The Design and Creation of the Seattle Japanese Garden

By Jessa Gardner

Special thanks to Julie Coryell and Shizue Prochaska. Without their tireless research over many years this article would not be possible.

Photo courtesy of the Arboretum Foundation Bulletin, Summer 1990 (photographer Brian Mulligan)

“When I was asked to assist in this project, two points struck me. First, how could rocks, plants, and other materials for a large-scale Japanese garden be obtained outside of Japan? Second, how could people of European descent and second-generation gardeners [of Japanese descent] build such a garden? Never having experienced such a project and thinking it could be a great opportunity to learn, I was happy to undertake the work.”

 -Juki Iida, for NIWA magazine in 1974, translated by Julie Coryell and Shizue Prochaska

The story of the Seattle Japanese Garden’s creation is a fascinating one, highlighted by odd twists and turns. The Garden is situated within the Washington Park Arboretum, which was established in 1934. It was suggested very early in the development of the Arboretum that a Japanese-style garden be included on the grounds. Seattleites were familiar with the idea of a Japanese garden from the 1909 Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition, which featured a small Japanese teahouse and garden.

In 1937, the Arboretum Foundation invited the International Cultural Society of Japan to create a Japanese garden as a featured element within the newly-established Arboretum. A five-acre tract of land on Foster Island was chosen as the site for the garden, and in June of that year a group of Arboretum supporters toured the location with Japanese Consul Issaku Okamoto and his young daughter. Unfortunately, this initial attempt at a Japanese garden was disrupted by rising tensions between the US and Japan as World War II loomed.

It wasn’t until 20 years later that the idea for a Japanese garden was picked up again. Emily Haig, a noted conservationist and wilderness advocate, was elected chair of the Arboretum Foundation Special Projects Committee in 1957, and she made the creation of a Japanese garden within the Arboretum top priority. The Arboretum Foundation President at the time, Carl Ballard, strongly supported the effort as well.

A collection of Haig’s personal writing is carefully archived in the University of Washington’s Special Collections. Through her letters and meticulous file-keeping, one can track the progress of the Seattle Japanese Garden from concept to finished product. Another champion of the creation of the Garden was James Fukuda, the Japanese Consulate’s Cultural Affairs Liaison. Fukuda was well-connected in both Japan and Seattle and brought the project to the attention of many important people, such as Japanese landscape designer Tatsuo Moriwaki and Japanese Consul Yoshiharu Takeno.

Emily Haig worked closely with Mayor Gordon Clinton and Consul Takeno to expedite funding and support for the Garden. In 1958, a request for a garden was proposed to the Japanese Consul-General and sent through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the Metropolitan Tokyo Governor. The Governor entrusted to project to Green Spaces Division (Parks) Chief, Moriwaki, who answered with a team of six experienced designers, led by well-respected landscape architect Kiyoshi Inoshita. Working off only a topographical map and some photos of the existing landscape, Kiyoshi Inoshita, Juki Iida, Tatsuo Moriwaki, Nobumasa Kitamura, Iwao Ishikawa, Masatomo Ueno, and Chikara Ito created 37 pages of blueprints for an Edo-style stroll garden, including a teahouse and tea garden (roji).

It was Juki Iida who made the long trip to Seattle to oversee the construction of the garden. He first arrived in the winter of 1959 to find appropriate contractors for the project. Mr. Iida spoke very little English, and Mr. Fukuda served as his full-time translator throughout the construction of the Garden. They chose local Japanese-American contractors who were familiar with Japanese language and aesthetics. William Yorozu was the general contractor and his Yorozu Construction Company handled construction and planting, Richard Iwao “Dick” Yamasaki’s company was chosen for rock-setting, and Kei Ishimitsu and Sons were hired to construct the buildings around the Garden.

In March of 1960, Mr. Iida returned with Mr. Kitamura, and work on the Garden plantings began. In a mere three months, the entire Garden was constructed and planted. The work was expedited by the use of new heavy construction equipment that had never been used before in the creation of Japanese gardens. On the use of construction equipment, Mr. Iida wrote: “We were fortunate to have trucks, a dump truck, backhoe, tractor, bulldozer, and small crane on hand whenever needed. However, it was a nuisance using machinery to do even the smallest jobs that two or three men would be able to do manually.” (NIWA, 1974)

On June 5, 1960, the Seattle Japanese Garden opened to the public for the first time. During the opening ceremony, Juki Iida marked these words from his diary, which he repeated during his return visit in July 1973: “Far more difficult than making a Japanese garden is maintaining it. I hope for years to come you will carry out my instructions and take loving care of it.”

We hope he would be pleased now, upon its 60th anniversary, to see how beloved the Garden has become within our Seattle community and far beyond!