English — About This Site -

The Shining Star: The Life of Dr. Toyohiko Takami, a Healer in New York
Yukichi Fukuzawa Was More Than a Thinker:How He Designed Japan’s Rise as a Trading Nation
[Japan–U.S. Trade History] Who Were the Oceanic Group? (Part 2)— Three Men Who Returned Home Before Their Dreams Were Fulfilled
[Japan–U.S. Trade History] Who Were the Oceanic Group? (Part 1) Rioichiro Arai, Toyo Morimura, Momotaro Sato — The Challenge and Aftermath of Young Japanese Entrepreneurs
An Unexpected Hit Export?
How Did Japanese Live in Early Meiji New York?
Young Japanese Men Who Crossed the Pacific in the Meiji Era – a life in boarding house
A Farewell Message from Tsuyoshi Inukai to Yasukata Murai (1879): A Passionate Send-Off to a Young Merchant Bound for America
Morimura Brothers’ Management Philosophy and “Beijo Shinsei”
Noritake, TOTO… Morimura’s Brands That Still Endure Today
Yasukata Murai —The Man Who Turned Morimura Brothers into Japan’s Leading Ceramics Trading Company
Yasukata Murai: From an Ordinary Young Man to the “Genro” of the Japanese Community in New York

Welcome to the English section of America Romantan.
This site introduces the untold stories of Japanese pioneers who crossed the Pacific during the late 19th and early 20th centuries and helped build the foundations of early Japanese–American relations.

Here you will find English versions of selected articles originally published in Japanese, beginning with the story of a young Meiji-era trader who traveled to the United States at the age of twenty and opened new routes for Japanese raw silk.

More English articles will be added regularly.
We hope these stories offer new historical insights and spark your curiosity about the early connections between Japan and America.