Matsudo

Matsudo 松戸市
City
Matsudo City Hall
Flag Seal
Location of Matsudo in Chiba Prefecture
Matsudo
Coordinates:
Country	Japan
Region	Kantō
Prefecture	Chiba Prefecture
Government
• Mayor	Kenji Hongoya (since July 2010)
Area
• Total	61.33 km2 (23.68 sq mi)
Population (April 2012)
• Total	481,574
• Density	7,850/km2 (20,300/sq mi)
Time zone	Japan Standard Time (UTC+9)
-Tree	Castanopsis, eucalyptus and cherry blossom
- Flower	Azalea and hydrangea
- Birds	Ural owl, barn swallow and white heron
Phone number	047-366-1111
Address	387-5, Nemoto, Matsudo-shi, Chiba-ken 271-8588
Website	Matsudo City

Matsudo (松戸市, Matsudo-shi) is a city located in northern Chiba Prefecture, Japan.

As of April 2012, the city has an estimated population of 481,574 and a population density of 7,850 persons per km². The total area is 61.33 km².

Geography

Matsudo is located in the far northwestern corner of Chiba Prefecture, bordered by the Edogawa River to the west.

Neighboring municipalities

• Ichikawa, Chiba
• Kashiwa, Chiba
• Nagareyama, Chiba
• Kamagaya, Chiba
• Misato, Saitama
• Edogawa, Tokyo
• Katsushika, Tokyo

History

The area around Matsudo has been inhabited since prehistoric times, and archaeologists have found remains from the Jomon period, as well as burial tumuli from the Kofun period. During the Edo period, the area was tenryo controlled directly by the Tokugawa shogunate, and contained a number of horse ranches providing war horses for the Shogun’s armies. It also developed as a post station on the Mito Kaido connecting Edo with Mito. After the Meiji Restoration, Matsudo Town was created in Higashikatsushika District Chiba Prefecture in 1878. Matsudo attained city status on October 1, 1943.

On September 1, 1954, the neighboring town of Kashiwa merged with neighboring Kogane Town and Tsuchi and Tanaka villages to form the new city of Tokatsu (東葛市, Tokatsu-shi). However, many politicians in Kogane Town were vehemently opposed to the merger, and forced its dissolution on October 15, 1954 with most of former Kogane Town merging with Matsudo instead. Beginning in the 1960s, the rapid economic growth in Japan (and the Tokyo area in particular) led to a construction boom in Matsudo and the development of the area as a major suburb of Tokyo. Matsudo is now the third-largest city in Chiba Prefecture and a major bedroom community (11th largest city) in the Greater Tokyo Area.

Economy

Matsudo is a regional commercial center and a bedroom community for nearby Chiba and Tokyo. The city has a mixed industrial base.

Education

Universities

• Chiba University, Matsudo Campus
• Nihon University, Matsudo Dental Campus
• Seitoku University
• Ryutsu Keizai University, Matsudo Campus
• Seitoku University Junior College

Sport

• Velodrome: Matsudo Velodrome

Transportation

Railway

• East Japan Railway Company (JR East) - Jōban Line
  • Matsudo - Kita-Matsudo - Mabashi - Shin-Matsudo - Kita-Kogane
• East Japan Railway Company (JR East) - Musashino Line
  • Shin-Matsudo - Shin-Yahashira - Higashi-Matsudo
• Shin-Keisei Electric Railway - Shin-Keisei Line
  • Matsudo - Kamihongō - Matsudo-Shinden -　Minoridai - Yabashira - Tokiwadaira - Gokō - Motoyama
• Hokusō Railway Company - Hokusō Line
  • Yagiri --Akiyama -Higashi-Matsudo -

Matsuhidai

• Keisei Electric Railway - Keisei Narita Airport Line
• Higashi-Matsudo
• Tobu Railway – Tōbu Noda Line
  • Mutsumi
• Ryūtetsu – Nagareyama Line
  • Mabashi-Kōya - Kogane-Jōshi - Hiregasaki

Highway

• Tokyo Gaikan Expressway
• Japan National Route 6
• Japan National Route 298
• Japan National Route 464

Local attractions

• Manman-ji – Buddhist temple

Sister City relations

• – Box Hill, Victoria, Australia, since May 12, 1971. When Box Hill amalgamated with Nunawading in December 1994, the relationship was re-affirmed with the new City of Whitehorse. A small, multi-story department store attached to Matsudo train station bears the name "Box Hill".
• – Kurayoshi, Tottori Prefecture, Japan.

Notable people from Matsudo

• Sadao Abe, actor, musician
• Sayaka Akimoto, singer, actress, former AKB48 member
• Shūichi Higurashi, manga illustrator
• Hiroshi Kamiya, voice actor
• Akiyuki Kido, figure skater
• Ryoichi Kurisawa, professional soccer player
• Yasunori Matsumoto, voice actor
• Haruko Obokata, stem-cell biologist
• Matsunobori Shigeo, sumo wrestler
• Kenta Shimizu, professional soccer player
• Yuji Unozawa, professional soccer player
• Yutaka Wada, professional baseball player
• Hideaki Wakui, professional baseball player
• Naoko Yamazaki, astronaut
• Tsutomu Yamazaki, actor

External links

Media related to at Wikimedia Commons

• Matsudo City official website (Japanese)