In 1930, six years and six months after the Great Kanto Earthquake, Tokyo held a reconstruction festival in 1930, and built reconstruction parks in various parts of the Imperial City Reconstruction Project. The park area, equivalent to the fire protection area during the Edo period, was established from fire prevention measures and securing the evacuation site. The earthquake reconstruction park that still remains in the ward is an oasis-like space in an overcrowded city and is also a disaster prevention plaza.
Large parks and small parks were planned by the Great East Japan Earthquake Reconstruction Charter. First of all, there were three major parks: Sumida Park, Hamacho Park and Kinshi Park.
At that time, Hamacho Park was in the following situation. As is well known, it is the site of the former Kumamoto clan Hosokawa residence.
A fountain and a fountain pond in front. There are children's playgrounds and pools on the south side, and on the east side there is a Josaiah Condor-designed memorial tower at the end of the large lawn. The edges of the Okawa (Sumida River) are planted and you can see Tokyo Bay. The total area is about 8,600 tsubo.
The small park was developed as a set with the reconstruction elementary school. It is said that there are 117 reconstruction elementary schools in the city. Of these, 25 schools in Chuo-ku (at that time, Kyobashi-ku and Nihonbashi-ku) corresponded. Tokiwa Elementary School and Jushi Square (former Jushi Elementary School) continue to exist and are designated as Historic buildings in Tokyo. A small park was created next to a concrete and fire-resistant elementary school.
There were 52 small parks throughout the city. At that time, there were the following 11 parks in the ward (Kyobashi ward and Nihonbashi ward). Figures in parentheses are adjacent elementary schools
1.Tokiwa Park (Tokiwa Elementary School), 2. Hisamatsu Park (Hisamatsu Elementary School), 3. Jisshi Park (Jushi Elementary School), 4. Hakozaki Park (Hakozaki Elementary School), 5. Kakigaracho Park (Arima Elementary School), 6. Tepposu Park (Tetsugunsu Elementary School), Tsukishima Daiichi Elementary School, 7. Kyobashi Park (Tsukishima Elementary School) 8.
At Kyobashi Park, there was a rare two-piece concrete slide at that time, but it was removed last year (2011) due to aging, and a photo explanation board of the past was built (lower right photo). Even today, most reconstruction parks are still valuable as places for local communities such as children's parks and as disaster prevention bases. It is said that Motomachi Park in Bunkyo-ku leaves a slight appearance at the time of opening. ●Akira Makibuchi
