History & Streets
The history and festivals of Yokohama Chinatown: how it began, the Kanteibyo and Masobyo temples, Lunar New Year and more.
Meiji Bricks and Tiles Beneath Chinatown’s Streets
The bricks under Masobyo and Japan’s first Western roof tiles.
Meiji-Era Sewers Still Work Beneath Chinatown
Meiji brick sewers and the start of modern sewerage in Japan.
The First Church After Japan Opened Stood Next to Chinatown
The statue at Lot 80 and Japan’s first post-opening church.
Lot 135: Where Chinatown’s History Keeps Returning
The hospital, theater and consulate that once stood in Yamashita-cho Park.
Pianos Were Once Made in Chinatown: The Story of the Chew Piano
A piano shop at 123 Yamashita-cho, and the pianos that survived.
Japan’s First Newspaper Was Born Next to the Kanteibyo
The stone at Lot 141 and Joseph Heco’s Kaigai Shimbun.
Yokohama Chinatown’s Festival Calendar: A Year on the Lunar Calendar
A year on the lunar calendar, from New Year to the winter lanterns.
Tailors, Barbers and Cooks: The “Three Blades” of Yokohama’s Chinese
Scissors, razors, knives: three typical trades.
Chinatown Has Ten Gates. What the Four Guardian Gates Mean
East, south, west, north: four gates, four guardians.
Chinatown’s Street Names Are Newer Than You Think
There was once an alley called “Bathhouse Street.”
Chinatown’s New Year Arrives in February
Lunar New Year 2027 falls on February 6. What is the lion dance at shop fronts?
A Sea Goddess Temple Built on a Planned Condo Site
Opened in 2006 on land linked to the Qing consulate. Five incense burners.
How Yokohama Chinatown Began
Why the streets are diagonal, who came first, and how it became a food town.
Kanteibyo: Burned Three Times, Built Four
From a small shrine in 1862 to the fourth temple in 1990.