Tomioka, Gunma
Encyclopedia
is a city
Cities of Japan
||A is a local administrative unit in Japan. Cities are ranked on the same level as and , with the difference that they are not a component of...

 located in Gunma
Gunma Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the northwest corner of the Kantō region on Honshu island. Its capital is Maebashi.- History :The remains of a Paleolithic man were found at Iwajuku, Gunma Prefecture, in the early 20th century and there is a public museum there.Japan was without horses until...

, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

.

As of April 1, 2011, the city had an estimated population
Population
A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...

 of 52,677 (25,848 men and 26,829 women). The total area is 122.90 km².

On April 1, 1888, Tomioka became a town. The city of Tomioka was created on April 1, 1954. On April 1, 1960, Nyuu Village was incorporated into Tomioka City. On March 27, 2006, it further merged with neighboring Myōgi Town
Myogi, Gunma
was a town located in Kanra District, Gunma, Japan.On March 27, 2006, Myōgi was merged with the city of Tomioka.In 2003, the town had an estimated population of 4,901 and a density of 170.41 persons per km². The total area was 28.76 km².-External links:...

 to form the new city of Tomioka.

Landmarks

Tomioka silk mill
Tomioka silk mill
Tomioka Silk Mill is Japan's oldest modern model silk reeling factory, established in 1872 by the government to introduce modern machine silk reeling from France and spread its technology in Japan. The factory is designated by the government as a historical site and all its buildings are...

, or Tomioka Silk Factory (富岡製糸工場), built in 1872, was the first of its kind in Japan. The publicly owned brick building was designed by Paul Brunat, a French engineer. On a side note, the Tomioka Silk Factory is briefed by most Japanese students studying Japanese history, so it is well known.

Nukisaki Shrine is a moderately well-known shrine in Japan because of its design. Whereas a shrine's main building area is usually approached over flat ground or by an ascent, Nukisaki Shrine is entered via a descending flight of stone steps. During the New Year's holiday, an estimated 100,000 people visit Nukisaki Shrine to pray for happiness in the year ahead. This is the largest gathering of its kind in Gunma.

Gunma Safari Park was the 5th safari park built in Japan and the 1st built in eastern Japan. The park's approximate 1000 animals consist of around 100 species.

Tomioka Museum of Natural History houses 35 exhibits on Gunma's natural history, including about 30 dinosaur skeletons.

Famous people

Shinya Dan, a popular vaudevilliane comedian in Japan, was born and raised in Tomioka.

Eijiro Tono, a well known actor starring as Mito Kōmon
Mito Kōmon
is a Japanese jidaigeki or period drama that has been on prime-time television since 1969. The title character is the historic Tokugawa Mitsukuni, former vice-shogun and retired second daimyo of the Mito domain...

in a show of the same name, was from Tomioka.

External links

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