Official

This identity is Shibusawa City Place, an office building located on the east side of the intersection.

Currently, a major chemical manufacturer "Kao" is occupying, but the reason why it is "Shibusawa" is that this building is owned and operated by logistics company "Shibusawa warehouse".

The roots of Shibusawa warehouse lie in the Shibusawa warehouse department, which was founded in his own residence in Fukusumicho, Fukagawa-ku (currently 2-chome, Eiichi Shibusawa, Koto-ku), with Eiichi Shibusawa as the business owner.

Eiichi Shibusawa is said to have been involved in the establishment and development of about 500 companies, but surprisingly few companies have the name Shibusawa, and currently only the Shibusawa Warehouse Group companies.

The relationship between Shibusawa Warehouse and Kayabacho has a deep history of over 100 years.

The Shibusawa Warehouse Department opened the Minami Kayabacho Branch Office in July 1909 (1909). The Minami Kayabacho branch office was originally set up at the place where the Nippon Yusen company's cargo handling area was originally located, including the land facing the Nihonbashi River. It can be seen that the warehousing industry in Tokyo at that time was supported by water transportation. In addition, there is still an office building called Shibusawa Building along the Nihonbashi River. (Photo on the right)

Immediately after the Great Kanto Earthquake in September 1923, Shibusawa Warehouse Co., Ltd. moved its head office to the location of the Minami Kayabacho branch office, and since then until August 2009 (Heisei 21), the head office of Shibusawa Warehouse was located in Kayabacho.

The new head office in Kayabacho began with ballack construction, but as the structure of buildings and land gradually changed due to the land readjustment project for reconstruction after the earthquake, in August 1929 (Showa 4), a five-story reinforced concrete warehouse was completed on the banks, and in 1937 (Showa 12), a three-story reinforced concrete warehouse was completed on the Kaya-tai-dori St. side. side.

After the war, in March 1946 (Showa 21), this head office and Kayabacho Omote Warehouse were requisitioned by GHQ. Looking at the map at that time, it seems that there were departments called "Central Purchasing Office" and "Post Exchange Warehouse Branch". Did the Allied forces also use buildings as warehouses and logistics bases?

It is presumed that the functions of the office and warehouse have returned after the requisition was lifted in 1954 (Showa 29), but what is interesting is that in April 1972 (Showa 47), the bowling alley "Matelan Nihonbashi" opened and was open until September 1988 (Showa 63). There was a time when you could enjoy bowling in Kayabacho!

The head office office that followed such a strange fate was rebuilt afterwards and now it is the current Shibusawa City Place. In November 1988 (Showa 63), Building B on the left from the Kayabacho 1-chome intersection and Building A on the right in April 1991 (Heisei 3) were completed, and it continues to this day.

There is another building in the ward like a brother of Shibusawa City Place. It is "Shibusawa City Place Kakigaracho" next to Arima Elementary School and Kakigaracho Park.

In this place, the Kakigaracho branch office of Shibusawa warehouse was opened in May 1924 (Daisho 13), and has been used as a warehouse for a long time. After that, the building was rebuilt, and the current office building was completed in September 2009.

Next to this building is the Metropolitan Expressway No. 6 Mukojima Line. The line is being built on the site of the Hakozaki River.…This means that the former Kakigaracho branch office in Shibusawa warehouse was also located facing the Hakozaki River. Like Kayabacho, it is imagined that they used water transportation.

"Shibusawa Warehouse Club" was founded in his own residence by Eiichi Shibusawa, who recognized the importance of warehousing in the development of commerce and industry. We introduced that the letter "Shibusawa", which inherits the DNA, remains in an office building in Chuo-ku.

Both Kayabacho and Kakigaracho are general office buildings only, so they are not historical sites and cannot be toured inside. The only thing you can feel the connection with Eiichi Shibusawa is the word "Shibusawa" in the building name, but you can feel the connection with Eiichi Shibusawa.
As you walk around while checking the sense of distance between Nihonbashi River and the former Hakozaki River, you can imagine the state of the Meiji to early Showa eras, when the modernization progressed and the functions of Edo's water transportation and "riverside" remained. I'm coming!

※This article was written with the interpretation of the author while referring to "History" and "History of Shibusawa Warehouse and Eiichi Shibusawa" posted on the website of Shibusawa Warehouse Co., Ltd. and the Shibusawa Company History Database published by the Information Resource Center of Eiichi Shibusawa Memorial Foundation.