[Gojome Town, Akita Prefecture] Gojome Town is bustling with a morning market that has been going on for over 500 years. The “keyaki with breasts” drawn by Masumi Sugae still remains today.

Gojome was a territory of the Kubota clan during the Edo period.

Gojome Town, located in the north of Akita City , is known for its morning market that started about 500 years ago and has a population of approximately 7,700 people (As of February 2024, Akita Prefecture Population and Households (Monthly Report)). It's a town.

In the Edo period, it was a territory of the Kubota domain (Akita domain), and originally this land was written as "Gojume" and was called "Gojuume/Isome", but in the Edo period, someone coolly called it "Gojome". It is said that it was first written by guessing the kanji ``. It was officially called Gojome in 1896 (Meiji 29). After that, in 1955 (Showa 30), five villages, Babame Village, Futsunai Village, Uchikawa Village, and Okawa Village, which were located around Two towns and villages merged and the current Gojome Town was born.

Before Edo, the feudal lords changed from the Fujiwara clan to the Tachibana clan and the Ando clan (Akita clan).

People have lived in the area around Gojome Town since the Jomon period ( Nakayama Ruins ), and ruins from the Nara and Heian periods (Nakayachi Ruins/Iwanoyama Tumulus Group = Akita Prefecture designated historic site) ) have also been excavated.

In the regional division of the country established by the Yamato Court in the Ritsuryo period after the Nara period, the Gojome area was incorporated into Akita County, and during the Heian period it was under the control of the Oshu Fujiwara clan of Hiraizumi (Iwate Prefecture). When the Fujiwara clan was destroyed by Minamoto no Yoritomo and the Kamakura period began, the Tachibana clan came to Akita County as Jito (regional administrator) under the orders of Yoritomo.

The Tachibana clan continued for a while in Gojome, but in the Muromachi period, the Tachibana clan left Akita County. Around that time, the Ando clan began to expand their influence by moving south from Tsugaru and building a port castle at Tsuchizaki Minato (Tsuchizaki Port, Akita City) in Dewa Province (Akita Prefecture).

The Ando clan from Mutsu Province ruled Akita County.

The Ando clan (Ando clan) was founded by the Abe clan, which was based in Mutsu Province (Iwate Prefecture), which was destroyed by the Yamato court (Kyoto) during the previous Nine Years War (1051-1062) This powerful family is said to have its origin when they fled to the west and Fujisaki (Fujisaki Town, Aomori Prefecture), After that, they gained power and expanded their sphere of influence, Tosaminato (Goshogawara City, Aomori Prefecture) and flourishing greatly.

The Ando clan split into two factions and expanded their territory. The faction that expanded to the south is also called the ``Minato Ando clan'' On the other hand, the faction that invaded the east did not have smooth sailing, and was defeated by the Nanbu clan, which had power in the eastern part of Mutsu Province (Iwate Prefecture, etc.), and temporarily fled to Ezochi (Hokkaido). In the mid-1400s, he returned to Mutsu Province and built a castle in Hiyama (Hiyama, Noshiro City) (Hiyama Castle/Hiyama Castle Ruins is a nationally designated historic site) and regained his influence. the Minato Ando clan , a faction called the Hiyama Ando clan is said to have gradually expanded southward, and in the latter half of the Sengoku period, they were able to extend their influence to a part of Gojome.

At the end of the Sengoku period, the Ando clan was involved in an internal conflict called the Minato Gassen.

The Hiyama Ando clan and the Minato Ando clan were not on good terms, and it seems that they often had internal conflicts, which even escalated into the ``Minato War,'' . The Hiyama Ando clan had the upper hand in this conflict, and in the end, the two families were unified and the conflict ended. The unified Ando clan changed its name to the Akita clan and became the ruler of Akita County, which included Gojome. The Akita clan (formerly Ando clan) ruled Akita County, but in 1602 during the Edo period, they moved to Hitachi Province as a 50,000-koku daimyo, replacing the Satake clan who were ordered to move from Hitachi Province (Ibaraki Prefecture). Masu. He spent about 40 years in Hitachi Province, and in 1645 was transferred to the Miharu domain (Miharu town, Fukushima prefecture) in Iwaki (Fukushima prefecture) for 55,000 koku (relocation), where he served as the lord of the Miharu domain until the end of the Edo period. Ta.

