A Historical Geography of a Local Market Town in Tosa at the End of the 16th Century

Abstract

We can find records about more than 20 local market towns in the Chosokabe's Cadastre Books which were based on the land surveying in Tosa (now Kochi Prefecture) at the end of the 16th century. This is a case study of one of them, Hirooka Market Town.According to the Chosokabe's Cadastre Books, Hirooka Market Town was composed of 51 market premises and their total area was 26, 886m2. When we examine the order of arrangement in which these market premises were registered in the cadastre book, we can imagine that the ground plan of this town was a linear one along the north-south route with 27 premises on the east side and 24 on the west and that there was Ebisudo shrine or a patron saint of the market at the center of the west side and the premise of the offlcer of this town at the southern adjacent site to it (Fig. 1). Handicraftsmen and middle or low class retainers were registered as holders of these market premises in the cadastre book.Hirooka Market Town was located in the western part of Hirooka Plain, about 10km. south-west of Kochi City. When we investigate the cadastre maps of this area which were made in 1876 (eastern part) and in 1885 (western part), we can find a small section of land called Ichi-yashiki meaning market premises (Fig. 2). Although the cadastre maps picture few premises there, we can find a small strip pattern of land division along north-south route, part of the major routeway across the western part of Hirooka Plain and the small section called Ichi-yashiki is sited in the southern part of this small strip pattern (Fig. 4). Comparing this small strip pattern with the market premises of Hirooka Market Town registered in the Chosokabe's Cadastre Book, it becomes clear that this small strip pattern followed the ground plan of Hirooka Market Town. Thus the row of premises on the street was about 200 kens (360m) in total length and each premise standardized at every block was 15∼24.2 kens (27.3∼44.0m.) long and 4∼22 kens (7.3∼40.0m.) wide, most frequently 5∼7 kens (9.0∼12.7m.).Hirooka Market Town was constructed in the middle of the 16th century as a central place of Hirooka Plain and also as a castle town of Kira Castle by a feudal lord of Hirooka Plain who set up a base for his life, government and military powers there. Before the construction of Hirooka Market Town, a small market had been held sometimes at Furu-ichi (meaning old market) about 1km. south south-west of Kira Castle, 0.7km. west of Hiooka Market Town.At the end of 16th century, Motochika Chosokabe brought all of Tosa under his single authority and began to construct a castle town of Otakasaka (now Kochi City) as the new capital of Tosa. On the other hand, he forced the marchants and the handicraftsmen of local market towns near his capital to concentrate in the new castle town in order to make it prosperous and to control the commerce and the industry on his own account. So, the marchants and the handicraftsmen of Hirooka also moved to the new castle town, and consequently, Hirooka Market Town changed itself into ruins.Since then, there had been no market town in Hirooka Plain until Shinkawa Town was constructed about 1km. south of the former Hirooka Market Town in the middle of the 17th century. Shinkawa Town was located along the inland water-way dug in 1652 for connecting the mountainous region of the upper Niyodo River via Urado Bay with the capital of Tosa, castle town of Kochi and for irrigating Hirooka Plain and has developed not only as an intermediate port of transportation of forest products but also as a central place of Hirooka Plain during modern times.