Shaw Memorial Church

Karuizawa’s oldest church is a product of the original settlers of Karuizawa.

Shaw Memorial Church is Karuizawa’s oldest church built by priest A.C. Shaw who has been called the father of Karuizawa. Located in the back of Karuizawa Ginza, you can get a sense of the history of the area which developed through an exchange with Western culture.

The town of Karuizawa in Nagano Prefecture developed as a cottage area for Westerners who assisted in Japan’s modernization. A.C. Shaw who was a missionary introduced many of those Westerners to the town. Shaw complimented Karuizawa as “a hospital without a roof”, words which were heard by many Westerners who then built cottages in the area. The missionary also taught local residents about the making of jam which was not well known to Japanese at the time and also about the raising of highland vegetables so that even now he is greatly respected by people in Karuizawa. The church memorializing Shaw has become a tourist site attracting many visitors as a place relating the development of the area.