I wonder if you can publish your great research as a book? The history of Tokyo is so complex and fascinating.
“Jūnisō’s once venerated ancient trees were cut down one after the other,” alas, that trend is continuing even now as we look at Jingu Gaien’s trees being devastated one by one to make room for company profits.
Thank you, Kristin. It is lovely to know that you think this material is worth a book.
I actually see my articles on Old Photos of Japan as a rough draft for a book. But I first will need to have a larger following—there is a lot of competition in the world of books…
Jingu Gaien is a sad story and feels very much like what happened to Jūnisō Pond. I hope it doesn't have the same outcome!
Yoyogi Park has quite a history. After the end of WWII it was used as a housing complex for the U.S. military. It was known as Washington Heights, and was a small American town in the middle of Tokyo.
Many young Japanese started to visit next door Harajuku to see the shops with large refrigerators, bicycles, and other aspects of American culture. This is how Harajuku got its start as a place of youth culture, which is now known worldwide as Harajuku Style.
Just before the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, Washington Heights was returned to Japan and it served as the Olympic Village for the athletes.
After the Games, the houses were torn down and the area was made into today’s much loved park. Near the main entrance still stands one former bungalow from the Washington Heights years.
I once met an American woman who had lived at Washington Heights as a child. She participated in a workshop I was giving at the Olympic Center and was overcome with nostalgia. That’s how I first learned about its history.
Thank you for sharing. There is actually a Facebook group for people who lived in Washington Heights. Because of the distance in time most of them were kids when they lived there. Are you still in contact with that woman?
Wowowow - Superb background and context to the beloved Yayogi Park. Also shows how much of modern culture is in essence remixed & re-exported. Thank you!
Very true. All culture is really a lovely mixture.
The concept of a 'pure culture' is really a myth. Long before modern cultures came into being, Greek culture borrowed and integrated aspects from other cultures before exporting the new mix to other cultures.
Our Latin alphabet evolved from a version of the Greek alphabet, which evolved from the Phoenician alphabet, which evolved from Egyptian hieroglyphs.
Japan's culture is customarily described as 'unique' but it also has been greatly influenced by other cultures, from its writing system to its cuisine to its fashion.
As humans we learn from, and depend on, each other for all our creative efforts. We do best when we operate.
In a desperate attempt to keep the war machine running during the end phase of WWII, high school students and women were recruited to work at Japan’s factories. While in the allied countries it was well-thought out policy to put women to work in factories and the military, in Japan it was an act of desperation. The Japanese military had never really considered working with women.
Part 7 basically concludes the series. I am still working on a supplementary article, a visual chronicle that puts all the photos and ukiyoe of the pond together in one place. It will include images that didn’t make it into the essay. And it will show the locations of those images on maps so you can better visualize the pond.
Also, I will finally announce the discovery of unknown photos of the pond from the 1860s. Still doing additional research on that.
I wonder if you can publish your great research as a book? The history of Tokyo is so complex and fascinating.
“Jūnisō’s once venerated ancient trees were cut down one after the other,” alas, that trend is continuing even now as we look at Jingu Gaien’s trees being devastated one by one to make room for company profits.
Thank you, Kristin. It is lovely to know that you think this material is worth a book.
I actually see my articles on Old Photos of Japan as a rough draft for a book. But I first will need to have a larger following—there is a lot of competition in the world of books…
Jingu Gaien is a sad story and feels very much like what happened to Jūnisō Pond. I hope it doesn't have the same outcome!
Bravo - Yayogi Park was a former parade ground, wow!
The rate of change is astounding and now marked by scattered bus stop names.
Need to visit the miraculously surviving shrine.
Yoyogi Park has quite a history. After the end of WWII it was used as a housing complex for the U.S. military. It was known as Washington Heights, and was a small American town in the middle of Tokyo.
Many young Japanese started to visit next door Harajuku to see the shops with large refrigerators, bicycles, and other aspects of American culture. This is how Harajuku got its start as a place of youth culture, which is now known worldwide as Harajuku Style.
Just before the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, Washington Heights was returned to Japan and it served as the Olympic Village for the athletes.
After the Games, the houses were torn down and the area was made into today’s much loved park. Near the main entrance still stands one former bungalow from the Washington Heights years.
I once met an American woman who had lived at Washington Heights as a child. She participated in a workshop I was giving at the Olympic Center and was overcome with nostalgia. That’s how I first learned about its history.
Thank you for sharing. There is actually a Facebook group for people who lived in Washington Heights. Because of the distance in time most of them were kids when they lived there. Are you still in contact with that woman?
I kept in touch for a long time. She moved to Riga, then Washington DC but then we lost touch.
Oh, what a pity!
Wowowow - Superb background and context to the beloved Yayogi Park. Also shows how much of modern culture is in essence remixed & re-exported. Thank you!
Very true. All culture is really a lovely mixture.
The concept of a 'pure culture' is really a myth. Long before modern cultures came into being, Greek culture borrowed and integrated aspects from other cultures before exporting the new mix to other cultures.
Our Latin alphabet evolved from a version of the Greek alphabet, which evolved from the Phoenician alphabet, which evolved from Egyptian hieroglyphs.
Japan's culture is customarily described as 'unique' but it also has been greatly influenced by other cultures, from its writing system to its cuisine to its fashion.
As humans we learn from, and depend on, each other for all our creative efforts. We do best when we operate.
I concur. A great reminder.
Oh, I see a typo! ‘Operate’ should be ‘co-operate’. But I am sure you figured that out already.
Roger that, Sir.
Wow! Geishas working in munitions factories was not something I expected.
The amount of time and effort into detailing the history of this lost paradise is not at all lost on me.
Thank you for the lesson and all those photographs!
When I visit Shinjuku next, I will have another perspective.
Thank you, Glennis!
In a desperate attempt to keep the war machine running during the end phase of WWII, high school students and women were recruited to work at Japan’s factories. While in the allied countries it was well-thought out policy to put women to work in factories and the military, in Japan it was an act of desperation. The Japanese military had never really considered working with women.
Part 7 basically concludes the series. I am still working on a supplementary article, a visual chronicle that puts all the photos and ukiyoe of the pond together in one place. It will include images that didn’t make it into the essay. And it will show the locations of those images on maps so you can better visualize the pond.
Also, I will finally announce the discovery of unknown photos of the pond from the 1860s. Still doing additional research on that.
* “chronicle” should be “chronology”