Welcome to Suzaka

Suzaka City is found on the Zenkoji plain in the northern part of Nagano Prefecture. Mt.Nekodake,2128 meters above sea level, forms a boundary between Suzaka City and Gunma Prefecture in the east. This area is blessed with splendid natural beauties such as Gomiike Hafu Heights, where a million azaleas grow luxuriously, Minenohara Heights, a resort overlooking the North Alps, and the solemn Yonako Falls, chosen as one of the 100 best falls in Japan. To the west, the poetic Chikuma River runs between Suzaka City and Nagano City, the prefectural capital. The waters that create the Matsukawa Keikoku (gorge) originate from the Mt. shirane, flow in the northern part of Suzaka. Suzaka, a core city in the northern part of senjochi (fan-shaped topography), has a population of about 54,000.
Suzaka has an ancient history. Its culture was established by the Paleolithic people on the local senjochi (which flows into the Chikuma River). Suzaka is also the site of the largest ancient stone tomb, built in the kofun (ancient tomb) Era, found in Eastern Japan. Later, during the Middle Ages, it become a warriors stronghold commanded by Inoue, Takanashi, and Suda (family name of samurai leaders).
Later, it was Horiﾕs territory, which had 10,000 goku (territorial units) like the castle towns in the modern ages. Even today, there still remain houses, like the Samurai tenement houses, and turrets, that remind you of castles. There are also big and small temples and temple-towns around such remains. They, too, reflect the cityﾕs past.
Suzaka, a central crossroads for traffic and distribution, became a place of regional importance. This is because many old highways such as the Osasa-kaido (road), the Tani-kaido, and the Kusazu-kaido once crossed this city as a shortcut to Joshu(Gunma prefecture) and Edo (Tokyo). At that time, during the Edo period, sericulture (silkworm farming) and manual silk-reeling began to thrive.
Then, during the early part of Meiji period, the silk reeling industry came to be powered by water mills. Soon these were replaced, however, by the steam engine, which caused the industry to make sudden great strides. Suzaka, the starting town on the modern silk road, emerged as one of the largest silk producing towns, and it ranked in importance with the Okaya and Suwa region.
During those times, the areaﾕs silk was transported through Yokohama Harbor to Europe and the USA, and it charmed the women all over the world. Perhaps if one strains his ears, one can imagine the clatter of silk reeling tools and the sounds ﾒkat-ta-ka-ta,ﾓ of working womenﾕs wooden clogs.
Interrupting the success of the Japanese silk industry, however, was the invention of nylon in the USA. To make matters worse, when the Showa Panic (1930) broke out, many silk reeling companies went bankrupt. This precipitated a sudden decline in Suzakaﾕs silk industry. Following the Taisho Panic (1920), sericulture began to be replaced by increased apple farming and the introduction of Kyoho grapes in the countryside. Recently, apples and grapes have became staple products of this city.
In the 29th year of Showa (1954), Suzaka was recognized as a city for the first time. Industrial and housing projects were initiated in 1959. and Suzaka has been growing ever since. It is known both as a town that produces electronic instruments, with Fujitsu being a major company, and as a ﾒbedroom communityﾓ for nearby Nagano City.
Dozo (storehouses) in Suzaka were built from the end of the Edo period until the beginning the Showa period. The storehouses that remain standing, however, date from the middle of the Meiji period to the end of the Taisho period. During this time, of course, silk was still a thriving industry in Suzaka.
These remaining buildings were either coated with yellow sand, white plaster, black plaster, or with black and white tiles in what is called the namako (sea slug) style. The underside of the eaves were plastered one- or three-tiered planes, and round stones, called botamochi (Japanese rice cakes), were placed together to form the foundation of the storehouses.
The various face of Suzakaﾕs historical streets have changed over the course of many, many years. Here in Suzaka, one can visit many historical places: a samurai residence from the Edo period, a western-style building from the Meiji era, a storehouse, a bell tower, a watch tower, an udatsu (roof-top wall that once prevented the spread of fires), three-storied silkworm cocoon storehouses, a Shinto shirine, a Buddhist temple, a lane, and a waterway used during the thriving years of the silk industry. One can also visit Garyu Park and see cherry blossoms and pine trees, both of which have been ranked among Japanﾕs top 100 sites. These places represent the city's prosperous cultural inheritance.
Every July, Suzaka holds its Gion Festival. Historic mikoshi (portable shrines) and eleven kasaboko (ancient weapons) are paraded through the city in remembrance of Suzakaﾕs golden years.
In an ever-modernizing society, preservation of the past is a challenge to many historic towns. In Suzaka, the ﾒShinshu Suzaka Machinami no Kaiﾓ a preservation Society, was established by citizens in 1986. This organization is very active in increasing awareness about the need for the preservation of historic sites. In addition to holding a Machinami Festival, this society awards prizes for the most aesthetically pleasing places in the city. The ﾒShinshu Suzaka Machinami no Kaiﾓ has also organized a group to study how other Japanese cities have successfully incorporated the ancient with the modern.
In Suzaka, citizens and civil servants are working together to come up with a coherent plan for the cityﾕs preservation. When someone wants to open a small museum, a rarity in Japan, or preserve or restore a historic house, efforts are made to raise money. Furthermore, this cooperative effort has led to the establishment of a historic walking tour around the city. As well as becoming involved in the layout of streets, the citizens also seek to have new public buildings constructed in the traditional Suzaka storehouse style.