(56)What is the area of Peace Memorial Park?

The Triangle and the A-bomb Dome

I was under the impression that Peace Memorial Park covers the triangle area bordered by Honkawa River, Motoyasu River, and Peace Boulevard, but is this correct? According to Kazushi Nagata, 46, the staff of the landscape division for the park, it actually encompasses this triangle plus the area around the A-bomb Dome. But defining the exact boundaries of the park is difficult.

Plan to build Peace Boulevard preceded the park

Mr. Nagata told me that the southern boundary is the south edge of the fountain. This means that the green belt, where the "Statue of Mother and Child in the Storm" and the "Monument in Memory of Dr. Marcel Junod" are found, is technically outside the park. The western edge of the park is the bank of the Honkawa River and the eastern edge is the bank of the Motoyasu River. The northern edge is the south side of Aioi Bridge. The banks of Honkawa River and Motoyasu River are stone walls. Therefore, the paths along the rivers and the sides of the rivers are within the park.

How was the area of the park determined?

The area was shaped by two factors: first, the plan to build the 100-meter-wide Peace Boulevard was drawn up prior to the concept for the park; and second, the idea for the park itself arose to establish the world's first A-bombed area as a memorial site.

The plan to reconstruct the city of Hiroshima was unveiled in October 1946, just a year after the atomic bombing. First the plan for building the main roads was announced and then, in November, the plan for new parks followed. The main roads included the 100-meter-wide avenue, known as Peace Boulevard, south of Peace Memorial Park. In terms of large-scale parks, the plan incorporated Nakajima Park-the triangle for the present Peace Memorial Park-as well as Central Park, in Naka Ward, and East Park, in Higashi Ward. East Park, though, was never constructed and the plan to build it was abandoned in 1961.

According to "Hiroshima's New History and Culture," the design of Peace Boulevard seemed to be set by the end of 1945. The book includes a comment made by an official of the city planning division of the prefectural office, who said, "After the avenue was planned, the idea was raised to turn the triangle-shaped area into a park to commemorate the atomic bombing."

However, at the time, the area around the A-bomb Dome was outside the designated boundary for Nakajima Park. When the reconstruction plan was announced in November 1946, the area was part of Central Park.

A-bomb Dome was initially within Central Park

The name "Peace Memorial Park" first appeared in an official city document on March 31, 1952, when the Hiroshima Peace Memorial City Construction Plan was confirmed, this plan based on the previous reconstruction plan. In line with the new plan, the area around the A-bomb Dome became part of Peace Memorial Park. But why was the designation changed? Norioki Ishimaru, 68, a professor at Hiroshima International University, is an expert on the history of Hiroshima's city planning and well-versed in the reconstruction period. He explains: "The area that includes the A-bomb Dome presumably had a stronger connection to Nakajima Park than to Central Park."

This thought is underscored by the design for Peace Memorial Park, created by the late Kenzo Tange in 1949. The plan arranged the A-bomb Dome, the Peace Tower (eventually replaced by the Cenotaph for the A-bomb Victims), and the main building of Peace Memorial Museum along a straight axis, making the A-bomb Dome part of Peace Memorial Park. Furthermore, a document from August 1951 left by the former Ministry of Construction, which had established a special committee for reconstructing Hiroshima, stated that the A-bomb Dome was regarded as "the only remaining A-bomb ruins."

The exact hypocenter of the atomic bomb, Shima Hospital, is actually located outside the park area. Professor Ishimaru assumes that "The location of the hypocenter wasn't clear at the time."

Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park is 12.21ha in area. The largest park in Hiroshima is Central Park with about 41.57ha in area. In fact, the old Hiroshima Municipal Stadium, facing the A-bomb Dome, is located in Central Park. The history of how the area for Peace Memorial Park was determined is seldom considered today. (Kensuke Murashima, Staff Writer)