This district was established in 1869 and prospered as an autonomous district for foreigners, with the offices of foreign trading companies lining it. After the district was returned to Japan in 1894, numerous Japanese banks and trading companies moved into the former foreign settlement and it expanded as Kobe’s center of business. Subsequently, boutiques and restaurants also moved in, utilizing the modern Western-style buildings that remained. In 1995, the district did not succumb to the devastation of the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake and successfully achieved reconstruction, preserving its charm into the present day.