In Gojome Town, there are ruins of castles built by many powerful clans and vassals of the Ando clan.

In the old towns and villages that make up Gojome Town, there were small powerful families who built castles (pavilions) even before the Ando clan took control. Even after the Ando clan entered the country, vassals of the Ando clan continued to build castles, and records include Babame Castle, Yamauchi Castle, Sarutakate, Tomita Castle, Okawa Castle, Ura Castle, Okamoto Castle, Sunazawa Castle, and Oshikiri Castle. also becomes the 10th castle (mansion) of Kioukan The location has been identified, but little is known about its details.

■babame castle

Babame Castle is located in the upper reaches of the Babame River that flows through the center of Gojome Town, and a morning market has been located in the castle town for about 500 years. After the Battle of Minato, the Akita clan built Sunazawa Castle as their fifth castle, and it is said that at that time they moved the Babame Morning Market to Sunazawa Castle Town (currently known as Gojome Morning Market).

Babame Castle was abandoned after the war because the castle owner belonged to the Minato Ando clan and resisted the Hiyama Ando clan during the Minato Battle.

■Sunazawa Castle

Sunasawa Castle was a castle built by the Akita clan in Gojume-cho (formerly Gojome-cho) towards the end of the Sengoku period, in exchange for abolishing Babame Castle and Ura Castle.The first lord of the castle was a vassal of the Akita clan. This is Hidemori Fujiwara Naiki. This mountain castle was once on the top of a small mountain (approximately 95 meters above sea level) overlooking the current center of Gojome Town, and the Gojome Town Forest Museum being built .

Sunazawa Castle was abandoned when the Akita clan moved to Hitachi Province.

<Gojome Castle (Gojome Town Forest Museum)> INFORMATON

• Facility name: Gojome Castle (Gojome Town Forest Museum)
• Location: 62-2 Ushinazawa, Gojome-cho, Minamiakita-gun, Akita Prefecture
• Phone number: 018-852-3110
• Opening hours:
• April 1st - October 31st / 9:00 - 17:00
• November 1st - November 30th / 9:00 - 16:00
• Admission fee: Free
• Closed: December 1st - March 31st: Closed for winter
• URL: Gojome Castle (Gojome Town Forest Museum)
• Railway: Approximately 15 minutes by bus from Hachirogata Station on the Ou Main Line to Gojome Bus Terminal, then approximately 2 minutes' walk from the last stop.
• Car: Approximately 15 minutes from Akita Expressway Gojome Hachirogata IC

GOOGLE MAP

Gojome Morning Market has been a bustling local community for over 500 years.

The Gojome Morning Market is said to have started around the end of the 1400s in the Babame Castle area in the Babame area of ​​Gojome Town.It is said that the morning market began around the end of the 1400s in the Babame Castle town. This morning market was moved to the castle town and continues to this day. Unlike Takayama (Takayama City, Gifu Prefecture) and Katsuura (Katsuura City, Chiba Prefecture), which have strong tourism elements, this city is indispensable to the local people as a lifestyle city, and is celebrated every month on days ending in 2, 5, 7, and 0. It takes the form of a so-called 12-year-old market.

<Gojome Morning Market> INFORMATON

• Facility name: Gojome Morning Market
• Location: Shimotamachi Street, Gojome-cho, Minamiakita-gun, Akita Prefecture (commonly known as Asaichi Street)
• Phone number: 018-852-5222 (Gojome Town Hall, Commerce and Industry Promotion Division, Commerce and Industry Promotion Section)
• Dates: Monthly days with 2, 5, 7, and 0, and 3 temporary markets (May 4th “Festival Market”, August 13th “Bon Market”, December 31st “Toshinoichi”)
• Event time: 7:00-12:00
• Events: Wild Vegetables Festival (mid-May), Ichigami Festival (mid-June), Mizutaki Festival (mid-July), Mushroom Festival (mid-October), Warm Pot Festival (mid-February)
• URL: Gojome Morning Market
• access:
  • Railway: Approximately 15 minutes by bus from Hachirogata Station on the Ou Main Line to Gojome Bus Terminal, then approximately 2 minutes' walk from the last stop.
  • Car: Approximately 5 minutes from Akita Expressway Gojome Hachirogata IC

