옛 부국원 건물, Registered Cultural Property in Suwon, South Korea.
The Old Bugukwon Building is a two-storey brick office in Gyo-dong, Suwon, built for the Bukgukwon company. Its structural frame is brick masonry, the second floor is reinforced concrete, and three-storey-high gable walls rise on the front and rear facades. The roof storey was later converted so the interior now has three levels, and the aged exterior has kept its old appearance without major renovation.
Bugukwon was founded in 1916 as a company selling crop seeds, seedlings, farm tools and fertiliser, and this brick office was its headquarters; a photograph in the 1923 book "Suwon" by Sakai Masanosuke shows it already standing. After liberation it housed Suwon's court and prosecutors' office from 1952 to 1956, the city education office from 1957 to 1960, the Republican Party's Gyeonggi branch in 1974, Suwon Yechong in 1979 and Park Internal Medicine Clinic in 1981. It was registered as National Registered Cultural Property No. 698 on 23 October 2017.
The name Bukgukwon ("enrich the nation garden") belonged to a company founded in 1916 that sold crop seeds, seedlings, farm tools and fertiliser from this office. After liberation the building housed Suwon's court and prosecutors from 1952 to 1956, the city education office from 1957 to 1960, a party chapter in 1974, Suwon Arts Council in 1979 and Park Internal Medicine Clinic in 1981.
The building stands in a narrow alley off Gyo-dong intersection, on the way toward Suwon Hyanggyo, so it is reached on foot rather than by car. The interior roof level was converted into a third floor, and the brick exterior has been left without major repairs, so surfaces are worn.
The building's exact construction date is unrecorded; it is known to predate 1923, when an exterior photograph appeared in the book "Suwon" by Sakai Masanosuke. After liberation it housed Suwon's court and prosecutors' office from 1952 to 1956, then the city education office until 1960.
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