Shirakawa Shinto Shrine (瑞穗白川神社)

Originally established in February 1933 as Baiko-sha (拔子社) at the foot of Langtoushan (狼頭山), just north of present-day Fuyuan Elementary School in Ruisui, Hualien. It was renamed Shirakawa-jinja (白川神社) in 1937 under a the colonial era naming reforms of the early Kōminka movement (皇民化運動). A stone lantern donated by Yokogawa Chōta. The first character of his name is faintly visible on the right side of the stand. The overgrown visiting path leading up the hillside. If you look closely you can see the second flight of stairs in the background. At least three stone lantern bases obscured by the overgrowth next to the path. Another broken piece of a stone lantern along the path. Although the path isn’t maintained it is in surprisingly good condition. Nowadays only traces remain of the original shrine. The most significant remaining relic is a stone lantern donated by Yokogawa Chōta (橫川長太), a Japanese tobacco farmer also known for reconstructing the Bazai Village Irrigation Canal (拔子庄圳). It…