Preserving the 100-year-old Governor's Villa in Bien Hoa

On the afternoon of September 26, answering Thanh Nien reporter, Mr. Vien Hong Tien, Chief of Office of Dong Nai Provincial Party Committee, said at the meeting on the same morning, chaired by Provincial Party Secretary Nguyen Hong Linh, after listening to reports and discussions from relevant units, the Standing Committee of Dong Nai Provincial Party Committee decided to keep the 100-year-old Governor's villa in Bien Hoa for preservation. At the same time, the Party Committee of Dong Nai Provincial People's Committee was assigned to direct relevant agencies to preserve and promote the cultural, historical and architectural values of the villa. In addition, there are solutions to implement the Dong Nai riverside road according to the set plan, ensuring compliance with legal regulations.

The 100-year-old Governor's Villa on the Dong Nai River will be preserved.

Villas associated with the history of Bien Hoa's development

The Governor's Villa is located in a location that is considered good in terms of feng shui: facing the Dong Nai River, with its back leaning against Binh Dien Mountain, in Buu Long Ward (Bien Hoa City). The owner of the villa is Governor Vo Ha Thanh. Locals also call this villa Lau Ong Phu.

The villa has French villa architecture of the early 20th century, with architectural and artistic value.

Dong Nai Provincial Party Committee decided to keep the 100-year-old villa of Governor Vo Ha Thanh.

According to the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Dong Nai province, Vo Ha Thanh was born in 1876, originally from Quang Ngai . He migrated to Bien Hoa with his family when he was young. When he grew up, he worked as a stone worker, gradually becoming rich thanks to his diligence and savings. He then bought land to build a plantation, and by the end of his life owned about 650 hectares of land. Also according to the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Vo Ha Thanh held the position of Deputy Canton (canton) from 1911 - 1924, and Chief Canton from 1925 - 1935 (there is no information about which Canton in Bien Hoa).

The above villa was started by Mr. Vo Ha Thanh in 1920 and completed in 1924. The villa has a strong French architectural and artistic style, combined with Eastern feng shui in the early 20th century. With the characteristic features of symmetrical architecture, the villa's foundation was built of green stone, the walls were built of baked bricks, painted yellow, reinforced concrete columns, the roof was covered with layered tiles, the doors and windows were made of brown wooden shutters; the decorative patterns on the ceiling and column heads were mainly simple floral motifs in European style. The house consists of 1 floor, 1 ground floor, and 1 basement.

Portrait of Mr. Vo Ha Thanh, owner of the villa

PHOTO: DOCUMENTS PROVIDED BY DEPARTMENT OF CULTURE, SPORTS AND TOURISM OF DONG NAI

2/3 of the villas are located in the area cleared for construction of the Dong Nai riverside road.

According to information provided by the family and local people, most of the materials used to build the villa were imported from France. Notably, at the time of completion, this was the largest private residence in Bien Hoa province. During the flood in the year of Nham Thin (1952) in Bien Hoa, the villa of Governor Vo Ha Thanh became a refuge for more than 100 local people. In 1996, this place was chosen as the main setting for filming the movie Nguoi dep Tay Do.

Qualified to establish a monument ranking profile

According to the assessment of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Dong Nai province, the villa has the architecture of a French villa in the early 20th century, has architectural and artistic value, and demonstrates the beauty of the cultural exchange between the two countries and the history of the country during the French colonial period. The Vo Ha Thanh villa has been closely associated with the history of development, landscape and urban architecture of Bien Hoa over the past 100 years. Therefore, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Dong Nai province proposed that the Dong Nai Provincial Party Committee preserve and maintain this 100-year-old villa.

Pattern on main door

Ground floor space

Stairs to the first floor in the villa

"According to the provisions of the Law on Cultural Heritage, the Vo Ha Thanh ancient house is an architectural work of architectural and artistic value that needs to be considered by the Provincial Party Committee and the People's Committee of Dong Nai province to direct relevant agencies to research, evaluate, and prepare scientific records to rank the relic," the report signed by Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Dong Nai province, Le Thi Ngoc Loan, and sent to the Standing Committee of the Provincial Party Committee clearly stated.

However, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism also noted that in case of deciding to retain the ancient house of Vo Ha Thanh, it is necessary to be extremely careful in management and exploitation, because this is a privately owned property, so there must be agreement between the legal representative of the house and the authorities in preserving and promoting its value.

"If necessary, the state can consider the option of requisitioning, then carry out comprehensive renovation and restoration (because the house is currently seriously degraded, not ensuring safety for residents and visitors) and turn it into a tourist destination, or into a pottery museum, a stone museum... for example. This way, the architectural value of the house can be preserved, while avoiding legal troubles that may arise in exploiting the value of this house in the future," the document of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Dong Nai province stated.

Once listed as a monument

On September 26, speaking with Thanh Nien reporter, Mr. Nguyen Hong An, Deputy Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Dong Nai province, said that 8 years ago, the house was included in the list of ranked relics and scenic spots by the Provincial People's Committee. Specifically, in 2016, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism directed the Management Board of Relics and Scenic Spots of Dong Nai province (currently merged into Dong Nai Museum - PV ) to research, make a preliminary assessment and propose to add it to the list of proposed provincial-level relics because this is an ancient house with architectural and artistic value. In March 2016, the Dong Nai Provincial People's Committee issued a Decision approving the list of changes and additions to the planning roadmap for ranking relics and scenic spots in Dong Nai province for the period 2011 - 2020. This list includes "Mr. Phu's house", which is the villa of Governor Vo Ha Thanh. After that, the Management Board of Monuments and Landscapes of Dong Nai province contacted the house owner many times, requesting to coordinate in establishing a scientific dossier to rank the relic. However, at that time (2016 - PV ), the person directly managing the house did not agree to rank the relic. Therefore, the Management Board of Monuments and Landscapes stopped establishing the relic dossier and removed it from the list of dossiers to rank the relic. Also according to Mr. An, in 2023, when the house was subject to clearance to construct the road along the Dong Nai river, the manager sent a petition to the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism requesting consideration to keep the 100-year-old villa.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/giu-lai-biet-thu-doc-phu-su-100-nam-tuoi-o-bien-hoa-185240926232353494.htm