Kumamoto University History Tour Map
Many historical monuments represented in the Memorial Museum of the Fifth High school still remain on Kumamoto University Campus. We hope you enjoy this tour of our history as you are surrounded by nature in this calm and comfortable atmosphere.(*Some buildings will be open to the public from April 2022. For more information, please contact the office listed on the map below.)
( [For printing] Kumamoto University History Tour Map Front Side Back side )
Omotemon of Goko (The Fifth High School), commonly known as Akamon (The Red Gate), was built at the same time as the Goko Main Building. The gate, comprising main pillars and wing walls of brick and natural stone, stands majestically facing the old Bungo Road (currently prefectural route 337). It has never had doors, and used to open up to a farm, Natsume Soseki wrote about it in a haiku: “Entering the dignified gate, buckwheat flowers came into view.”
2. Nakamon (The Inner Gate)
At the end of the sine wave-like path from Akamon, this gate stands in front of the Main Building, facing circular shrubbery of sago palms. There used to be a guard station on the left side in the days of Goko. Its elegant iron doors were removed for obligatory metal collection during the Pacific War, and now only its posts remain. The gate lamps and white fences were restored in commemoration of Goko’s centennial anniversary.
3. The Memorial Museum of the Fifth High School (former Goko Main Building)
– A Designated Important Cultural Property (1969)
The construction of the building for Goko lecture rooms started in February 1888 and was completed in August 1889. The brick-and-mortar masonry construction has Western-style decorations on its eaves and in the interior. Building construction was initiated by the national government, and engineers from the Ministry of Education, Yamaguchi Hanroku and Kuru Masamichi, supervised its design and construction. It is one of the oldest existing former high school buildings in Japan.
4. Monument of Arboretum
This monument was erected to commemorate the donation of some 150 medicinal plant species to Goko by Banjien, the herb garden of the Hosokawa clan, when the garden closed in 1890. The herbs were subsequently transplanted to the herb garden of the School of Pharmacy (currently the Medicinal Plant Garden of the Global Center for Natural Resources Sciences) after Goko closed.
5. Statue of Ryunan Kenji
A Goko student wearing a cloak and wooden clogs turns his beaming face to the distant sky. The pedestal is engraved with the phrase “Gokibokutotsu,” which represents the spirit of Goko to be dauntless and modest. This statue was erected in 1997 by the alumni association in Tokyo to commemorate Goko’s 110th anniversary.
6. Goko Dormitory Song “Bufugentou” Monument (Inscription)
“Bufugentou” is the most famous among the numerous dormitory songs of Goko, and has been continuously sung over the generations since 1905. An excerpt of the first verse is inscribed on the front, and on the back is a sculpture of Goko students dancing joyously in front of the Goko banner. This monument was erected in 1987 by the alumni association in commemoration of Goko’s centennial anniversary.
7. Monument of Kano Jigoro
This monument is inscribed with the calligraphy of the third principal, Kano Jigoro, with his original calligraphy on display in the Goko Memorial Museum. His writing Jundoseisho, translated as “Accordance with the way we overcome winning and do no harm to others in conduct,” represents the quintessence of Kodokan Judo, which he himself founded. This monument was erected to commemorate Goko’s 77th anniversary in 1965 by the alumni association.
8. Relief of Lafcadio Hearn (Koizumi Yakumo)
This monument is engraved with the closing remarks of Lafcadio Hearn’s speech entitled “The Future of the Far East,” which he presented in English on January 27th, 1894. The monument was erected to commemorate Goko’s 75th anniversary in 1962 by the alumni association. The relief was created by Ishihara Shouichi, sculptor and professor emeritus of Kumamoto University (Faculty of Education), and was set up by his supporters in 2004 to commemorate the centennial anniversary of Hearn’s death.
9. Monument of Kuromoto Ue
This monument is inscribed with a tanka poem composed by Kuromoto Ue, who was a professor of classical Chinese from 1893 to 1899. It was originally written on a wooden signpost near a tree planted to commemorate graduation but was replaced by this stone monument in December 1927. The word “bufugen” is said to come from Kuromoto’s literary work “Shugakuryojunikyoki.” His tanka poem, inscribed in Chinese characters, comments: “The young pine tree planted as a memento, adds color to the woods of learning in school.”
