SAGAMIHARA

city, Kanagawa ken (prefecture), Honshu, Japan, on the Sagamihara Plateau. In the late 1930s a Japanese army camp in the surrounding sericultural region helped to unite neighbouring towns into Sagamihara, contributing to the city's growth. Among industries developed since 1955 are those producing metal products, machinery, electrical appliances, and processed foods. Sagamihara is connected to the Tokyo-Yokohama Metropolitan Area by rail and serves as a residential suburb. The surrounding region produces rice, wheat, tobacco, dairy cattle, and hogs. Pop. (1995) 570,594.