The Meihachi Bridge was built by famed Meiji-era mason Hashimoto Kangoro, who also built the famous Tsujun and Reitai Bridges in Kumamoto. After working on the Nihonbashi and Edobashi bridges in Tokyo, Hashimoto came back to his home of Kumamoto to construct the Meihachi Bridge in 1875 over the Tsuboi River, connecting the neighborhoods of Shinmachi 2-chome and Nishitojin-machi. Visible upstream is this bridge's sister, the Meiju Bridge, which was constructed in 1877. Currently, the bridge is only open to bicycle and foot traffic, and has undergone a retro makeover with cherry trees, streetlamps, and benches brought in to recreate some of the atmosphere the bridge had when it first opened over a 100 years ago.