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The Taiwan Shinminpo News Special – Reopening Ceremony of the Taichung Railway Line in 1938

Publication date: 1 Dec 2023
Author: Lee Yi-ling, Kawashima Naoko |Staff member of the Archives of Institute of Taiwan History

The Taiwan Shinminpo was the only newspaper published by Taiwanese during the Japanese colonial era, representing the voices of the Taiwanese people in contrast to the official stance of the Taiwan Nichinichi Shinpo. Its reports covered a wide range of topics, making it a rich source for diverse research subjects.

On July 14-15, 1938, Taiwan Shinminpo published a special issue for two consecutive days titled "Celebrating the Restoration of the Taichung Line," totaling four full pages. This commemorated the reopening of the Taichung railway line, which had been severed since the 1935 Hsinchu-Taichung earthquake. This earthquake caused numerous casualties and severed north-south transportation, significantly affecting local society and economy. Through archived newspapers, diaries, photos, old documents, and maps, this article revisits the scene of the 1935 earthquake, reviewing Taiwan's most severe natural disaster in history and the subsequent reconstruction efforts.

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ICTAP and ITH

The team of ICTAP responsible for acquiring historical records is made up of research fellows from the Institute of Taiwan History, Academia Sinica. Owing to historical origins and geographical connection, It focus on collaborating with historical archival institutions in countries including Japan, Russia and China.

Through survey and investigation, literature analysis and review, search on the Internet and academic networks, the whereabouts of Taiwan historical resources ‘in exile’ are located, with details on their contents and quantities in foreign repositories, the status of their documentation and preservation as well as the progress of their digitization.  Visits are then made to these repositories abroad for further appraisal of the archives and discussion on possible future collaboration.  Taking into consideration the preservation status of the historical resources, the policy of the archival institutions, the subsequent value-added applications, as well as future plans for utilization and open access, the acquisition strategies adopted so far include digital archives acquisition and digital content value-added. Materials in the forms of both digital archival materials and original historical records are collected through purchase, collaboration, and exchange. The achievements include the establishment of digital databases and archives as well as thematic knowledge banks. Historical records and digital images brought back from overseas repositories are then arranged and interpreted. The annotated editions are then posted at digital archives such as the 「Taiwan Archival Information System」 and 「Taiwan Diary Knowledge Bank」 for free and open access by the general public.


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