Yokohama Navy Exchange was where?

To get to Negishi/Yokohama Navy Exchange & Housing Area from Negishi Train Station, take bus 103 to Negishi-dai. The end of the bus route is at the entrance to Negishi Navy Housing.

My family lived in the Navy Housing Area 2, 209B to be exact from Oct 64 through Sep 67. I attended Byrd school for 5th grade and then St. Joseph's College for 6th and 7th. I remember the trolleys along Avenue D, the Bon Odori festival on the high school field and many wonderful trips to Tokyo, Kamakura and other places.

I lived in Bayview 76-78 before moving to Yokosuka. Went to Kinnick Middle School ,saw movies at the Bill Chickering Theatre, delivered the Stars and Stripes, swam at the pool in area 1, rode my bike to Motomatchi. Lots of fond memories! I revisited this area in 2000, so much has changes, not a single bit of evidence of the military housing.

My husband was stationed at Kamiseya in 69-70 and we lived in Negeshi Heights with our two small children. Our three year old attended ''Lighthouse Nursery School'' near the exchange. Japan was a culture shock to me. I remember traffic, smog, earthquakes, trains, taxie cabs, fried rice, chop sticks, and dear friends who became family and made Japan home. I love to tell my grandchildren about Japan and the great people who live there.

Ave. D, ah yes. The exchange, the bowling alley, the theater. And the officers club was around the corner in Bayside Courts, the short-term housing area. I used to play piano one night a week in the OC, it was Roast Beef night. Lived on top of the hill in a small detached house. Dated the daughter of the brass who lived in the big admirals house on the way to YC&AC.

We lived across Avenue D from the middle gate of Area 2 housing area at # 91 Sannotani from 1954-1961. The PX/commissary complex was about a half mile north of our home. Anyone remember the Bill Chickering Theater? How about the Neet Nac Club?
Dad was a DAC, and worked for the Japan Procurement Agency, Department of the Army.
Regards,
Eric

Maggie has it right including the "Yohi" Nile C. Kinnick Website for a few photos of the area. The Neet-Nac "Canteen" teen club, Area's 1 & 2, Bayside, Bayview, Nasugbu-Beach, Kominato, Sankien Gardens, East & West Bluff, Sagiyama Ridge, Negishi-Dai hgts. Yokohama Yacht Club, YCAC, North Pier, Motomachi, Isazaki-Cho, Honmoku, St. Maur's & St. Josephs, China-Town, Zebra Club, - The Bill Chickering, Commisary, Bowling Alley & Bowling Leagues, Life-guarding at the Pool in Area 1 Nasugbu Beach Exchanges Army PX & Navy, Pixie-Pantry & Party Pantry, buses to Kishine Barracks, Ofuna, Oppama, Ikego, Camp Zama, Yokosuka, Kamiseya and Atsugi. Air Force Bases at Johnson, Narimasu, Green Park, Yokota, Tachikawa, Fuchu, General Depot, Sea Scouts & Monkey Island, Camp Gotemba base of Mt.Fuji.Up Mt. Fujiyama 3 times with 3 Fuji Poles -lava slide down, & Nokogiriyama - Saw Mts twice, Escapade at the Imperial Palace Gardens, 64' Tokyo Olympics and Gakuge Daigaku, racing "otobikes" in Hamamatsu, Kamakura-Hayama-Zushi trips to the beach, Sophia University & U. of Maryland Ext. - Camp Zama! Jurassaic - it's hard to believe. Bon-Odori, Football games, the Pharoahs - legends and now fond memories most of them.

I lived in Yokohama for 5 years. 1971 ~ 1976.
I attended Kinnick Middle School in Yokohama and Yo-Hi at Yokosuka. We family and I lived at 578-C Negeshi Heights (right across from the Grandstand). In fact, our former house is the one that is pictured in the Negeshi Community Bulletin Board. I would like to hear from others who either live in Negeshi now, or have in the past.

My Dad was in the US Army and we were stationed at Yokohama from about 1970 to June of 71 when he retired and we moved stateside.
I remembered attending class at the high school and walking at lunchtime past a ball field to where the commissary, theater and some other buildings were. I had finished 5th grade at I think was probably the Byrd school and for 6th grade we went to the high school where I remember our class was in a smaller building, vaguely like a portable building.
We lived a few miles away on top of a ridge, I believe Ave D eventually led to the ridge where it entered a tunnel, a side road went up the ridge to the top where there was scattered military housing areas. When we left we were the last family in our building to leave, the land was reverting back to the Japanese government.
In the early 90s my Mom and sister visited and took pics of where we lived, its now condos or apartments but the stone walls we used to climb are still there.

I had to do a real CSI number, but here's what I came up with. When the Navy gave back the properties along Ave D, everything was levelled. I'm pretty sure that the MyCal Honmoku complex now covers up the theater/bowling alley/PX area. The housing area at the bottom of Fire Engine Hill has been turned into very attractive row townhouses. The schools at the bottom of the other hill street are gone, as is the street itself! The area along the hilltop where we lived is now a lovely long walking park. It seems that Fire Engine Hill still exists, where it runs into Ave. D is now called Amerikagaza Gate, it still runs into YC&AC but there are only homes on the N side of the street. S side has gone to seed. It is very disconcerting to remember what was there and realize it's all gone. Didn't go to Negishi, so no update on that. Motomachi and the Bluff still the same.

