SHOWA SNAP: Tokyo Tower under construction, circa 1958

This Tokyo street scene shows a variety of vehicles, from sedans like the Toyopet Crown to large trucks like the Toyota Toyoace to three-wheelers like the Daihatsu CO10T. What really makes the shot, though, is the ghostly bones of Tokyo Tower coming together in the background. Based on the vehicles and level of completion of the tower, we’d guess this photo was taken in early 1958. Tokyo Tower was finished that October, serving as a radio broadcast antenna to take the place of hundreds of smaller antennas throughout the city. For a time, it was the tallest freestanding structure in the world. It must have been an awe-inspiring sight as you drove around Tokyo in your Daihatsu Midget. Click through for another photo of the tower nearing completion.

Images: Albatro, Pinterest

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9 Responses to SHOWA SNAP: Tokyo Tower under construction, circa 1958

  1. Toyotageek says:

    Awesome photos. Tokyo Tower is one of my favorite places to visit in Tokyo. I was just reading up about Tokyo Tower yesterday while trying to compare it to the Eiffel Tower. Tokyo Tower is just a little bit taller and not quite half as old.

    One interesting bit of trivia dating back to Tokyo Towers’s birth, “it is painted white and international orange to comply with air safety regulations.”

  2. MikeRL411 says:

    The steel work for the tower was done by Denki Kogyo Kabuseki Kaisha. We [corporate we] hired their foreman Spike Maruyama to take care of the building and maintenance of our 360 degree rhombic array at Camp Fuchinobe sub post of Camp Zama in Kanagawa province. Good man! Really liked his Ozeki sake.

    • Ben Hsu says:

      Tell us more! I’m sure there’s a good sake-drenched story in there somewhere.

    • Negishi no Keibajo says:

      I was there for the earthquake in 2011 when the top mast was visibly bent a few degrees. It was interesting to watch them fix it in the ensuing months. They use an ingenious pulley – shuttle system ti take materials & equipment up there.

      When we line up the airplane for takeoff on runway 34 Right in Haneda, that tower is sitting on the dead centerline ahead of us.

      • Toyotageek says:

        “When we line up the airplane for takeoff on runway 34 Right in Haneda, that tower is sitting on the dead centerline ahead of us”

        That would make for some neat photos… hint, hint….

  3. LB1 says:

    What historic photos! So that’s how it was built.

  4. Negishi no Keibajo says:

    Yikes… I was born in Yokosuka that year.

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