Yokohama is the second-largest city in Japan and the country's most populous municipality, with 3.8 million residents in 2020. Located on Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo and in the Kanto region of Honshu, Yokohama's name means "horizontal beach," and it was a small fishing village until the arrival of Commodore Matthew Perry's "Black Ships" in 1853-1854. Yokohama's port was established in 1859 to serve as the base of foreign trade in Japan, with foreigners inhabiting the Kannai district. The Tokugawa Shogunate built a commercial sex district in 1859 to cater to foreigners, and the area became known as "Bloodtown", with 6 brothels and 200 indentured sex workers. A military garrison was established in 1862 to protect British commercial and diplomatic interests, and a large Chinese community developed in the city with the growth of trade. A great fire destroyed much of the foreign settlement in 1866, and smallpox was a recurrent public health hazard, but the city continued to grow rapidly. Yokohama became a silk-trading center after the Meiji Restoration, and the city became home to Japan's first daily newspaper in 1870, its first gas-powered street lamps in 1872, and Japan's first railway that same year. The early 20th century saw the rapid growth of industry, and a rapid population influx from Japan and Korea led to the development of Kojiki-Yato, the largest slum in Japan. The 1923 Great Kanto earthquake killed 30,771 locals and injured 47,908, and vigilante mobs murdered many Koreans after accusing them of using black magic. The city was destroyed again during the Great Yokohama Air Raid of 29 May 1945 during World War II, with 42% of the city being destroyed and up to 8,000 people being killed in a single morning. After the war, Yokohama became a major transshipment base for American military supplies and personnel, especially during the Korean War. In 1956, Yokohama became a city, and its tram and trolleybus system was replaced by a municipal subway in 1972. By 2023, Yokohama had 3,769,595 residents.
Gallery[]
