Ōzu, Ehime


Ōzu is a Japanese city located in Nanyo, the region occupying the southern half of Ehime Prefecture., the city had an estimated population of 40,723 in 19688 households and a population density of 94 persons per km2. The total area of the city is.

Geography

Ōzu is located of the middle and lower reaches of the Hiji River, and in particular the basin at the confluence the Hiji River and the Yaochi River in the island Shikoku. It extends from a coastline on the Gulf of Iyo in the Seto Inland Sea to some points over 1000 meters above sea level at the headwaters of the Kawabe River, a tributary of the Hiji River.

Neighbouring municipalities

Ehime Prefecture
Ōzu has a humid subtropical climate characterized by warm summers and cool winters with light snowfall. The average annual temperature in Ōzu is 15.2 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1644 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 26.1 °C, and lowest in January, at around 4.6 °C.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Ōzu has decreased steadily since the 1960s.

History

The area of Ōzu was part of ancient Iyo Province. During the Sengoku period, it was part of the holdings of Tōdō Takatora, who constructed Ōzu Castle on top of a previous fortification dating to the Kamakura period. In 1608, he was transferred and replaced by the Wakizaka clan, followed in 1617 by the Katō clan, who ruled the 66,000 koku Ōzu Domain under the Tokugawa shogunate. Ōzu developed in the Edo period as a castle town. The town of Ōzu was established within Kita District, Ehime with the establishment of the modern municipalities system on December 15, 1889. During the Meiji and Taishō periods, Ōzu saw great economic expansion due to thriving silk and Japanese wax candle industries. A robust timber trade also occurred during this time, with Hiji River serving as a transportation artery. However, transformations brought by the arrival of railways and motorways disrupted the balance of the local economic cycle.
On September 1, 1954, town of Ōzu merged with the villages of Hirano, Awazu, Miyoshi, Kamisukai, Minamikume, Sugeta, Niiya, Yanagisawa and Ōkawa to form the city of Ōzu. On January 11, 2005 Ōzu annexed neighboring Nagahama, Hijikawa, and Kawabe municipalities.

Government

Ōzu has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral city council of 21 members. Ōzu, together with the town of Uchiko contributes two members to the Ehime Prefectural Assembly.
In terms of national politics, Ōzu is part of Ehime 3rd district of the lower house of the Diet of Japan. Prior to 2022, the city was part of Ehime 4th district.

Economy

Ōzu was once noted for its production of electronics; however, its factory by Matsushita Kotobuki Electronics closed in 2010 due to rapid deterioration in business performance. The economy is now centered on Agriculture and forestry, with manufacturing of toothbrushes an important local product.

Education

Ōzu has 20 public elementary schools and nine public middle schools operated by the city government, and four public high schools operated by the Ehime Prefectural Board of Education. The city also has one private middle school and two private high schools.

Transportation

Railway

– Yosan Line
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Shikoku Railway Company – Uchiko Line
Ōzu's flourishing silk and wax industries brought great wealth and prosperity, particularly at the turn of 20th century. Refinement and cultural discernment followed suit. This resulted in a thriving urban environment of various historical layers, remnants of which are still standing:
-Garyū Sansō Set of three tea pavilions within a lavish roji -tea ceremony garden- overhanging the Hiji River. Built by silk and tea trade champion Torajiro as a personal retreat. It doubled as a Noh Theatre stage and was berth of the local ' architecture style. Completed between 1901 and 1907.
-Nagahama Great Bridge completed in 1935, Inscribed as Important Cultural Property by the Agency for Cultural Affairs in 2014, it is the oldest bascule-bridge in Japan still in operation. Traces of US forces' gunfire still punctuate parts of the structure.
-Nyohō Temple Buddhist temple of the Rinzai sect founded in 1669 by monk Bankei together with Katō Yasuoki, second daimyo of the Katō clan.. Its Zen meditation hall displays a Siddhattha Gotama sculpture, flanked by elevated tatami, a rather unusual setting in zazen dedicated spaces.
-Ōzu Akarenga-kan or Red Brick Wall. Main branch of former Ōzu Commercial Bank built in 1901, evoking Western architecture. Municipal Important Asset.
-Ōzu Castle'''