A concrete tower with a domed cap, from 1929
The Shimonoseki City Waterworks Bureau Utsui No. 2 Reservoir Intake Tower is a reinforced-concrete intake tower completed in 1929 near the southern shore of Utsui No. 2 Reservoir in Utsuikami, Shimonoseki City, Yamaguchi Prefecture, and was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on January 16, 1998. No. 2 Reservoir lies upstream, to the north, of the original No. 1 Reservoir.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs gives the structure as reinforced concrete, 29.4 metres high, with an inner diameter of 3.0 metres at the top. Its written description and the city's page give 24 metres including the submerged part, so the figures differ between sources. A round housing sits on the round shaft.
No. 2 Reservoir was built between November 1925 and February 1929 under the city's third expansion project, to meet demand that the first reservoir could no longer cover. The tower belongs to that work.
Why it was registered
The tower was registered under the criterion of contributing to the historic landscape of the country. The Agency singles out the domed roof of the housing and the design of the railing on the walkway that rings it, and describes the tower as a deliberate contrast to the brick No. 1 tower.
Barely two decades after the first works, a second intake tower joined the same water source, in a different material and a different shape. That both survive in the same valley and were registered together is much of the point.
What to look for
The interest of the Utsui No. 2 Reservoir Intake Tower is concentrated at the top. The round housing is capped by a shallow dome, and a walkway circles the tower at its base, edged with a railing whose pattern is where the designers spent their effort.
The 1906 tower down the valley gets its presence from a granite band and a brick housing. This one works with curved concrete and a slender railing, and looks lighter for it. Walking up from No. 1 Reservoir and catching sight of the dome across the water makes the change between the Meiji and early Shōwa years easy to see.
Visiting the tower
The Shimonoseki City Waterworks Bureau Utsui No. 2 Reservoir Intake Tower is a working structure; neither the tower nor its walkway is open to visitors. The city's advance-application tours cover only the Waterworks Archive Room and the Takao plant, so this tower is viewed from around the reservoir.
Just south of the tower is the overflow tunnel entrance, also from 1929. The Agency notes that the two together make an attractive waterside scene, and a viewpoint to the south takes in both. Photograph from places open to the public and keep out of restricted areas.
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Q&A
- Can you get close to or enter the Shimonoseki City Waterworks Bureau Utsui No. 2 Reservoir Intake Tower?
- No. It is an operating waterworks structure, and the tower and walkway are closed. It is seen from around the reservoir.
- When was the Utsui No. 2 Reservoir Intake Tower built?
- It was completed in 1929 with No. 2 Reservoir, a project begun in November 1925 and finished in February 1929.
- How tall is the Utsui No. 2 Reservoir Intake Tower?
- The Agency for Cultural Affairs gives 29.4 metres in its structural data; its description and the city give 24 metres including the underwater section. The inner diameter at the top is 3.0 metres.
- How does the Utsui No. 2 Reservoir Intake Tower differ from the No. 1 tower?
- The No. 1 tower is brick, from 1906; the No. 2 tower is reinforced concrete, from 1929, with a domed roof and a patterned walkway railing. The Agency describes the pair as a contrast.
- When did the Utsui No. 2 Reservoir Intake Tower become a Registered Tangible Cultural Property?
- It was registered on January 16, 1998.
Basic Information
| Name | Shimonoseki City Waterworks Bureau Utsui No. 2 Reservoir Intake Tower |
|---|---|
| Location | 1066 Shimoseto, Utsuikami, Shimonoseki City, Yamaguchi Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered January 16, 1998 |
| Quantity | 1 structure |
| Dimensions | Reinforced concrete; height 29.4 m; upper inner diameter 3.0 m |
| Owner | Shimonoseki City |
| Public Access | Exterior only (interior closed) |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs Database: Utsui No. 2 Reservoir Intake Tower
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00000486
- Shimonoseki City: Registered Tangible Cultural Properties of the Waterworks (Japanese)
- https://www.city.shimonoseki.lg.jp/site/water/5626.html
- Shimonoseki City: History of the Waterworks (Japanese)
- https://www.city.shimonoseki.lg.jp/site/water/5621.html
Last verified: 2026.09.27
