Former Kusuo Yasuda Residence

The Former Kusuo Yasuda House and Garden (the Yasuda House) is a fine example of a prewar Japanese gentleman's home. Located in the quiet Sendagi residential district of northwestern Tokyo, the house survived both the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake and the 1944-45 air-raid bombings. The two historic disasters destroyed much of Tokyo in the space of 20 years. Now a Japan National Trust property, the old wooden house serves as an oasis for both residents and travelers in megacity Tokyo. The house was built in 1919 for Yoshisaburo Fujita, a leading businessman and a connoisseur of traditional architecture. He commissioned Shimizu-gumi (now Shimizu Corporation) for its construction, and the company's in-house architect, Matsutaro Fujimori, oversaw architectural planning and building. Fujita must have been pleased with the beautifully completed house, but he and his family lived here for only a few years. For some reason, Fujita built another, larger house farther west. The Fujitas were preparing to move to the new house when the Great Kanto Earthquake hit Tokyo on September 1, 1923. Both houses survived the quake, and Fujita sold the house in Sendagi to Zenshiro Yasuda, who lost his home to the earthquake. La antigua Casa y Jardín Kusuo Yasuda (la Casa Yasuda) es un magnífico ejemplo de la residencia de la burguesía japonesa de antes de la guerra. Ubicada en el tranquilo distrito residencial de Sendagi, al noroeste de Tokio, la casa sobrevivió tanto al Gran Terremoto de Kanto de 1923 como a los bombardeos aéreos de 1944-1945. Ambos desastres históricos destruyeron gran parte de Tokio en un lapso de 20 años. Actualmente propiedad del Japan National Trust, la antigua casa de madera sirve de oasis tanto para residentes como para viajeros en la megalópolis de Tokio. La casa fue construida en 1919 para Yoshisaburo Fujita, un destacado empresario y gran conocedor de la arquitectura tradicional.