Goza nine

upper bridge fake jewel

The bridge above was built by Toshinao, the lord of the Nanbu domain, over the Nakatsugawa River at the same time as he built Morioka Castle. Of the bronze imitation jewels decorating the railing, eight have inscriptions dated to 1609 (Keicho 14), and 10 have inscriptions dated to 1611 (1611). It is extremely rare that so many remain, and in 1945 it was designated as a nationally important art object.

Former Nakamura family residence

The Nakamura family was one of the largest merchant houses in the castle town of Morioka, and was known as ``Itoya'' or ``Itoharu,'' and mainly sold kimono and used clothing. The first generation was from Miyamori village and started doing business in Morioka in 1782. From the second generation onwards, the company began to call itself ``Itoya'' and developed as a sole trader in Shikon dyeing, a specialty of the Morioka clan. . The building has been renovated and repaired many times, but the current main building was built in 1861, and the storehouse was built in the Meiji period, but it cannot be separated from the main building both functionally and aesthetically. It was also designated as an important cultural property. The building retains many characteristics of the late Edo period, such as a well-developed second floor and many cupboards and closets. It is extremely rare for a merchant house that has undergone many additions and renovations to remain in its original form, and is one of the few in the Tohoku region that is designated as an important cultural property.

Seiichi Kashima

A businessman from Morioka City. He was adopted as a son-in-law by the Kashima group, and the group became a railway construction specialist. He devised a new construction method and took charge of construction of the Tanna Tunnel, the longest in Japan at the time, in an area with poor ground, and completed it over a period of 16 years. He also changed the group into a stock company and became its first president, and in the industry, he served as a director of the Imperial Railway Association and chairman of the Japan Mainland Construction Industry Association, promoting the modernization of the civil engineering and construction industry. There is a Kashima Seiichi Memorial Observatory on a rocky mountain to the east of Morioka City, offering a panoramic view of the mountain range centered on Mt. Iwate.