Fuchu Guide Tokyo
- Fuchu History / Musashi Kokufu
- Okunitama Shrine
- Zelkova Trees
- Downtown Fuchu
- Shimogawara Path and Kyodo-no-Mori Museum
- Battle of Bubaigawara
- Fuchu Prison
- JRA Tokyo Racecourse
- Fuchu Tourist Information Center
- Access
Fuchu, Tokyo 府中 東京
by Johannes Schonherr
Fuchu is a city of about 260,000 inhabitants in the Musashi flatlands on the western outskirts of metropolitan Tokyo, it is located between Kokubunji to the north and the Tama River to the south.
In parts residential, in parts industrial, Fuchu is most famous as the location of Okunitama Shrine, one of the five major shrines in Tokyo, the JRA Tokyo Racecourse, Japan's largest horse race course, and Fuchu Prison, Japan's largest correctional facility.
The two main train stations of the city are Fuchu Station on the Keio Line (about a 25 minute trip from Shinjuku Station) and Fuchu Honmachi Station, the western terminal of the JR Musashino Line circling the suburbs of Tokyo and running all the way to Nishi Funabashi Station in Funabashi, Chiba Prefecture.
Both stations are close to Okunitama Shrine, the thriving historical landmark of the city. Just that they are situated on opposite sides of the shrine.
Yoshiie Minamoto Statue on Keyaki Namiki Road, Fuchu, Tokyo
Fuchu History / Musashi Kokufu
According to legend, Okunitama Shrine was founded in 111 A.D. and dedicated to Okunitama aka Okuninushi, one of the main gods of Shinto. Initially, the shrine was run by local clans.
In 645, the Yamato Imperial Court started the Taika Reform, a grand-scale land reform aiming at greater centralization and thus an enhancement of imperial power and taxation. Japan was divided into provinces which were to be directly governed by imperial officials.
The capital of Musashi Province, covering today's Saitama Prefecture as well as western Tokyo, was to be built around the already powerful Okunitama Shrine.
In 645, an imperial court official was sent to Okunitama Shrine were he took up the position of provincial governor and started construction of the new provincial capital, Musashi Kokufu (Musashi Provincial Capital). The town he created eventually became Fuchu.
Fuchu served as the provincial capital until the end of the Edo Period (1603-1868).
Fuchu got another big push in its development when a post station was created in the town in 1602. Fuchu, located at the intersection of the Koshi Kaido (connecting Edo with Suwa in today's Nagano Prefecture) and the Kamakura Kami no Michi (connecting Kamakura in the south with the areas far north of Edo) became an important trading town.
At the same time, Shogun Ieyasu Tokugawa erected his Fuchu Palace on the site of the former Musashi Provincial Governor's Office.
All that remains today of those old palaces and imperial offices are large empty lots marked as historical sites and featuring foundation stones and red painted columns to mark the locations of the former buildings.
The site of the former Musashi Provincial Governor's Office / later the site of Ieyasu's palace, is between Fuchu Honmachi Station and Okunitama Shrine. a larger area of similar design can be found on the opposite side of the shrine, close to Fuchu Station.
Western Gate of Okunitama Shrine, Fuchu, Tokyo
Children's Sumo at Okunitama Shrine, Fuchu, Tokyo
Okunitama Shrine
When Fuchu became the Musashi provincial capital in 645 AD, the Okunitama became the largest and most powerful shrine of the province. The governor greatly enlarged the shrine and combined it with six other shrines of the province, enshrining their deities here.
In contrast to the former imperial administration buildings, Okunitama Shrine survived the changing times and is still thriving today.
The shrine stretches over a large area, wooded by ancient trees, in the very center of Fuchu.
The shrine's honden (main hall) was rebuilt many times. It received its current design when it was re-constructed by Ieyasu Tokugawa in 1590 in Muromachi Period design. This exact design was kept when the shrine hall had to be rebuilt by Ietsuna Tokugawa, the 4th Shogun, in 1667 after it had burned down in a large fire in 1646.
The 1667 shrine hall is the one standing today.
Separated from the honden by large gates, the shrine grounds feature seven sub shrines, all worth seeing, as well as a monument for the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905) and a sumo ring.
The event calendar of the shrine keeps visitors busy throughout the year. At a visit to the shrine on a weekday leading up to the Shoukou Matsuri, the local Commerce and Industry Festival, in early August, a children's sumo competition can be observed.
Children aged about 6 to 10 years shove each other through the sumo ring, fired on by a coach, an umpire, their peers and camera-happy parents.
The shrine's main festival however is the Kurayami Matsuri. The name of the festival translates to Darkness Festival. On the evenings of May 4th and 5th, large taiko drums and a procession of richly decorated wheeled festival floats parade through the shrine grounds.
Main Hall (honden) of Okunitama Shrine, Fuchu, Tokyo
Gates at Okunitama Shrine, Fuchu, Tokyo
Zelkova Trees
Stretching out from the northern gate of Okunitama Shrine is Keyaki Namiki Dori (Zelkova Row), a 500 meter long strip of road densely lined with ancient Zelkova trees. Some tourist brochures refer to it as the "green tunnel". It does indeed feel like walking through a tree tunnel when strolling the street.
The original trees' saplings were donated by the warrior Yoriyoshi Minamoto and his son Yoshiie to celebrate their victories in a campaign in north-east Japan in 1062. Today, a statue of Yoshiie Minamoto stands under the trees of Keyaki Namiki.
