The Marmot’s Hole

Sungsan Methodist Church, built by the US Army in 1954, slated for destruction next year

The Japanese-style roofs of Singye-dong. Don’t expect to see them for much longer.

Across the railway tracks from New Yongsan Station (a.k.a. Sinyongsan Station), just before you enter Yongsan Electronics Market is the neighborhood of Singye-dong.

Assuming you’ve been to Yongsan Electronics Market, it’s the run-down looking neighborhood you pass as you approach from Samgakji. It’s most prominent feature is Danggogae Hill, a rocky hillock where ten Korean Catholics were martyred in 1839 (the top of the hill is now a Catholic holy site).

During the colonial period, Singye-dong was a residential area that was home to the Japanese employees of the colonial railway company. Many of the Japanese-style homes remain to this day, but not for much longer, as the neighborhood has been designated for massive redevelopment. Many of the older homes in the neighborhood are slated for demolition, so if you’re going to see this piece of Seoul history, you’d better do it now, because by next year, most of it will likely be gone.

Keep reading below for the rest of the photo essay, and be sure to check out the Flickr slideshow for full-size images.

Sungsan Methodist Church

Sungsan (Holy Hill) Methodist Church sits on the north face of Danggogae Hill, a short stroll from Yongsan-gu Office.

Located on the site of a former Japanese Shinto shrine (the steps of which have been incorporated into the church), the church was built in 1954 with help from US Army engineers from nearby Yongsan Garrison. The church is said to have been designed by a US Army officer based on a church in his hometown. It’s certainly a unique looking structure, with a neoclassical facade that would seem more at home in some small American town than in the middle of Seoul. The stone used was brought to the location from a quarry in Jeollabuk-do province courtesy US Army trucks.

The church may be torn down early next year, and the church people are not happy about it. In August, a three-man team from Seoul City’s Department of Cultural Properties surveyed the church and submitted reports acknowledging its worth as a cultural property. Based on the Seoul City report, the church then applied to the Cultural Heritage Administration to have the building registered as a cultural property, but the application was rejected on Oct 16. Ostensibly, the church’s application was rejected because the structure was “unworthy” of registration, but some believe the committee making the decision was under pressure from the redevelopment committee.

Anyway, yesterday, I visited the church and was shown around by the very nice gentleman who maintains the place. He also gave me the rundown on the church’s plight. I gather the church yard is usually locked, so if you’re going to visit, you should call ahead (02-712-5421).

For what it’s worth, many of the churches built in the immediate post-war period have been designated cultural properties, and while I’m no expert, I see no reason why Sungsan Methodist Church is unworthy of the same protection. Besides, as the man who showed me around yesterday said, there’s no reason why developers couldn’t build around the church. Even apartment complexes need a church, and it would seem to me that having a pretty, historic church in the neighborhood would greatly improve the quality of life of Singye-dong residents. At any rate, it’s an integral part of Yongsan’s history, and it would be a great shame to see it go.

Alleyways of Old Singye-dong

If the weather wasn’t cold enough, the atmosphere in the neighborhood yesterday was made all the more chilly by its impending doom.

Many of the homes in Singye-dong date back to the colonial period, as you can no doubt tell from the plethora of Japanese-style roofs. In particular, this is where many Japanese rail workers lived, being as it was close to Yongsan Station (see third photo in link). BTW, check out this Asahi Shimbun piece on the role railroads played in Korea’s colonization when you get a chance.

Even before redevelopment plans were announced, the neighborhood was quite run down, with many of the homes in states of disrepair. Now, with residents moving out and homes awaiting a date with the wrecking ball — as attested by the omnipresence of cheolgeo painted in bright red letters — the buildings are largely empty and in the process of being gutted/torn down. Sad and depressing, yes, but it does have a certain decrepit, almost post-apocalyptic charm.

If you’d like to see the homes, do so now, because they won’t be here this time next year.

Singye-dong Hapdong Jutaek & Old Railway Director’s Residence

Now, I’m as enthusiastic about protecting colonial-era buildings as anyone, but truth be told, it wouldn’t pain me terribly to see most of the neighborhood’s old homes go. It would be different, of course, if the homes were well-maintained, but they weren’t, so it isn’t. In theory, it would have been nice to see Seoul pump money into restoring the area so that old and new could coexist. Still, this part of Yongsan was long, long overdue for redevelopment, and to put this as bluntly as I can, the old homes of the neighborhood are not so architecturally, culturally or historically important as to hold up turning Singye-dong into a half-respectable place to live.

There are a couple of buildings worth protecting, however. Aside from Sungsan Methodist Church, discussed above, another structure worthy of attention is the Singye-dong Hapdong Jutaek. A perfectly preserved Japanese home or lodging (I’m not quite sure which), after Liberation, it was used as a sort of joint-housing structure. Some ten families used to rent space here, but almost everyone’s moved out since the redevelopment plans were announced.

It might look crappy now, but it’s nothing a little restoration work couldn’t fix. It’s rare to find colonial era buildings this well preserved, and it would be a real shame to see it pulled down.

Another building worth keeping around is the former residence of the director of the Korea National Railroad. Or that’s what I was told it was. Anyway, it was clearly the home of someone of importance during the colonial era, probably someone high up in the colonial railway company. It was unclear whether this home was being town down or restored, but work of some sort was definitely being done on it.