Shibusawa Ei'ichi Memoial Foundation/Resource Center for the History of Entrepreneurship

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Shibusawa Eiichi Foundation outline Shibusawa Memorial Museum Resource Center for the History of Entrepreneurship Research Dept. Home Japanese
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Below are some useful links related to the study of business history and research in business archives. All links are to English-language pages unless marked otherwise.

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Business Archives & Museums

Institute for Monetary and Economic Studies, Bank of Japan
The Institute for Monetary and Economic Studies (IMES) was founded in 1982 and carries out research activities on economy and finance. IMES holds the archives of the Bank of Japan, the central bank of Japan, and provides for public access to the bank's archives.

Panasonic Konosuke Matsushita Museum
The Panasonic Konosuke Matsushita Museum was founded in 1968 and focuses on the life and work of Konosuke Matsushita, the founder of Panasonic.

Matsushita Memorial Library
The Matsushita Memorial Library opened in 1994 and holds the Konosuke Matsushita archives, including a collection of shashi, books written by the founders of leading businesses, books related to Japanese-style management and management and economy in general, and other materials.

Mitsui Bunko
One of the leading business archives in Japan, Mitsui Bunko was established in 1918. Mitsui Bunko holds materials produced by Mitsui Group companies and the pre-war Mitsui Zaibatsu.

Mitsubishi Archives, Mitsubishi Economic Research Institute (MERI)
Established in 1996 within the Mitsubishi Economic Research Institute, a think tank specializing in research on the economy, the Mitsubishi Archives holds materials produced by Mitsubishi Group companies and the pre-war Mitsubishi Zaibatsu.

Nippon Mining Museum
The Nippon Mining Museum is a member institution of the Nippon Mining Holdings Group. The Museum was founded in 1986 at the site of the former Hitachi Mine and makes use of the mining facilities.

NYK Maritime Museum
The NYK Maritime Museum is a museum of maritime transport history and of the Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK Line).

Toraya Bunko
Toraya is one of the oldest makers of traditional Japanese confectionery (wagashi). The Toraya Gallery has a brief English introduction and a more detailed Japanese website.

Toyota Automobile Museum
The Toyota Automobile Museum, opened in 1989, is dedicated to the history of automobiles. The web site includes a list of the cars owned by the museum.

Yamaha Communication Plaza
The Yamaha Communication Plaza, opened in 1998, is a multipurpose facility that showcases the activities, products and technologies of Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. There is a list of products the company has manufactured over the past 60 years including motorcycles, engines and others.

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Associations of Business Archives

Business Archives Association (Kigyo Shiryo Kyogikai) (Japanese only)
Established in 1981 in Tokyo, the Business Archives Association (BAA) is the only specialized network of business archives in Japan. It aims to raise awareness of the social and historical importance of business archives, to enhance dialogue among members, and to conduct research on collection, preservation and management of business archives, thereby improving the quality of business archives in Japan.

Business Archives Council
Established in 1934 in London, the Business Archives Council has been active in promoting the preservation of business records of historical importance, in providing advice and information on the management of archives and records management, and in encouraging interest in the business history of Britain.

International Council on Archives, Section for Business and Labour Archives (SBL)
ICA is the professional organization for the world archival community, dedicated to promoting the preservation, development, and use of the world’s archival heritage. The ICA’s Section for Business and Labour Archives works to promote professional and scholarly co-operation and communication between business and labor archives and archivists.

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Directories and Databases of Business Archives

Directory of Corporate Archives in the United States and Canada
Originally compiled in 1997 by the Business Archives Section of the Society of American Archivists, the fifth edition is currently available to the public.

National Register of Archives, the National Archives (UK)
The National Register of Archives (NRA) was set up in 1945 to systematically collect information about manuscript sources and is now maintained by the National Archives. The Business Index includes the records of over 26,000 businesses and can be searched by name or type of business.

Jitsugyoshi Nishikie Picture Database, National Institute of Japanese Literature (Japanese only)
In 1937, Shibusawa Keizo presented his original plan for a Museum of Japanese Business History (MJBH) in commemoration of Shibusawa Seien (Eiichi). This is a database of the nishik-e pictures collected for that museum, now a part of the collection of the National Institute of Japanese Literature.

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Academic Institutions with Business Archives (Japan)

Special Collections, Hitotsubashi University Library (Japanese only)
The special collections of the Hitotsubashi University Library contain a variety of sources, such as company histories published in Britain, the United States of America, and Germany, as well as the accounting books of the NYK Line and other companies.

Integrated Center for Corporate Archives (ICCA), Research Institute for Economics and Business Administration (RIEB), Kobe University (Japanese only)
The Corporate Information Analysis Library of the RIEB LC maintains a database of Japanese companies, catalogs of company histories, catalogs of visual data on the Kanematsu Collection, and other resources for the research of economics and business administration.

Library of the Center for International Research on the Japanese Economy, University of Tokyo (Japanese only)
The Library collects materials mainly related to economy and management after World War II. Users can search a range of catalogs, including those of the Ishikawa Ichiro Archives, materials related to the Japan National Railway Union, and materials related to maritime transport during World War II.

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Societies and Institutions related to Business History

Business History Society of Japan (Keieishi Gakkai) (Japanese only)
One of the leading academic societies of business history in Japan. The database of works on business history by members of the Society is particularly useful.

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Shashi Publications

Company Histories (Shashi), Japan Collection, University of Hawaii at Manoa Libraries
A bibliography of the shashi collection in the Japanese Collection of the University of Hawaii Libraries.

Shashi Bibliographies, East Asian Library, The University of Kansas
Bibliographies of the shashi collection in the University of Kansas East Asian Library (EAL). The EAL started to collect shashi in 2002, focusing on specific industries such as agriculture, electric machinery, fisheries, food, and trading.

The Industry Club of Japan (Nihon Kogyo Kurabu) (Japanese only)
The Industry Club of Japan was established in 1917 by leading figures in business in order to promote the development of industry in Japan. The first chairman was Takuma Dan, manager of the Mitsui Zaibatsu. The collections of the Entrepreneurship Library contain entrepreneurs’ biographies, shashi, and histories of economic organizations.

Japan Business History Institute (Nihon Keieishi Kenkyujo) (Japanese only)
The Japan Business History Institute was established in 1965 with the aim of facilitating the compilation of shashi. The institute assists the production of shashi, collects books and records related to business, and honors accomplished shashi publications with testimonials and commendations.

Kanagawa Prefectural Kawasaki Library (Japanese only)
Opened in 1958, the Kawasaki Library and its collections focus on the fields of science, engineering and industrial technology and include approximately 13,000 shashi publications. Users can search shashi and related materials online.

National Diet Library (Japan): How to Search Shashi (Japanese only)
A guide on how to search shashi held in the National Diet Library. It offers concise explanations of shashi.

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Others

H-Business
H-Business is a discussion list for the Business History Conference and provides a forum for dialogue on the history of business and commerce.

Japan Institute for Social and Economic Affairs (Keizai Koho Center)
The institute, established in 1978, aims to build bridges of communication between different sectors of society, and between Japan and the rest of the world. The database of museums, archives, and galleries established by business organizations is particularly useful.

DNP Corporate History Center: Nenrin (Japanese only)
The DNP Corporate History Center (the DNP Nenshi Senta), whose main business is the production of shashi, has put its plentiful experience to work in this website designed to support business archives by offering helpful information and advice for prospective shashi editors.

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