The world's largest silk reeling factory, featuring 300 French-style reeling machines. The silk reeling hall, where raw silk is reeled from cocoons, was equipped with 300 French-style reeling machines. At the time, it was the world's largest silk reeling factory. Naozumi Hasegawa, of Tomioka City's Silk Brand Division, explained, "The truss structure, a construction method not found in Japan before, eliminates the need for pillars within the building. This allows for a large, column-free central space. This likely made installing new machinery easier. That's why the original building was able to remain intact until operations ceased in 1987. That's why it was recognized as a World Heritage Site." A groundbreaking workplace with dormitories, a hospital, and merit-based pay. Along with the construction of the silk reeling factory, the company also recruited 400 female workers for technical training. Each prefecture was assigned a certain number of positions, and young women between the ages of 15 and 25 (mostly daughters of samurai) from all over Japan came to Tomioka. The mill boasted a groundbreaking environment, including dormitories for the women, a medical clinic with a resident doctor, three meals a day, and wages based on ability. Wada Ei, a former factory girl at the time, wrote her "Tomioka Diary," a feminine account of her daily life, detailing her interactions with coworkers and the clothing worn by Mr. Brunat's wife, who lived on the mill. After spending as little as two months or as long as two years at the Tomioka Silk Mill and mastering their skills, these women returned to their hometowns and served as instructors at their respective silk mills. These women, too, contributed to Japan's silk industry and, ultimately, its modernization.

Staff continues to maintain and manage the mill nearly 20 years after operations ceased

Tomioka Silk Mill, which was government-run until 1893, was sold to the private sector and continued to produce raw silk as the Mitsui Silk Mill. Management passed through various companies from the Meiji period through to the Showa period, and in 1937 it was taken over by Katakura Silk Mill, run by Katakura Silk Spinning (later Katakura Industries). The factory, which had continued to operate without a break for 115 years, ceased operations in March 1987. However, Katakura Industries continued to maintain and manage the mill with staff for nearly 20 years, until Tomioka City took over management of the mill as a nationally designated historic site.

Contributions to the Popularization of Silk, Technological Exchange and Innovation in Sericulture and Silk-Reeling

After our tour of the Tomioka Silk Mill, Hasegawa explained, "In the past, cocoons were produced only once a year. However, in order to mass-produce raw silk, sericulture techniques improved, making it possible to produce cocoons five times a year. Then, we switched from French and Italian silk-reeling machines to Japanese-made ones, which are now exported to China and India and support the global silk industry." The Tomioka Silk Mill and its Related Sites were designated a World Heritage Site in recognition of two key achievements: its contribution to the popularization of silk through mass production of high-quality raw silk, and its contribution to technological exchange and innovation in Japanese sericulture and silk-reeling.

Today, purely domestic silk accounts for less than 1% of the total silk consumed in Japan. The Tomioka Silk Mill, which supported Japan's modernization, may have been selected as a World Heritage Site so that it can now serve as a foundation for Japan's proud silk culture.

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