Kawagoe is a city in Saitama Prefecture, Japan., the city had an estimated population of 350,541, and a population density of 3,210 persons per km². Its total area is 109.13 km². The city is known locally as "Little Edo" after the old name for Tokyo, due to its many historic buildings.
During the Edo periodKawagoe Castle was the headquarters of the Kawagoe Domain under the Tokugawa shogunate. After the Meiji restoration, it briefly became capital of Kawagoe Prefecture then Iruma Prefecture, before becoming part of Saitama Prefecture. The modern town of Kawagoe was created within Iruma District, Saitama with the establishment of the municipalities system on April 1, 1889. A large part of the town was destroyed in a fire on May 13, 1893 and was rebuilt with many structures using construction techniques of traditional kura warehouses. On December 1, 1922 Kawagoe merged with neighboring Senba Village, and was elevated to city status, with a population of 30,359. It was the first municipality in Saitama Prefecture to receive city status. The village of Tanomozawa was annexed in 1939. The city escaped World War II with only minor damage. The city expanded in 1955 by annexing the villages of Yoshino, Furuya, Minamifuruya, Takashina, Fukuhara, Daito, Kasumigseki, Naguwashi and Yamada. In December 1999, the old core of Kawagoe was designated a Historic Preservation District. On April 1, 2003, Kawagoe was designated a core city with increased local autonomy.
Kawagoe has one private and 33 public elementary schools, 22 public middle schools and four private combined middle/high schools. The city has eight public and three private high schools. Kawagoe also has three special education schools.
Kawagoe is famous for its sweet potatoes, and the local "Candy Street" sells such treats as sweet potato chips, sweet potato ice cream, sweet potato coffee, and even sweet potato beer, brewed at the local Coedo Brewery. Some of its streets preserve the old castle town of the Edo period.
Sights
Bell of Time is a bell tower originally built on the orders of Sakai Tadakatsu between 1624 and 1644. The present structure goes back to 1894, a year after the Great Fire of Kawagoe. It is a three-story tower measuring 16 meters in height. The tower has been telling time to the city's residents for 350 years and has been deemed as a symbol of the city. Currently, the bell can be heard four times a day
Confectionery Row is a small backstreet alley where a dozen stores sell old-fashioned cheap sweets and snacks, most of which are priced at less than 50 yen. The location was known as a neighborhood where scores of confectionery manufactures lined the alley. Many tourists come here to enjoy the nostalgic atmosphere of the early Shōwa period.
Kurazukuri Street is lined with traditional warehouses constructed in a style called kurazukuri and maintains the style of the Edo period. The city of Kawagoe started building kurazukuri-style warehouses in the aftermath of a great fire that consumed one-third of the old Kawagoe in 1893. The style was designed to be fireproof. Within and beyond the Kurazukuri Street, many warehouses from the 18th and 19th centuries can still be seen. The Kawagoe Kurazukuri Museum is located in a traditional warehouse built in 1893 and allows its visitors to walk around inside and experience the life of Edo merchants. The artisan shops in the area include Machikan, a sword and knife manufacturer in operation for generations.
Festivals
is held every year on the third Saturday and Sunday of October. In 2016, it was designated as an "Intangible cultural heritage".
