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The Miyazaki Prefectural Library has published a document titled "People and Folklore of Nichinan City [PDF]" that contains detailed records of Obi Castle Town’s historic preservation efforts.
Reading this document moved me deeply.
As travelers who love exploring Japan and witnessing history firsthand, we should be more grateful for the tremendous efforts made by local residents who worked tirelessly behind the scenes. The tourist destinations we enjoy today were built upon their dedication.
In this article, I summarize the history of Obi Castle Town’s preservation as recorded in this document.
This document records the journey of Obi Castle Town becoming the first Important Preservation District for Groups of Traditional Buildings in Kyushu in 1977, along with subsequent preservation efforts.
The main contents are as follows:
According to the document, a newly elected mayor launched the “Obi Castle Restoration Project” in 1974.
Due to limited financial resources, the city established the “Obi Castle Restoration Promotion Association” and launched a citywide fundraising campaign. Simultaneously, the city council passed the “Cultural Property Preservation City Declaration,” clearly establishing a revitalization strategy that would leverage the historic townscape.
| Revision of Cultural Properties Protection Law, creation of Important Preservation District system | |
| Designation of preservation district, enactment of preservation ordinance, restoration of Shintokudo | |
| Selected as the first Important Preservation District for Groups of Traditional Buildings in Kyushu | |
| Reconstruction of Otemon Gate, construction of History Museum, start of Obi Castle Town Festival | |
| Construction of Matsuo no Maru |
The document records that of the total project cost of 518 million yen, 220 million yen was raised through citizen donations.
A particularly noteworthy section of the document describes the efforts of the Honmachi-dori Shopping Street.
In response to plans for a bypass on National Route 222, residents formed the “Honmachi-dori Widening Promotion Association” in 1970. Through persistent petitions to prefectural and national authorities, they successfully changed the plan to widen the existing road in 1973.
Furthermore, in 1978, they formed the “Honmachi-dori Townscape Study Group” and independently established townscape guidelines without government assistance. The residents created a Japanese-style shopping street befitting a castle town through their own efforts.
The document also records continued efforts after the historic district designation:
The three defining characteristics of Obi’s historic preservation that emerge from this document are:
I hope that the story of the efforts by the people of Obi reaches as many people as possible and serves as valuable information for local revitalization and tourism development. If you are interested, please read the original document.
People and Folklore of Nichinan City [PDF] - Miyazaki Prefectural Library
