Dadaocheng Air Raid Devastation Area

Dadaocheng (大稻埕), one of Taipei's oldest and most commercially vibrant districts, experienced devastating destruction during the May 31, 1945 air raid. Located north of the Japanese administrative center, this densely populated merchant quarter was home to tea traders, fabric merchants, and traditional medicine shops — a civilian area with little military significance.

The bombing pattern across Dadaocheng was particularly devastating. According to survivors' accounts, bombs fell in a sweeping path from Rixin National School (日新國校, now Rixin Elementary School) on the Taiyuan Road side, continuing through Penglai National School (蓬萊國校), and reaching the Catholic Immaculate Conception Cathedral (聖母無原罪主教座堂, also known as Penglai Cathedral/蓬萊天主堂). The cathedral — one of the most significant Catholic churches in colonial Taiwan — was completely destroyed (全壞).

The Dadaocheng area also lost the Tamsui Theater (淡水戲館, by then renamed Shin-butai 新舞台), a major entertainment venue that was entirely burned down (全壊・焼失). Numerous shophouses, residences, and commercial establishments along Dihua Street and the surrounding lanes were destroyed or heavily damaged.

The Japanese colonial government had previously demolished large numbers of houses in high-density areas like Dadaocheng as firebreaks to prevent the spread of fire during air raids. Despite these precautions, the concentrated bombing overwhelmed all defensive measures. Some of the cleared areas were later converted into wider roads and parks during post-war urban reconstruction.

Today, Dadaocheng retains much of its historic architecture from the late Qing and Japanese periods, though nearly all pre-1945 structures in the worst-hit zones were rebuilt after the war. The district's Dihua Street is now a popular heritage tourism destination, though there appear to be few if any markers or plaques indicating the air raid destruction.