10. Goko (The Fifth High School) Site Monument
This monument, looking up at the Goko Main Building, was erected in 1958 by the alumni association to commemorate Goko’s 70th anniversary.
11. Monument, Bronze Statue of Natsume Soseki, and Stone Slab with haiku Inscription
The monument beside the bronze statue is inscribed with a passage from the congratulatory address Natsume Soseki delivered at the anniversary of the school’s foundation on October 10, 1897. As the teachers’ representative, he stated: “Education is the basis for founding a nation, and teachers and students harmoniously learning together shall form the basis of educating gifted young adults.” The monument was erected in 1962 by the alumni association to commemorate Goko’s 75th anniversary. The stone slab, erected in 1996, is inscribed with a haiku: “Autumn is best for reading; it arouses my desire to be of benefit to the nation,” which Soseki composed on the theme of Goko. The statue of Soseki extends his left hand in front, and legend says that a pat on the head will improve your intelligence.
12. The Chemical Laboratory of the Fifth High School - An Important Cultural Property (1969)
This brick building, built at the same time as the Goko Main Building, has a lecture theater, a drug storeroom, and laboratories. The laboratories are equipped with draft chambers, which are ventilation devices (similar to modern fume hoods) that harness the updraft generated by a lamp to expel harmful fumes. This is the only former high school chemical laboratory that exists in Japan in complete form.
13. Shugakuryo Dormitory Monument Site
On the north side of the Goko Main Building, four dormitory buildings for Goko students used to stand. They were given the autonomy to be led by a student dormitory representative and held various events including climbing Mt. Aso. The monument was erected by the alumni association in 1991.
14. Imperial Visit Monument
This monument was erected to commemorate Emperor Showa’s visit to Kumamoto Prefecture and Goko during army maneuvers in 1931. It is inscribed with the names of then-principal Muto Torata and the head of the secretariat Tsujiuchi Hajime.
15. Former Kumamoto Technical College Main Building - A Registered Tangible Cultural Property (1998)
This building was constructed in 1924 and was the main building of the former Kumamoto Technical College. It originally had a wooden design with Western architecture but after burning down in 1922, it was rebuilt with reinforced concrete and a more traditional architecture reminiscent of earlier times.
16. Museum of Engineering Faculty – A Designated Important Cultural Property (1994)
This building was constructed in 1908 as a student machine shop for the former Kumamoto Technical College. Kumamoto University acquired this property and used it as a training facility until a new workshop was completed in 1970. Eleven extremely valuable machines purchased between the Meiji and Taisho periods are stored in this building. They are kept in working condition and designated as Important Cultural Properties together with the building.
17. Research Center for Buried Cultural Properties
This center exhibits artifacts from unearthed remains discovered within the university campuses across different times in history. It is open to the public, Monday through Friday, 9:00 – 17:00 (closed on holidays).
Contact for Inquiry: Research Center for Buried Cultural Properties
096-342-3832 maibun@jimu.kumamoto-u.ac.jp
Higo Iiku Museum (Higo Iiku Monument Hall 2nd Floor)〔Honjo Campus〕
The museum collects and exhibits valuable materials to record the traditions and history of medical education that has been provided in the Higo (Kumamoto) area over time. The materials range from those of Saishunkan, a medical school founded by the feudal lord Hosokawa Shigetaka in 1756, to the current Kumamoto University School of Medicine.
Yamasaki Hall - Registered Tangible Cultural Property (1998)〔Honjo Campus〕
This hall was built in 1931 to commemorate the great achievements of Dr. Yamasaki Masatada, the restorer of the School of Medicine. To preserve this building, it was carefully relocated, intact, 48 meters when the Central Examination Building was constructed in 2006.
The Kumayaku Museum (Kumayaku Centennial Memorial Hall)〔Oe Campus〕
This museum exhibits valuable materials and rare experimental tools related to the over 100-year history of the School of Pharmacy. It also provides information about medication and other elements of medicine.
