The 1945 Japanese surrender ceremony aboard USS Missouri was held in Tokyo Bay.
The battleship was anchored in the bay on September 2, 1945, while Japanese and Allied representatives gathered on its deck. Tokyo Bay was chosen partly because it placed the ceremony close to Japan's capital and the headquarters of the coming Allied occupation, while allowing a large Allied fleet to remain nearby.
The location also carried historical symbolism. USS Missouri anchored near the area where Commodore Matthew Perry's American squadron had anchored in 1853 during the expedition that pressured Japan to open relations with Western powers. Perry's flag was displayed at the surrender ceremony, although the original flag was hung upside down because of its fragile condition and historical presentation.
Tokyo Bay is not the same as the city of Tokyo itself. The ship was offshore, and the surrender took place on the vessel's deck rather than in a government building. The setting connected the ceremony to both Japan's wartime defeat and its earlier opening to international diplomacy.