Background and Progress of Purchase of Iwate Park at Morioka Castle Site and Maintenance and Management as a Public Park by the City of Morioka

Abstract

Iwate Prefecture managed Iwate Park on land leased from the Morioka Castle site. The city of Morioka purchased the land in 1934 and managed it as a public park. This was to accommodate a plan to fill in a portion of the moat to build a major road through the city. Morioka's management of the park centered around maintenance and improvements. No new facilities were built, and the design of Yasuhei Nagaoka was largely preserved. However, some modern artificial ornaments were added. Later, as the war dragged on, the park management was strongly affected by the exigencies of wartime society.