Documenting Hiroshima 80 years after A-bombing: In summer 1947, Hiroshima takes steps toward becoming city of peace
Jan. 27, 2025
by Kyosuke Mizukawa, Senior Staff Writer
In the summer of 1947, two years after the atomic bombing, the number of houses and shops around the hypocenter, which had been reduced to scorched earth, was beginning to increase. Shunkichi Kikuchi, a photographer from Tokyo who took photographs of Hiroshima’s devastation in October 1945 (passing away in 1990 at the age of 74), returned to the city in August 1947. This time, he turned his camera on the cityscapes and citizens as they moved toward recovery. His efforts were for the production of Living Hiroshima, a photo collection for an international audience that had been commissioned by the Hiroshima Prefecture Tourism Association to the publisher Setonaikai Bunko (Seto Inland Sea Library).
In August 1947, the first Peace Festival was held in Hiroshima City. Hiroshima’s citizens were making a fresh start from amidst the ruins, and the municipal government was aiming to rebuild as a city of peace. But the devastation from the bombing was daunting. Herein, we trace the history of the A-bombed city from the early stages of recovery until 1949, based on photos, personal accounts, testimonies, and other materials.
(Originally published on January 27, 2025)
In the summer of 1947, two years after the atomic bombing, the number of houses and shops around the hypocenter, which had been reduced to scorched earth, was beginning to increase. Shunkichi Kikuchi, a photographer from Tokyo who took photographs of Hiroshima’s devastation in October 1945 (passing away in 1990 at the age of 74), returned to the city in August 1947. This time, he turned his camera on the cityscapes and citizens as they moved toward recovery. His efforts were for the production of Living Hiroshima, a photo collection for an international audience that had been commissioned by the Hiroshima Prefecture Tourism Association to the publisher Setonaikai Bunko (Seto Inland Sea Library).
In August 1947, the first Peace Festival was held in Hiroshima City. Hiroshima’s citizens were making a fresh start from amidst the ruins, and the municipal government was aiming to rebuild as a city of peace. But the devastation from the bombing was daunting. Herein, we trace the history of the A-bombed city from the early stages of recovery until 1949, based on photos, personal accounts, testimonies, and other materials.
(Originally published on January 27, 2025)
