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■ Samurai Houses |
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| ■ The
Aoyagi Manor |
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Once powerful samurai in the service of the Ashina family, after the Ashina died
out the Aoyagi family was employed by the northern Satake clan.
The grounds of the manor are expansive. Next to the formal gates used
to receive important guests is a spyhole called a “warrior’s window.” The many
displays inside the manor include collections of weapons and artworks handed
down across generations, now open for the public to view.
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| ■ The
Ishiguro Manor |
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The Ishiguro family were retainers in charge of the north Satake clan’s finances.
The thatched roof of the main house, the black fence with its spyholes, and the
front and side gates of this house speak of a highly-ranking samurai home, but
at the same time it has an air of simple austerity. Yet this is the household
of the highest-ranking family in Kakunodate’s Samurai District.
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| ■ The
Iwahashi Manor |
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Retainers of the Ashina family, the Iwahashi family transferred their allegiance
to the northern Satake family after the Ashina died out.
The manor was renovated at the very end of the Edo period, trading its
thatched roof for the wooden shingles that we see today. However, it still
retains the archetypical layout of a middle-class samurai manor of Kakunodate.
This house is best known for its Japanese oak tree, more than 300 years old.
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| ■ The
Odano Manor |
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After serving under the Imamiya family, the Odano became retainers to the northern
Satake clan. As the Odano were originally employed for their skill in combat,
there was once a training hall to the right after one passed through the gate.
This middle-class samurai manor is known for its traditional gardens.
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| ■ The
Onozaki Manor |
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Located at the northernmost end of the Samurai District, it is clear from a single
glance that these were high-class samurai when the district was established.
It was renovated in 2000, based on blueprints that had been passed down through
the family’s descendants. Now it is used as a Citizen Center and as a training
hall for the martial arts.
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| ■ The
Kawarada Manor |
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Hereditary vassals to the Ashina family from the time when that clan ruled
in Aizu, the Kawarada eventually came under the northern Satake clan. The manor
has maintained its traditional Edo-period samurai home construction. In the
front parlor, architecture distinctive to this region can be seen.
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| ■ The
Matsumoto Manor |
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A family associated with the Imamiya clan, they came north to Akita together
with the Satake. This brushwood fence-encircled manor may be small, but the
thatched roof retains the atmosphere of a proper samurai home. Now, Kakunodate’s
traditional itaya-zaiku – crafts of woven thinly-cut maple wood – is carried
out here from spring to fall.
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