Keyaki Namiki Dori / Zelkova Row, Fuchu, Tokyo
Downtown Fuchu
Zelkova Row runs right through downtown Fuchu, dividing it in a new and an older part.
The new part lies to the East and is centered around Fuchu Station (Keio Line). It consists mostly of glass and steel, department stores, shopping malls and government offices.
The area on the western side features narrow streets still lined with vintage cafes and small stores though they look like being on the verge of extinction. Construction sites for modern housing blocks are now rapidly moving into that part of town.
Vintage fish store in central Fuchu, Tokyo
Flags at Koan-ji Temple, Fuchu, Tokyo
Shimogawara Path and Kyodo-no-Mori Museum
a little further out west is an approximately 2.5 km long bicycle path / walkway called the Shimogawara Path. Built onto the tracks of an abandoned railway line in a straight north - south direction, the path is lined by trees and leads through a park-like landscape.
Adjoining the park south of the Kyu Koshu Kaido (Old Koshu Kaido Road) is Koan-ji Temple, one of Fuchu's largest Buddhist temples.
The path connects central Fuchu to the Kyodo-no-Mori Museum close to the bank of the Tama River.
The Kyodo-no-Mori Museum is located in a park and offers historical farm houses, replicas of old Fuchu buildings, a permanent exhibition on the history of Fuchu as well as a planetarium. The park is known for its plum blossoms in early spring.
Opening times: Daily 9 am to 5 pm, no closing days
Admission: Adults 300 yen, children middle school age and younger 150 yen, children 4 years or younger free.
Tel: 042 368 7921
Address: Tokyo, Fuchu-shi, 6 Chome 32
Website in Japanese
The Tama Riverbank itself has been turned into a large park, offering good views towards the wooded hills south of the river. It is popular with bicyclists and for the cherry trees blossoming in late March and early April.
Yoshisada Nitta Statue, Bubaigawara Station, Fuchu, Tokyo
Battle of Bubaigawara
Once of the most important events in the history of Fuchu was the Battle of Bubaigawara in 1333. The battle took place during the Genko War (1331-1333), the war that led to the end of the Kamakura Period (1185-1333).
The war was fought between the Imperial Court and the Kamakura Shogunate, run by the Hojo Clan.
Warlord Yoshisada Nitta, based in today's Gunma Prefecture and fighting on behalf of the Emperor, used the Kamakura Kami no Michi Road in his march on Kamakura. After winning the battles of Kotesashi (in today's Tokorozawa), Kumegawa and the destruction of the kokubunji (provincial temple) in Kokubunji, Nitta's troops moved into Fuchu.
In the Bubaigawara area in western Fuchu, Nitta defeated the shogunate's forces, opening up the way for his conquest of Kamakura.
Today, you find a large statue of Yoshisada Nitta on horseback in front of Bubaigawara Station (Keio Line and JR Nambu Line).
A monument marking the site of the battle has been erected in Bubai Park, just south of the Chuo Expressway.
Monument marking the site of the Battle of Bubaigawara, Fuchu, Tokyo
Fuchu Prison Wall, Tokyo
Fuchu Prison
Fuchu Prison, Japan's largest penitentiary, is in the north of Fuchu, close to Kita Fuchu Station on the JR Musashino Line.
Unless you have an appointment at the prison for, say, visiting an inmate, you won't get to see much of the prison's features.
The prison is surrounded by a 1.8 km long white wall, the sidewalk along it has been designated as an official walkway. Besides the wall, virtually no other prison architecture is visible. No watchtowers, no big gate, no barbed wire. Just a long white wall. The one pedestrian bridge close to the wall has blinds that don't allow any meaningful peek inside. Or rather, prevent any illegitimate visual contact with anyone inside.
A rather unremarkable guard post on the east side of the prison blocks off all unauthorized traffic (both vehicular and pedestrian) into the street between the staff housing area and the prison wall. Somewhere further down that street and out of view is the actual prison gate.
On the southeast corner of the prison is however a store selling goods manufactured in prisons across Japan. The store, whose name translates to Prison Craft Goods Showroom, is run by CAPIC, a company specializing in the trade of prison goods.
Opening times: Monday to Friday 10am to 4pm, closed Saturday and Sunday.
Tel: 042 334 9792
Address: Tokyo, Fuchu-shi, Harumicho, 4 Chome-19
Website in Japanese
JRA Tokyo Racecourse
The Tokyo Racecourse, operated by the Japan Racing Association (JRA) is Japan's largest horse racecourse. Tokyo’s high-grade races take place there.
The racecourse is situated in the east of Fuchu and connected to Fuchu Keiba Seimon Mae station (Keio Line) by a footbridge.
Website in English
Fuchu Tourist Information Center
The Fuchu Tourist Information Center is located on the Kyu Koshu Kaido (Old Koshu Road) on the northern side of Okunitama Shrine. It is less than 5 minutes' walk from Fuchu Station. An English-language tourist map is available there.
Address: Tokyo, Fuchū-shi, Miyamachi, 3 Chome 1
Fuchu Tourism website www.kankou-fuchu.com (in Japanese)
Fuchu Station, Tokyo
Fuchu Access
To get to Fuchu take the Keio Line from Shinjuku Station to Fuchu Station (about 25 minutes).
Alternatively, take the JR Chuo Line from Shinjuku Station to Nishi Kokubunji Station, change to the JR Musashino Line, go to Fuchu Honmachi Station.
Books on Japan
Fuchu Guide Tokyo: Fuchu is a city of about 260,000 inhabitants on the western outskirts of metropolitan Tokyo.