Former Shimbashi Station and Takanawa Embankment

Former Shimbashi Station Site and Takanawa Embankment Site: Where Japan's Railway Age Began

Tucked between the glittering high-rise towers of Shiodome and the brand-new district of Takanawa Gateway lie two remarkable archaeological sites that together tell the story of how Japan stepped boldly into the modern world. The Former Shimbashi Station Site and Takanawa Embankment Site is a nationally designated Historic Site that preserves the very birthplace of Japan's railway network. In 1872 (Meiji 5), the country's very first train rumbled out of Shimbashi Station bound for Yokohama, gliding across an audacious stone embankment built directly into the waters of Tokyo Bay. For visitors fascinated by the meeting of tradition and innovation, this site offers a rare window into the dawn of modern Japan.

The Birth of Japan's First Railway

When the Meiji government decided in 1869 to build a railway connecting Tokyo and Yokohama, it faced a serious obstacle along the Takanawa coastline. Land between the two cities was occupied by the military's Hyobushō facilities and the former Satsuma domain residence, and these powerful interests refused to release their property for the new railway. Faced with this impasse, statesman Ōkuma Shigenobu reportedly proposed a daring solution: build the railway on a stone embankment in the sea itself.

Under the technical guidance of British engineer Edmund Morel, who served as chief engineer for the railway project, workers constructed about 2.7 kilometers of stone embankment along the curving shoreline between today's Tamachi and Shinagawa stations. The line opened on September 12, 1872 (October 14 by the modern calendar, now celebrated annually as Railway Day in Japan). Trains then glided across the sea, watched by amazed crowds and immortalized in the woodblock prints of Utagawa Hiroshige III. The engineering itself blended British design with Japanese stone-masonry traditions, making the embankment a rare physical record of Meiji-era technological exchange.

Why This Site Was Designated

The Former Shimbashi Station Site received its original Historic Site designation in 1965 in recognition of its role as the eastern terminus of the country's first railway and as the symbolic gateway through which modern transportation entered Japanese life. Subsequent excavations confirmed that the original platform and station foundations had survived beneath the surface, providing tangible archaeological evidence of the inaugural moment of Japanese rail travel.

The Takanawa Embankment, by contrast, was thought to have been lost forever. Land reclamation along Tokyo Bay during the late Meiji and Taisho periods buried it underground, and for more than a century its image survived only in old photographs and woodblock prints. Then in April 2019, redevelopment work west of the new Takanawa Gateway Station unexpectedly revealed the embankment's stone walls, almost perfectly preserved. Full excavation in 2020 confirmed an extraordinary discovery: an intact stretch of the original sea railway, complete with bridge abutments and signal post foundations.

The Council for Cultural Affairs concluded that the embankment was significant as a symbol of Meiji civilization and enlightenment, as evidence of combined British and Japanese engineering, and as essential material for understanding the history of transport modernization. Following the recommendation, on September 17, 2021, the embankment was added to the existing Shimbashi Station designation, and the site was renamed Former Shimbashi Station Site and Takanawa Embankment Site.

Highlights for Visitors

Visitor Information

The Former Shimbashi Station Site, including the reconstructed station building and the Railway History Exhibition Room, is open to the public year-round and welcomes visitors free of charge. It can be reached on foot in just a few minutes from JR Shimbashi Station or Shiodome Station on the Toei Oedo Line, making it an easy stop on any Tokyo itinerary.

The Takanawa Embankment site is currently being prepared for public viewing as part of the Takanawa Gateway City development, which celebrated its grand opening on March 28, 2026. A preview exhibition called the Chikutei Gallery has opened on the first floor of THE LINKPILLAR 2, allowing visitors to learn about the embankment's history and engineering ahead of the planned on-site preservation public opening, scheduled for fiscal year 2027. From that point forward, visitors will be able to walk alongside the preserved Seventh Bridge section and experience interpretive displays enhanced with augmented reality technology.

Around the Site

The Shiodome and Shimbashi area surrounding the Former Shimbashi Station Site is one of Tokyo's most rewarding neighborhoods for casual exploration. The Hama-rikyu Gardens, a former feudal lord's villa that became an imperial detached palace, lies just a short walk to the southeast and offers a tranquil counterpoint with its tidal ponds and traditional teahouse. The Old Shiba Rikyu Garden, another Edo-period daimyo residence, sits a few minutes away in the opposite direction. Art lovers can visit the Panasonic Shiodome Museum of Art, just steps from the station site, which often presents exhibitions on Western art and design.

For those visiting the Takanawa Embankment area, Takanawa Gateway City offers contemporary attractions including the new MoN Takanawa: The Museum of Narratives, which opened in March 2026, alongside the NEWoMan Takanawa shopping complex and a variety of restaurants. Sengakuji Temple, the resting place of the Forty-Seven Ronin, is within easy walking distance and provides a striking contrast between Edo-era loyalty and the Meiji-era modernization story told at the embankment.