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The five castles of the Edo period left in Masumi Sugae's book

During the Edo period, the Gojome area came under the control of the Satake clan of the Kubota domain, which continued until the Meiji Restoration. During the Edo period, there were no major incidents and people lived peacefully. Masumi Sugae (1754-1829) was a traveler in the late Edo period who traveled throughout the Akita region and left many illustrations along with his travelogues. 's Travelogue (89 volumes in total) ``Doll's Play (Isshanu Ansouba),'' which is a nationally designated important cultural property , includes illustrations and explanations of the scenery, folk performing arts, and treasures of Gojome.

Although 220 years have passed since the Edo period in which Masumi lived, some of the scenery and tools that caught his eye still remain.

“Noda Zelkova” is known as the “God of Breast Milk”

Noda's zelkova is a zelkova tree that Hachiman Shrine in the Moriyama district of Gojome town is affectionately known as the ``god of breast milk'' because the two knobs on its trunk resemble human breasts. Masu. The tree is said to be about 1,000 years old, and its current height is about 21m, with a maximum trunk circumference of 6.5m. Masumi "Tsuki" (an old name for zelkova) , and it has continued to watch over people in its original form. Noda Zelkova is a natural monument of Gojome Town.

<Noda Zelkova/Hachiman Shrine> INFORMATON

• Facility name: Noda Zelkova/Hachiman Shrine
• Address: 109 Aino, Noda, Gojome-cho, Minamiakita-gun, Akita Prefecture
• Phone number: 018-852-4411 (Gojome Town Board of Education, Lifelong Learning Division)
• Free walk around the grounds
• access:
  • Railway: Approximately 15 minutes by bus bound for Gojome Bus Terminal from Hachirogata Station on the Ou Main Line, then approximately 25 minutes on foot from Isonome bus stop.
  • Car: Approximately 3 minutes from Akita Expressway Gojome Hachirogata IC

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"Bangaku" and "Bangaku mask" that have been handed down since ancient times, which Masumi also painted

Bangaku is a type of Kagura dance that has been passed down throughout Akita and Yamagata prefectures. Kagura dance is said to have originated from a dance performed by Ame no Uzume no Mikoto to summon Amaterasu Omikami, who had hidden in Amano Iwato. It was spread all over the country in various forms.

Banraku developed a dance performed by Yamabushi , and has been passed down as a folk performing art. Originally, the dance was performed by Yamabushi wearing masks and going around people's houses, but I don't know when, but it started to be performed by villagers. In Gojome, there are banaku dances that have been handed down in the four villages of Yamauchi, Nakamura, Nishino, and Koiji.When Masumi stopped by Gojome in the early 1800s, he saw the banaku of the Yamauchi village and learned about the dance. I left the state and the banraku mask in the illustrations.

<Gojome Bangaku Concert/Gojome Shinmeisha Kagura Hall> INFORMATON

• Facility name: Gojome Bangaku Concert/Gojome Shinmeisha Kagura Hall
• Location: 115 Shinmeimae, Gojome-cho, Minamiakita-gun, Akita Prefecture
• Phone number: 018-852-4411 (Gojome Town Board of Education, Lifelong Learning Division, Lifelong Learning Promotion Section)
• Date: 19:00 on the day before the third Sunday in May
• access:
  • Railway: Approximately 15 minutes by bus bound for Gojome Bus Terminal from Hachirogata Station on the Ou Main Line, then approximately 8 minutes on foot from Isonome bus stop.
  • Car: Approximately 5 minutes from Akita Expressway Gojome Hachirogata IC

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The tablet drawn by Masumi Sugae has existed since the Kamakura period.

Itabi is a type of memorial tower made of stone shaped into a plate, and was mainly made from the Kamakura period to the Muromachi period. There are many board monuments left all over the country, but there are also some left around Gojome, and they are also depicted in Masumi's drawings.