Tachikawa, Tokyo
Tachikawa
立川市 | |
|---|---|
 Tachikawa City Hall | |
 Flag  Seal | |
 Location of Tachikawa in Tokyo | |
  Tachikawa | |
| Coordinates: 35°41′39.2″N 139°25′10.8″E / 35.694222°N 139.419667°ECoordinates: 35°41′39.2″N 139°25′10.8″E / 35.694222°N 139.419667°E | |
| Country | Japan |
| Region | Kantō |
| Prefecture | Tokyo |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Shohei Shimizu (from September 2007) |
| Area | |
| • Total | 24.36 km2 (9.41 sq mi) |
| Population (March 1, 2021) | |
| • Total | 184,383 |
| • Density | 7,600/km2 (20,000/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+9 (Japan Standard Time) |
| Symbols | |
| • Tree | Zelkova serrata |
| • Flower | Magnolia kobus |
| Phone number | 042-523-2111 |
| Address | 1156-9 Izumi-cho, Tachikawa-shi, Tokyo 190-8666 |
| Website | Official website |
Tachikawa (立川市, Tachikawa-shi) is a city located in the western portion of Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. As of 1 March 2021, the city had an estimated population of 184,383 in 93,428 households, and a population density of 7600 persons per km2.[1] The total area of the city was 24.36 square kilometres (9.41 sq mi).
Geography[]
Tachikawa is located on the Musashino Terrace of western Tokyo, approximately 40 km west of the center of Tokyo. The Tama River flows between Tachikawa and the neighboring city of Hino. The Tamagawa-jousui (Tamagawa Aqueduct) flows north of the city, with a great promenade on both banks.
Surrounding municipalities[]
Tokyo Metropolis
Climate[]
Tachikawa has a Humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa) characterized by warm summers and cool winters with light to no snowfall. The average annual temperature in Tachikawa is 13.9 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1647 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 25.4 °C, and lowest in January, at around 2.4 °C.[2]
Demographics[]
Per Japanese census data,[3] the population of Tachikawa increased steadily of the past century.
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1920 | 9,987 | — |
| 1930 | 19,275 | +93.0% |
| 1940 | 41,070 | +113.1% |
| 1950 | 63,218 | +53.9% |
| 1960 | 81,951 | +29.6% |
| 1970 | 117,057 | +42.8% |
| 1980 | 142,675 | +21.9% |
| 1990 | 152,824 | +7.1% |
| 2000 | 164,709 | +7.8% |
| 2010 | 179,503 | +9.0% |
History[]
The area of present-day Tachikawa was part of ancient Musashi Province and was controlled from the Heian period through then Sengoku period by the Tachikawa clan. In the Edo period, it was little more than a village along the Koshu Kaido. In the post-Meiji Restoration cadastral reform of July 22, 1878, the area became part of Kitatama District in Kanagawa Prefecture In the Meiji period, the opening of what would later become the Chuo Main Line in 1889 led to a large-scale land development and on April 1, 1889 with the establishment of the modern municipalities law, the village of Tachikawa was created. Kitatama District was transferred to the administrative control of Tokyo Metropolis on April 1, 1893. Tachikawa Airfield Was established in 1922 by the Imperial Japanese Army, and Tachikawa was elevated to town status the following year. On December 1, 1940 Tachikawa was elevated to city status. Before the war, Tachikawa was a military town centered on Tachikawa Airfield, and even after the war, it was a major base for the US military until 1977.
Notable events[]
On May 12, 2011, a robbery of the largest amount of money in Japanese history took place in the city. On that day at 3 a.m., two men wearing masks broke into the office of a security company, bound the sole security guard, beat him until he revealed the code to the company's vault, and then made off with 70 bags of cash containing ¥604 million. The security guard, 36, was seriously injured. Hideaki Ueki, 31, Yutaka Watanabe, 41, Tsutomu Sakuma, 37, and three others were later arrested and charged with perpetrating the crime. All the men allegedly had ties to the Yakuza.[4][5]
Government[]
Tachikawa has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral city council of 28 members. Tachikawa contributes two members to the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of of the lower house of the Diet of Japan.
Economy[]
Tachikawa is a regional commercial center, and is also a commuter town for downtown Tokyo. It is the central city of the populous "Tokyo Santama district", and commercial facilities such as department stores and offices are concentrated around Tachikawa Station. Agriculture is now largely vestigial, but Tachikawa was formerly known for its production of udo.
Education[]
Universities and colleges[]
- Kunitachi College of Music
- Tokyo Health Care University - Tachikawa campus
Primary and secondary schools[]
Tachikawa has 19 public elementary and nine public middle schools operated by the city government. The city has two public high schools operated by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Board of Education and three private high schools
International schools[]
- Tachikawa International Secondary Education School.[6]
- West Tokyo Korean 1st Elementary and Junior High School (西東京朝鮮第一初中級学校) - North Korean school[7]
Public libraries[]
The Tokyo Metropolitan Library Tama Library opened in Tachikawa in 1987 to relieve municipal libraries.[8]
Transportation[]
Railway[]
JR East – Chūō Main Line
JR East – Ōme Line
- Tachikawa - Nishi-Tachikawa
JR East – Nanbu Line
- Tachikawa - Nishi-Kunitachi
- Seibu Railway - Seibu Haijima Line
- Sunagawa-Nanaban - Izumi-Taiikukan - Tachihi - Takamatsu - Tachikawa-Kita - Tachikawa-Minami - Shibasaki-Taiikukan
Highway[]
Tachikawa is not served by any national expressways or national highways.
Local attractions[]
- Showa Memorial Park, an expansive leisure and recreational facility operated by the national government, occupies 1.49 square kilometres of land that was formerly part of Tachikawa Air Base in Tachikawa and neighboring Akishima.
- Tachikawa Velodrome
Sister city relations[]
USA - San Bernardino, California, USA since December 23, 1959
References[]
- ^ "Tachikawa city official statistics" (in Japanese). Japan.
- ^ Tachikawa climate data
- ^ Tachikawa population statistics
- ^ Kyodo News, "Man arrested, another wanted in nation's biggest cash robbery case", Japan Times, 2 June 2011, p. 1.
- ^ Kyodo News, "Sixth man apprehended over cash heist in Tachikawa", Japan Times, 1 August 2011.
- ^ http://www.tatikawa-chukou-j.metro.tokyo.jp/
- ^ "ウリハッキョ一覧" (Archive). Chongryon. Retrieved on October 14, 2015.
- ^ Tokyo Metropolitan Tama Library
External links[]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Tachikawa, Tokyo. |
- Tachikawa City Official Website (in Japanese)
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- Tachikawa, Tokyo
- Cities in Tokyo
- Western Tokyo