In 1938, the Japanese colonial mayor Shuhei Kawabata ordered the city's temples to close, and other temples in Chiayi sent their generals to the City God Temple, which the Japanese dared not interfere with.
日治時期，昭和十三年（西元一九三八年），日籍市長川添修平迫令廢除全市寺廟，各寺廟只好將主神暫存於日人不敢侵犯的城隍廟內，才倖免火焚歸天的厄運。