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Chūō, Tokyo

Chūō, TokyoWards of Tokyo
Sumida river02s3072
Sumida river02s3072

Chūō (中央区, Chūō-ku) is a special ward that forms part of the heart of Tokyo, Japan. The ward refers to itself in English as Chūō City. It was formed in 1947 as a merger of Kyobashi and Nihonbashi wards following Tokyo City's transformation into Tokyo Metropolis. Chūō-ku, as a combination of Kyobashi and Nihonbashi, is the core of Shitamachi, the original downtown center of Edo-Tokyo. Literally meaning "Central Ward", it is historically the main commercial center of Tokyo, although Shinjuku has risen to challenge it since the end of World War II. The most famous district in Chūō is Ginza, built on the site of a former silver mint from which it takes its name. The gold mint, or Kinza (金座), formerly occupied the site of the present-day Bank of Japan headquarters building, also in Chūō. As of May 1, 2015, the ward has an estimated resident population of 141,454, and a population density of 13,850 persons per km2. The total area is 10.21 km2. However, because of the concentration of businesses, offices and retail space, the daytime population swells to an estimated 650,000.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Chūō, Tokyo (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Chūō, Tokyo
Circle 1, Chuo

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Geographical coordinates (GPS)

Latitude Longitude
N 35.666666666667 ° E 139.76666666667 °
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Address

銀座

Circle 1
104-0041 Chuo
Japan
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Wako (retailer)
Wako (retailer)

Wako Co., Ltd. (株式会社和光, Kabushiki-gaisha Wakō) is a department store retailer in Japan, whose best known store (commonly known as the Ginza Wako) is at the heart of the Ginza shopping district in Tokyo. This store is famous for its watches, jewellery, chocolate, porcelain, dishware, and handbags, as well as upscale foreign goods. There is an art gallery, called Wako Hall, on the sixth floor. Wako was founded in 1881 by Kintarō Hattori as a watch and jewelry shop called K. Hattori (now Seiko Holdings Corporation) in Ginza. In 1947, the retail division split off as Wako Co., Ltd. From 1894 to 1921, the Hattori Clock Tower stood on the site that Wako occupies today. In 1921, the Hattori Clock Tower was demolished to rebuild a new one. The reconstruction was delayed due to the Great Kantō earthquake of September 1, 1923. The new tower was completed in 1932 as the K. Hattori Building. In homage to its predecessor, the new store was also fitted with a clock. The 1932 building was designed by Jin Watanabe in art deco influenced neoclassical style. Its curved granite façade and clock tower form the central landmark for the district and one of the few buildings in the area left standing after World War II. The building functioned as the Tokyo PX store during the Allied Occupation of Japan from 1945 to 1952. The clock tower plays the famous Westminster Chimes. Wako has branches in Haneda Airport, Shinsaibashi, and some luxury hotels in Japan.