Acting on the recommendation of Ernest Sato, a resident British Statesman who quickly sensed Kanmon area’s international significance, a British consulate was established in Shimonoseki in Meiji Year 34 (1901), which became the site of the new, redbrick Shimonoseki British consulate constructed five years later. From the end of the Meiji period into the Taisho period, many businesses followed suit starting with financial institutions like the Bank of Japan, major trading houses like Mitsubishi and Mitsui, as well as clusters of food processing factories set up by the Suzuki-Trading Company along the shorelines of the Kanmon region (former Japanese Trading House. No relation to Suzuki automobiles.). The new arrivals built a plethora of modern buildings featuring solid construction and design-techniques that were leading edge at the time, which shaped the unique look and ambiance of the region. Visitors on the bus tour will learn about different buildings registered as Japanese cultural artifacts, along with details of the era in which they were built.
