32 Kojimachi／麹町

Kojimachi Station is located under the Nittele-dori (Nippon TV Avenue), along which the headquarters of Nippon TV was located until 2003.  A development plan of a skyscraper building on the former site of Nippon TV causes heated arguments among residents, governments, developers, owners, etc.

The area around Kojimachi Station has been called Bancho since the Edo period.  It was a residential area for samurai guarding Shogun and became a high-class residential area after the Mejji restoration in 1868.  Bancho Elementary School is one of the oldest elementary schools in Japan established in 1871.  Although it is a public school, it has been known as an elite school for rich and educated families living in the area.

Many writers and artists, including Akiko and Tekkan Yosano, Kan Kikuchi, Kyoka Izumi, Toson Shimazaki, and Tsuguharu Fujita, lived along the Bancho Bunjin-dori Street in the photo below.

Bungeishunju, a publisher established by Kan Kikuchi, is located in Kojimachi area, which organizes the most prestigious literary prize in Japan on one side and publishes the most influential tabloid magazine on the other side.

prev 31 Hanzomon / next 33 Ichigaya
Return to Central Tokyo, North