Dongtaizigong Salt Transfer Station (東太子宮鹽運聯合轉運臺)

Located on the southwestern outskirts of Xinying, Tainan, this was a former transshipment station for salt produced at the solar evaporation ponds of the Qigu Saltworks (七股鹽場) and Budai Saltworks (布袋鹽場). In the mid-1950s salt production outpaced domestic consumption, prompting the state to invest in infrastructure to trade salt on the international market. Construction of this particular facility was overseen by the nearby Xinying Sugar Factory (新營糖廠) with labor provided by the Veterans Affairs Department. The transfer station was completed in 1955 and vast quantities of salt soon arrived by narrow gauge railway, to be transferred by regular rail to the Port of Kaohsiung for export. A comparison with archival photographs indicate the reinforced-concrete awning was not an original feature, but a later addition.

Domestic demand for salt outpaced production in the mid-1960s, ending salt exports, and the station soon fell out of use. Perhaps due to its marginal location it was never dismantled, and still stands today, albeit in a state of disrepair. Local civic groups repurposed part of the grounds for use as a community garden but the platform itself remains largely abandoned and somewhat hazardous. Although readily accessible from the ramp at the south there is a large gap that requires balancing along the edge of the platform to access the rest, making it not suitable for casual exploration.

The platform is located not far from Dongtaizigong Railway Station (東太子宮車站); both are named after the nearby pulp and paper factory. The site is also known less formally as the Nanzhi Salt Loading Platform (南紙卸鹽台).