Samuel Cocking

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Samuel Cocking (* 1842 in Ireland; † 26 February 1914 in Yokohama, Japan) was a British trader in Yokohama arriving in 1869, shortly after the “Opening of Japan”. He is most famous for the large greenhouse (660 m²) and gardens that he developed in Enoshima. He married Miyata in 1872.

His company, “The Cocking Trading Company” specialized in art, antiques and specialty plants, but it was his importation of carbolic acid in 1877 that made his initial fortune. Carbolic acid was used as a disinfectant, particularly against cholera.

In 1880, he purchased (in his wife’s name) the highlands, including derelict Buddhist shrines, on the island of Enoshima and began building the botanical gardens and a villa. The 'Abolish the Buddha. Destroy Sakyamuni' policy of the new Meiji government had made the land available. In 1887, he added a power plant (which later became origin of the Yokohama cooperative electric light company). The greenhouse was constructed of brick and built over its own heating plant, with the tank and the boiler room and the room for the stock of coal being underground. The greenhouse was the wonder of Japan. Unfortunately, it was destroyed in the 1923 earthquake. In 1949, when Fujisawa city took over administration of the gardens, no trace of the greenhouse was found. However, in 2002, during reconstruction work, the foundation and original heating plant and boiler were discovered. In April 2003, the restored greenhouse was reopened.