The is dedicated to the literary scene in Kobe, Hyà Âgo Prefecture, Japan in the Meiji, Taishà Â, Shà Âwa, and Heisei periods. The museum opened in 2006 in the former Branch Memorial Chapel of Kwansei Gakuin University, a Meiji period building largely funded by John Kerr Branch, a scion and financier from Richmond, Virginia.
It is next to à Âji Zoo and across the street from a contemporary art gallery dedicated to the illustrator Yokoo Tadanori.