A late Meiji brick warehouse across the road
Kameya Shoji (Former Iijima Silk Mill) Brick Warehouse is a long brick warehouse of the late Meiji period at 1-15-11 Higashi in Koga City, Ibaraki Prefecture, registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property in 2004. It stands on the south side of the prefectural Higashi-Noda Koga road, facing the Iijima family house across the carriageway, with its ridge running north to south.
The building measures 15 ken along that ridge by 3 ken across, on a footprint of 192 square meters. Length is the point: this is a narrow, extended shed of a building rather than a compact block, and the proportion follows directly from what went inside it. The roof is gabled in the kirizuma-zukuri manner and laid with pantiles, with zinc sheet over part of it.
Its date is given as the late Meiji period, between 1868 and 1911, which makes it the oldest of the 4 registered buildings on and around this site and older than the family house opposite by roughly a generation. The national register also classifies it differently from the others: the warehouse is filed under secondary industry, the house and its outbuildings under tertiary. Manufacturing on one side of the road, commerce on the other.
What the brickwork records
Registration number 08-0127 was entered on 9 June 2004 under the criterion for structures that contribute to the historic character of the national landscape. Koga City puts the reason plainly in its own description: the brickwork survives in good condition and still carries the appearance it had when built, and it documents the silk-reeling trade that made the town prosperous.
That trade is the whole context for Kameya Shoji (Former Iijima Silk Mill) Brick Warehouse. Koga stood on the Nikko highway and grew on reeling through the Meiji and Taisho periods, and the Iijima family ran one of its mills. The warehouse belonged to that business. The Western-style house of 1935 on the far side of the road, with its corner tower and marble columns, was what the same money bought a generation later. Read as a pair, the two buildings show where provincial industrial capital came from and what it eventually looked like.
One point needs care. The Agency for Cultural Affairs structure field records the building as single-storey, while its descriptive note calls it a 2-storey warehouse. Koga City reconciles the two: the building now stands 1 storey, but it is thought to have had 2 when built. Anyone comparing the sources will meet this discrepancy, and the city's account is the one that explains it.
How to look at it from the pavement
The wall is the exhibit. Brick here is laid in English bond, with courses of stretchers alternating with courses of headers, so the pattern along the elevation changes every course rather than repeating. The wall is one and a half bricks thick, which is what allows a building this long to stand without a frame doing the work for it.
Follow the length of the elevation and look for the ends. At the lower level the gable walls at the north and south are carried eastward beyond the main volume, and a lean-to canopy, a geya, is thrown between them to shelter the 2 doorways set in that face. It is a working detail rather than a decorative one: goods came and went in the open, and the canopy kept the rain off the threshold.
Then step back and take in the pair. Standing on the north pavement you can hold the brick warehouse and the tower of the main building in one view, which is unusual for buildings registered as separate entries. Late afternoon suits the brick, since low light picks up the difference between the header and stretcher courses that flat midday light flattens out.
Visiting Kameya Shoji (Former Iijima Silk Mill) Brick Warehouse
Of the 4 registered buildings here, this is the one that gives itself up most readily to a passer-by. The long east elevation runs beside the prefectural road, so the whole length can be taken in from the public pavement without straining for an angle.
What is not possible is going in. The warehouse belongs to Kameya Shoji Co., Ltd., stands on private land in use, and has no admission, opening time or fee. Neither Koga City nor Ibaraki Prefecture lists it among facilities open to visitors, and no interior opening has been announced. Photography from the road is unrestricted; the practical advice is to stay on the pavement and watch for traffic, since the prefectural road carries vehicles and the pavement is not wide.
From the east exit of Koga Station on the JR Utsunomiya Line it is about 550 meters north, roughly 7 minutes on foot, which also puts the main building within a few steps. Enquiries go to the Cultural Promotion Division of Koga City on 0280-22-5111. Checked in September 2026.
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Q&A
- Can Kameya Shoji (Former Iijima Silk Mill) Brick Warehouse be seen from the street?
- Yes. Its long east elevation faces the prefectural Higashi-Noda Koga road and can be viewed in full from the public pavement. The interior is private and not open.
- How old is Kameya Shoji (Former Iijima Silk Mill) Brick Warehouse?
- It dates from the late Meiji period, between 1868 and 1911, making it the oldest of the 4 buildings registered here in 2004 and older than the family house opposite, which was built in 1935.
- Is Kameya Shoji Brick Warehouse 1 storey or 2?
- It stands 1 storey today. Koga City records that it is thought to have been 2 storeys when built, which explains why the national register describes it in both ways.
- What kind of brickwork does Kameya Shoji Brick Warehouse use?
- English bond, with alternating courses of stretchers and headers, laid one and a half bricks thick. Koga City notes that the brickwork remains in good condition.
- How do I get to Kameya Shoji Brick Warehouse from Koga Station?
- Leave by the east exit and walk north about 550 meters, roughly 7 minutes. The warehouse is on the south side of the prefectural road, opposite the Kameya Shoji main building.
Basic Information
| Name | Kameya Shoji (Former Iijima Silk Mill) Brick Warehouse |
|---|---|
| Location | 1-15-11 Higashi, Koga City, Ibaraki Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered in 2004 (Heisei 16) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Building area 192 square meters; 15 ken by 3 ken |
| Owner | Kameya Shoji Co., Ltd. |
| Public Access | Interior not open; the exterior may be viewed from the public road |
References
- National Cultural Properties Database, Agency for Cultural Affairs: Kameya Shoji (Former Iijima Silk Mill) Brick Warehouse
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00004113
- Cultural Heritage Online: Kameya Shoji (Former Iijima Silk Mill) Brick Warehouse
- https://bunka.nii.ac.jp/heritages/detail/184023
- Koga City: Registered Cultural Property, Kameya Shoji Brick Warehouse
- https://www.city.ibaraki-koga.lg.jp/soshiki/bunka/15/siteitourokubunnkazai/kogabunkazaikennzoubutu/2420.html
- Ibaraki Prefectural Board of Education, Cultural Properties of Ibaraki: Kameya Shoji Brick Warehouse
- https://kyoiku.pref.ibaraki.jp/bunkazai/bunkazai-registered-6289/
Last verified: 2026.09.05