Yongsan-gu, Yongsan History Museum Special Lecture and Exhibition Commentary Draw Attention

Author Kim Yesul of 'Seoul Architecture Travel' and historian An Jiyoung conduct humanities special lecture
Expert-level capacity building training for volunteers...held four times annually
Expanding opportunities to enjoy historical culture through new content and improved visitor convenience

Yongsan-gu, Seoul (District Mayor Park Hee-young) is making new internal and external efforts to promote the appeal of the Yongsan History Museum and enhance visitor convenience. This is an initiative to firmly establish itself as a specialized local history museum.

Externally, the museum recently invited author Kim Yesul, who wrote the popular book Seoul Architecture Travel (selected as a popular book at Kyobo Bookstore and others, with the 3rd printing issued at the end of April), to hold a humanities special lecture on the 15th. Internally, professional training for volunteers is underway to provide high-quality guidance and exhibition explanations.

◆ Humanities Special Lecture with MZ Generation Architecture and History Enthusiasts

On the 15th, from 3:00 PM to 5:30 PM, a humanities special lecture titled “Yongsan Historical and Cultural Journey” will be held at the Yongsan History Museum. The event features author Kim Yesul of Seoul Architecture Travel and history commentator An Ji-young, discussing topics related to Seoul, Yongsan, and the Yongsan History Museum. The 20-person capacity, recruited on the Yongsan History Museum website on a first-come, first-served basis, has already been filled.

Since 2015, Kim Yesul has traveled to over 1,000 modern and contemporary architectural sites. Among them, she selected 54 places, including the Yongsan History Museum, and published Seoul Architecture Travel in March this year, actively engaging in lectures.

History commentator An Ji-young is now in her 16th year of activity and is a veteran who has conducted over 3,600 history-related lectures and tours.

Kim Yesul will give a one-hour lecture starting at 3:00 PM. During the meeting with the author, she will talk about ▲modern and contemporary architectural travels in Seoul ▲the process of turning architectural travel experiences into a book ▲the reasons and significance of featuring the Yongsan History Museum in the book. From 4:00 PM, attendees can listen to An Ji-young’s guided explanation of the Yongsan History Museum’s permanent exhibition.

◆ Professional Training to Enhance Volunteer Expertise for High-Quality Guidance and Explanation

All guidance and exhibition explanations at the Yongsan History Museum are conducted by volunteers. Currently, four volunteers work in the guidance field and eleven in exhibition explanation.

The district holds professional training sessions four times a year, twice in the first half and twice in the second half, to strengthen volunteers’ expert-level capabilities. This year’s training is designed in connection with the permanent exhibition, adding depth to volunteer activities. Last year’s training covered the overall modern and contemporary history of Yongsan.

The training sessions proceed in the following order: ▲Exploration of Bugundang in Yongsan (Dr. Kim Hong-ryeol) ▲The relocation of Hanyang and stories of Yongsan (Professor Shin Byung-joo) ▲Registered cultural heritage of the Korean Peninsula and Japanese military sites (Professor Shin Ju-baek) ▲Changes in Mancho Stream and the formation of Yongsan (Architect Kim Young-hwan).

The first session was held on the 27th of last month. Linked to the permanent exhibition “Yongsan’s Diverse Religious Cultures,” participants had the opportunity to explore local Bugundang shrines in Itaewon, Dunjimi, and Dongbinggo. Bugundang are village guardian shrines found mainly in Seoul and Gyeonggi areas, with many still preserved in Yongsan.

The second session, scheduled for the 17th, relates to the permanent exhibition “Yongsan, the Gateway to Hanyang, and the Gyeonggang Merchants Who Moved Joseon.” It will cover the development of the capital Hanyang and the Yongsan area, as well as the Gyeonggang Line used in King Jeongjo’s palanquin. Professor Shin Byung-joo of Konkuk University’s Department of History will lecture. Professor Shin is a Joseon Dynasty history expert who has appeared on TV programs such as History Journal That Day and Different Class, and has published several books.

The third session will examine why the main building of the Yongsan Railway Hospital during the Japanese colonial period (now the Yongsan History Museum) was designated as a national registered heritage and its preservation value. The fourth session, linked to the permanent exhibition “Gathering at Yongsan, Connecting to Yongsan,” will explore the formation and changes of Yongsan along Mancho Stream. Both sessions will be held in the second half of the year.

Park Hee-young, Mayor of Yongsan-gu, said, “To ensure a steady flow of visitors to the Yongsan History Museum, it is important to discover new content and consider ways to improve visitor convenience. We will continue to do our best so that residents can enjoy diverse historical and cultural experiences as a specialized local history museum.”