Omori Kita

Stepping back in time, imagine Omori Kita during the Edo period. It wasn’t the bustling district we see today. Omori Kita was part of a much larger rural area known as Omori mura, meaning “Great Forest Village”. Omori mura stretched along the Tokaido Highway, nestled between Shinagawa-juku and Kawasaki-juku. Its location earned it the nickname “Ai no Shuku,” the station in between. Farmers here crafted small animal figures from rice straw, selling them to weary travelers. Omori Kita also housed three merchants who offered “Wachusan,” a powdered medicine popular among travelers. Even Tokugawa Ieyasu, the founder of the Tokugawa shogunate, relied on this remedy for stomach ailments. Omori Wachusan became so renowned, it was “known to the world” despite originating from Ōmi Province. The area even caught the eye of Ota Dokan, the founder of Edo Castle. Inspired by the scenery, he composed a poem about the trees of Omori. Today, Omori Kita, within Tokyo’s Ota-ku, has six neighborhoods sharing the “Omori” name: Omorihonchō, Omorihigashi, Omori Kita, Omoriminami, Omorinaka, and Omorinishi. These neighborhoods lie east of the Tōkaidō Main Line railway tracks. West of Omori Station lies Omori-sannō, an upscale neighborhood formerly home to poets, philosophers, and writers, and even the German International School before it moved to Yokohama.