About the Japanese Garden & Pagoda

The Japanese Garden at Point Defiance was established in the early 1960s and features azaleas, rhododendrons, Japanese cherry trees, crabapples and large and small pines. In addition, an oriental footbridge, waterfall, Japanese lanterns and a small “tea house” further enhance the grounds. It provides a peaceful area to enjoy a bit of solitude and is especially enchanting in early spring.

The Pagoda is the focal point of Point Defiance Park’s Japanese Garden and was inspired by Japanese architecture when it was built in 1914. It was originally a waiting room for streetcars. Now this magnificent structure functions as a rental facility for weddings and other private parties as well as a venue for garden shows, lectures and concerts. Gardens surrounding the Pagoda feature pools, a waterfall, a picturesque footbridge, cherry trees, azaleas, and rhododendrons.

Point Defiance gardeners made an effort to design plantings in harmony with the Pagoda’s Japanese style architecture. In 1963, a two-year project under the sponsorship of the Capitol District of Garden Clubs began to give the gardens a more characteristic Japanese ambiance. In the 1980s, the local Japanese community helped add a number of additional features that continued to refine the authenticity of the garden. A Shinto shrine and Torii Gate were re-located to the east side of the Pagoda in 1982. These features were originally a gift to the City of Tacoma from its “sister city”, Kitakyushu, Japan in 1961.

Through a special partnership with Tacoma’s Sister City, Kitakyushu a preliminary design plan reflective of Japanese landscaping traditions and steeped in cultural heritage was developed. This plan will be used by Parks Tacoma to help identify funding resources to advance the garden design into a future project for the park.