Yokogawa

Yokogawa is part of Nishi Ward in Hiroshima city, just northwest of Hiroshima Castle. It’s a transportation hub connecting the city centre to the northern part of the prefecture and to the San’in region beyond. The area around the station is a maze of shopping streets, lined with traditional local shops and eateries. Yokogawa still retains the nostalgic atmosphere of the post-war Shōwa period, when the Japanese began rebuilding their country according to a more liberal ethos.

History

Originally it was a manor probably belonging to a religious order on an island on the delta of the flood-prone Ōta River. When Hiroshima Castle was built to the southeast, its dikes were arranged so that Yokogawa became a flood plain. Consequently, its residents suffered serious flooding right up until the 1950s when the Ōta River was partially rerouted.

Yokogawa was completely destroyed in the nuclear bombing of August 1945.

Thanks to their frequent experience of disaster, the people of Yokogawa developed a tightknit community with a strong tendency towards self-help and solidarity. In the 20^th century, this expressed itself in a boom in manufacturing, and in the 21^st century, in a program of innovative community events, including a popular Zombie Night.

Information

Name in Japanese: 横川
Pronunciation: yo-ko-ga-awa