Welcome to a Sapporo of four shining seasons.

TOP ＞ Sapporo Clock Tower
■ Sapporo Clock Tower (the drill hall of the former Sapporo Agricultural College) (A National Important Cultural Property)

The Sapporo Clock Tower was constructed in October 1878 as the drill hall of the former Sapporo Agricultural College (now Hokkaido University). The tower was designed by Professor William Wheeler, who took over as Vice President after Dr. William S. Clark. The wooden building has a balloon-frame structure.

The large clock, manufactured by E. Howard and Co. of Boston, has four faces and is driven by weights. The bell, known for its clear sound, was manufactured at the Akabane Branch Factory of the former Ministry of Industry. A wooden placard with the calligraphy of “enbujo” (drill hall) hangs above the main entrance. It was written by Tomomi Iwakura, a statesman who played an important role in the Meiji Restoration. The word enbujo was said to be suitable for the building because it’s an academic building used for martial arts training.

In the tower building, a video shows the mechanism of the clock and bell, and a scale model of the clock is displayed. Visitors can learn about cultural properties in Sapporo and throughout Hokkaido by using computers, viewing photo panels and reading books.

 

Address: Kita 1-jo Nishi 2-chome, Chuo-ku, Sapporo
Hours: 8:45AM – 5:10PM (last admission 10 min. before closing)
Close: Mon. from Nov. through May (if the Mon. is a nat’l holiday, then closed that Tue. instead)
The fourth Mon. of each month from Jun. through Oct. (if the Mon. is a nat’l holiday, then closed that Tue. instead)
The year-end and New Year’s holidays (Dec. 29 – Jan 3)
Admission: 200 yen for adults (180 yen for groups of 20 or more)
Free for elementary and junior high schoolers
Access: A 5-min. walk from Odori Subway Sta.
A 10-min. walk from the south exit of Sapporo Sta.
Contact: 011-231-0838 (Sapporo Clock Tower)

Common admission ticket for the Clock Tower and the TV Tower
Intended users: Adult and high schooler (Note: Admission is free for junior high schoolers or younger.)
Sold at: Ticket offices at the Clock Tower and the TV Tower
Price: 720 yen for adults (a 20% discount off the regular price of 900 yen), 640 yen for high schoolers (a 20% off the regular price of 800 yen)
On sale: until Mar. 31 2008

View inside the clock tower
(duration: 1min.)
View maintenance of the clock
(duration: 1 min.)

How to view the animation…
■ Facilities at the Sapporo Clock Tower
Facility
Description
Note
Small exhibition room Search through three computerized databases: “Memorial album,” “No. 738 and others” and “Mini-encyclopedia of the clock tower.” Or look through historical photographs and books of Sapporo, and historical books on the Clock Tower and the cultural properties of Hokkaido.
--
Large exhibition room There are displays on the history of Sapporo Agricultural College and the record of repairs to the Clock Tower.
--
2F exhibition room There are displays about architecture, balloon-frame construction, the construction of the clock tower, the mechanism of the clock, maintenance of the clock and clocks similar to this one. In the evening, the hall is used for concerts and lectures.
TOP