Kobe 1870s
View from Mount Suwa

Artist	Unknown
Publisher	Unknown
Medium	Albumen Print
Period	Meiji
Location	Kobe
Image No.	80421-0001
Purchase	Digital File
Author	Kjeld Duits

View of eastern Kobe from Mount Suwa (諏訪山) during the late 1870s, early 1880s. The foreign settlement is located on the coast just out of the frame on the right.

The small grove is Jogaguchi Cemetery (城ケ口墓地). Behind it lies the residential district of Kitano-cho where later many foreigners would build beautiful Western style houses. Some of these houses still exist and the area is now a popular tourist destination known as Kitano Ijinkangai (北野町異人館街). On this image, there are still less than a handful Western style houses.

The temple-like building in the center is the Jogaguchi Lecture Hall of the Jodo Sect Honganji Branch of Buddhism (浄土真宗本願寺派の城ケ口説教所, Jodo Shinshu Honganjiha Jogaguchi Sekkyosho) located at Yamamoto-dori 3-chome (山本道３町目). It was built in 1875 (Meiji 8) as a response to the popularity of Chrisitianity in Kobe. The first prefectural government meeting was held here on May 13, 1879 (Meiji 12).

Just behind the lecture hall lies the road that would eventually turn into Tor Road, now a fashionable shopping street.

Yamamoto-dori was not extended beyond Jogaguchi Lecture Hall until 1889 (Meiji 22), and on this image most of Kobe still looks amazingly rural.

Map of Suwayama in Kobe, 1911 (Meiji 44) — Map of Kobe, 1911 (Meiji 44): 1. Suwa Jinja shrine; 2. Yamamoto-dori; 3. Jogaguchi Cemetery; 4. Jogaguchi Lecture Hall of the Jodo Sect Honganji Branch of Buddhism (this map is from a much later date than the photo, but early maps don’t have the cemetery and lecture hall marked).

see current map

Published January 3, 2011
Updated November 25, 2021 3:04 PM

Reference for Citations

Duits, Kjeld (November 25, 2021). Kobe 1870s: View from Mount Suwa, OLD PHOTOS of JAPAN. Retrieved on June 26, 2022 (GMT) from https://www.oldphotosjapan.com/photos/828/view-from-mount-suwa

I have a small favor to ask

Old Photos of Japan aims to be your personal museum for Japan's visual heritage to increase our understanding of Japanese culture and society.

Finding, acquiring, scanning, restoring, researching and conserving these vintage images, and making the imagery and research freely available online, takes serious time, money and effort.

I do this without charging for access, selling user data, or running ads.

Your support helps to make this possible, and ensures that this important visual heritage of Japan will not be lost and forgotten.

If you can, please consider supporting Old Photos of Japan with a regular amount each month. Or become a volunteer.

Thank you,
Kjeld Duits

support this research

Explore More

Nagasaki 1870s
Minamiyamate

A view on Nagasaki Harbor and the southern tip of the city’s foreign settlement. The main foreign settlement in Oura is behind the hill in the right background.

Osaka 1890s
Dotonbori Theater Street

Dotonbori (also: Dotombori) seen towards the east. The crowded and lively street was filled with teahouses (shibai-jaya), restaurants and theaters.

Osaka 1930s
Nakanoshima Park

Opened in 1891 (Meiji 24), Nakanoshima Park was Osaka’s very first public park. By the end of the 19th century, the area nearby became the focus of Osaka’s modernization.

Add Comment

There are currently no comments on this article.

Kobe 1870sView from Mount Suwa