The Moji Port, assigned as a special trade-enabling port in 1889, stands as a pioneering port city example in Japan. This study explored how to develop early modern port cities with port construction and urban infrastructure development projects. Designed by Dutch civil engineer Mulder, the Moji Port was equipped with essential features for a modern port city, including basins and canals. In addition, this study revealed the urban layout was shaped through port construction and urban infrastructure development projects, showing how diverse facility placements demanded by different implementing bodies manifested in Moji’s urban space as distinct characteristics.