Kansen-en Park

"This park is an old park created in the Edo period (1603-1867), which used to have a large ground that included the grounds of the current Mizuinari-jinja Shrine. The name “kansen-en (sweet spring garden)” is derived from the fact that there was a water spring at the center of the garden and the clear water was good for tea. There used to be a stone monument, built in 1811, with the characters reading “甘泉銘並序,” at the outlet of spring.That monument was moved and is now located in front of the office of Mizuinari-jinja Shrine. There also used to be a residence of the Shimizu Family, one of the Tokugawa Gosankyo (three branches of the Tokugawa clan) on the land of the park. In the Meiji period, the building was used by Marquis Souma, and then in 1938 it was moved to Waseda University to be used as an adjunct facility. The current area is about 14,000 square meters. This circuit-style garden has a gourd-shaped pond, called “Yamabuki-no-ido,” at the center and Mount Mishima on the south end of the pond, with lots of trees."