The Meiji Restoration of 1868 nearly spelled the doom of Matsumoto Castle. The new imperial government was desperately short of cash, so it decided to tear down the former daimyos' castles and sell off the lumber and fittings. Fortunately, a local preservationist called Ichikawa Ryozo saved the castle from the wreckers, and the local community purchased Matsumoto in 1878.
Sadly, the region did not have enough money to properly maintain the building. The main donjon began to tilt dangerously in the early twentieth century, so a local school master, Kobayashi Unari, raised funds to restore it.
Despite the fact that the castle was used as an aircraft factory by the Mitsubishi Corporation during World War II, it miraculously escaped Allied bombing. Matsumoto was declared a national treasure in 1952.