Hakodate was hit by a large fire many times, On December 6th of 1879, there was a big fire that burned 2326 houses. After the fire, the Hakodate Branch Office of Hokkaido Government recommended refractory brick construction and also subsidized. This building was built at such a time, maybe in 1885 or a few years ago. The outer wall is a brick mortar paint.
Endo Kippei (1841-1932) was from Niigata, and moved to Hakodate in 1877. He opened a sea and land merchandise business. He became a member of the House of Representatives later. He also worked on improving the Straw bag used for transportation.
It is not clear how the building has been used since then, but it was used as a cafe from the 1990s until about 2017.
In January 2024 it was opened as an accommodation.
[Related blog article]
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The cityscape of Hakodate and Great Fire"
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