The institute is located in the city of Inuyama, Aichi Prefecture, which is about 150 km east of the main campus of Kyoto University.
One group, from Kyoto University, was represented by Kinji Imanishi (1902–1992) who initiated the field study of nonhuman primates in their natural habitats.
The second group was from Tokyo University, represented by Toshihiko Tokizane (1909–1973), a pioneer of brain science who initiated the experimental study of non-human primates in Japan.
In 1964, Shin'ichiro Tomonaga, the second Japanese Nobel Prize winner, played an important role in expanding primate research beyond the JMC center.
As president of the Science Council of Japan, he sent a letter to Prime Minister Hayato Ikeda recommending the establishment of a national institute for primate studies.