Going thru some personal papers my Mom left me after she passed away, found my old school report card. I attended Nile Kinnick middle school in 70-71.
Found a map online of the Yokohoma military housing, we lived up on West Bluff in the 8-508 building facing the main intersection between East and West Bluff.

One of the weirdest things happened when our class had a field trip to the Yokohama pier where the park and museums were. Our teacher was Miss Lilly, a very elderly American lady. We took local transit (cant remember bus or trolley or both) there and we split up into 3 or 4 groups and were supposed to meet up several hours later to return to school. When it was time to meet up all us kids were there but Miss Lilly was not to be seen. After waiting for awhile we went ahead and took transit back to school.
Miss Lilly showed up after that on her own, she was drunk as a skunk!
The other teachers took her away and we never saw her again :(
Story came out later that she was at a bar the whole time we were roaming the park.
I also remember the VFW hall off of Ave D. I remember my Dad using a credit card key to open the locked door for members only and thinking that was cool :)

FIRE ENGINE HILL...
Its been a while since I read that reference to Area 2 housing. I used to play baseball with Area 2 kids in a playground not far from the fire station.
There was another fire station in the PX site and I liked to ride my bike through the open roller doors of the station, which nearly always brought the Japanese firemen out yelling at me not to take this shortcut.
I never noticed that when I crossed through the station, I travelled over a sheet of plywood, covering a grease pit for the fire trucks.
One day, after I had done a couple of straifing runs through, the firemen pulled back the plywood and set a trap for me.
I didn't see the pit until the front wheel of my bike dropped into the darkness. I went over the handlebars and was knocked cold for a few moments. Sase-san, the neighborhood policeman was called and he took me and my bent bicycle home in his Jeep. I had a lot of 'splaning to do after my dad got home.

Ron who reported on the Fire Engine Hill and housing area along Avenue D...
please drop me a line at emdavis@lakeozark.net
thanks,
E

Been awhile since I posted checked this thread. Since I lived in Bayview, I had to go up and down all the hills including Fire Engine Hill, Snake Hill and the hill that was next to Kinnick MS. I am glad that the brakes to my bike held up, but it was scary going down all the hills. I may have mentioned that I visited the area back in 2000 and took pictures of everything. Nothing looks the same at all. The hills are there, but no signs that the Navy was there that I could find.

I am making plans for a return visit next spring. Will take my son, age 29, with me. Anyone know the low cost places to bunk in Yokohama?
Regards,
Eric

There was a high school there until 1971. I graduated in 1964. The area was called The Beach'' area and besides the high school there was a junior and elementary schools, teen club, movie theater, bowling alley and across the road and next to the ocean was the officers club. Theere is a website where you can see pictures at yohidevils.net

If you are retired from the service, the place to stay is the NEW SANNO HOTEL in Tokyo, close to Shinagawa Station. I'm booked there for this spring for the 55th Reunion of the unit I was stationed with in 1952-55 in Tokyo, Japan.

All that has been mentioned brings back so many great memories. I was born and raised, mainly in the Tokyo-Yokohama areas. Attended YoHi (Yokohama High School, or Nile C. Kinnick H.S.) from '68-'70, when I graduated. Married and then my husband joined the Navy and we lived in Negishi Heights from 1980-1986; lived in Yokosuka from 1998-2000; our kids attended Byrd School and St. Maur's Catholic School located on the Bluff. I love Japan. I wish I could go back, now! I have many relatives living in Japan, so I will make the pilgrimage one day. I recall going to Tokyo , on weekends to go "disco-ing" at Mugen or Zen near Yokohama Station; and Astros in Motomachi. I was standing behind the fence that was around the old school, in 1982, when the wrecking ball tore the school down...that was a very sad moment for me. MyCal Honmoku (upscale shopping) now stands in the area where the school stood. Area 2 has large homes that resemble more like Europe than Japan. Area 1 has changed a lot, too. Behind these areas still remain the same because the streets are still there and some old homes from back then still stand. D Avenue going towards Motomachi still look the same to me, as does Route 16 (also D. Avenue) going towards Yokosuka with the exception of Negishi Station, Isogo, Oppama and Sunny Mart areas. Those tunnels are still there! Taught Jazzercise in the Yohi school gym, Grandstand and YC&AC in the 80's. Thanks for the memories.

Do I understand you to mean that YO HI was there until 1982?
drop me a line at my email address if you have a minute. I'm going back to Yokohama/Kamakura for a week next spring...

Hey!
I lived on Sagiyama ridege in Navy houing back in 1970. I am returning on a business trip this Nov. How is D ave. identified on a map? If I can get to the tunnel on D ave I am sure I can find the ridge.