas in the Ume House as one of the twenty scenic spots in Taiwan.
