Yangnim-dong History and Culture Village

On Yangnimsan hill, across the Gwangjucheon stream, red-brick Western houses stand side by side with tiled hanok. When American Southern Presbyterian missionaries settled here in 1904, Yangnim-dong became known as "the Western village" and the gateway through which modern Western ideas first reached Gwangju. Today it is explored on foot as the Yangnim-dong History and Culture Village, a mix of early modern buildings, hanok and artists' alleys.

History: a missionary village on the hill

In 1904 missionaries including Eugene Bell (known in Korean as Bae Yu-ji) and Clement Owen came to Gwangju via Mokpo and Naju and settled on the Yangnimsan slope outside the old town walls. Unlike Koreans, who traditionally avoided building on hillsides, they built at the top of the slope and planted foreign trees such as pecans, silver maples and plane trees. In 1905 Gwangju's first modern hospital, Jejungwon, opened in a missionary's temporary house, followed by a girls' school and a tuberculosis clinic.

Hanok belonging to some of Gwangju's wealthiest families also survive here, so traditional and Western culture blended in one neighbourhood. The poet Kim Hyeon-seung and the composer Jeong Yul-seong grew up here, and Yangnim-dong is also called "the poets' village" and "the arts village".

What to see

• Owen Memorial Hall: a grey-brick building of 1914, paid for with 4,200 dollars sent by relatives in America in memory of Clement Owen, who died of overwork in 1909. Its floor slopes towards a pulpit set in one corner, and it is still used as an auditorium.
• Wilson House: the Western-style home of the missionary Wilson, known in Korean as Woo Il-seon, who worked for medicine and education in Gwangju, surrounded by woodland at the top of the hill.
• Lee Jang-woo House and Choi Seung-hyo House: hanok that show the layout of upper-class Joseon homes, protected as provincial folklore heritage.
• Missionary cemetery: on the hill of Honam Theological University lie missionaries and family members who died here between 1909 and 1967.
• Penguin Village craft street: an alley where residents cleared houses left empty after a fire and decorated the walls with discarded clocks, pots and picture frames. It is named after the elderly residents with sore knees whose waddling walk reminded people of penguins.

Good to know

Yangnim-dong has a Chinese holly tree more than 400 years old. During the Japanese occupation Owen Memorial Hall hosted lectures and concerts and served as a gathering place for local people. A music street dedicated to Jeong Yul-seong and a memorial hall for the democracy activist Cho A-ra are also in the village.

Tripto tips

• Opening hours: the village streets are always open. Workshops in Penguin Village open 10:00–18:00 and close on Mondays. Memorial halls and houses each have their own hours.
• How to explore: pick up a map at the Yangnim-dong tourist information centre (062-676-4486) and follow one of three routes: the missionary trail, the arts trail or the traditional culture trail.
• Parking: use public car park no. 1 of the Yangnim History and Culture Village.
• Time needed: the streets climb up and down the hill, so wear comfortable shoes. Allow 2–3 hours for the main buildings and Penguin Village.