title: Hokuriku Tales vol.3

Summary

A book of five stories about Fukui, Ishikawa and Toyama with useful data vol.3

Mikuni, sitting at the mouth of theKuzuryu River, thrived as a port town.The Mikuni Ryushokan Museumis a reconstruction of the town’smodern Western-style primary schoolbuilding.cannons. With economic and militarystrengths thus regained, the SatsumaDomain became a main actor in the MeijiRestoration. Behind the scenes, Kitamaebunewas an important driving force of thedramatic change in Japan’s political system.Subsequently, some of the Kitamaebuneship-owners/merchants who accumulatedbusiness experiences and wealth madeimportant contributions to the creation ofmodern Japan by investing in banking, insurance, transportation and othersectors.Kitamaebune: Backbone of the Hokuriku economyThe big Noto peninsula that stretches into the Japan Sea served as a majorbase for Kitamaebune trade. Wajima lacquer ware, Nanao Japanese candles andother Noto local specialties enjoyed national fame thanks to Kitamaebune. By theMeiji Era, Hamaokaya, a shipping magnate based in Monzenmachi-Kuroshimamachi, Wajima city, used his accumulated wealth not for himself butfor the well-being of the region by laying the ground for the development ofWakura, one of the most prestigious spa spots in Japan today.The cargo of the Kitamaebune was not limited to luxury products alone.Charcoal was shipped to Etchu (present-day Toyama) in exchange for rice strawproducts. Still today, some families in Hojozu (Shinminato, Toyama) have thenames Wajima or Noto.Another important item that Kitamaebune carried was kelp from Hokkaido.According to a Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications Survey ofHousehold Economy (2015 ? 2017 average), Toyama city ranked first in kelpconsumption among all prefectural capitals and major Article 252 cities in Japan.Toyama was a port of call for Kitamaebune. These dietary habits must havedeveloped over time through frequent visits of Kitamaebune. Along withToyama, the cities of Fukui and Kanazawa are among the top five in the kelpconsumption ranking. It is no wonder that Hokuriku offers a large variety ofkelp-based local dishes.From Hokkaido, Kitamaebune also brought herrings. This fish was consumednot just as food but also as manure for rice growing in Hokuriku. People paidmoney for herring manure when compost and animal feces were the norm.Accordingly, fish manure was called a“kimpi”(literally, money dung).Kelp from Rausu,Hokkaido is mostfavored by the peopleof ToyamaGorgeously decorated ship captain’s cupboard/coffers.These were designed to float even when thrown out ofthe boat. (Kitamaebune-no-Sato Museum, Kaga city)6Hokuriku Tales vol.3