Nakasendo Road and Mikuni Kaido

The Nakasendo Road passed through Shinmachi and Iwahana, and extended to Kuragano Juku which was the crossroad of the Nakasendo Road and Reiheishi Kaido. There were rows of pine trees and Japan cedars from the Kuragano Juku to the entrance to Takasaki Juku.

Mikuni Kaido passed through Takasaki Castle town and Akasaka-machi toward the north, Echigo. The road was prosperous with people transporting commodities and gold from Sado Island, and the feudal lords traveling to and from Edo with their attendants.

Takigawa Yosui Irrigation Canal

Ebara Genzaemon was a local samurai and farmer living in Taki Village in the late sixteenth century. He had a problem irrigating his fields and wanted to draw water from the Tone River.

In 1601, the lord of Soja Castle planned to construct the Tenguiwa-Yosui Irrigation Canal, so Ebara Genzaemon cooperated greatly. It took three years to finish construction, but the water did not reach Taki Village. This yousui (irrigation water) was called the Ueno-zeki.

Later he started construction to extend the Ueno-zeki under the control of Daikan (the local governor) Ina-Bizennokami-Tadatsugu and finished in 1610. This irrigated the area around Takigawa, which made it possible to cultivate more than 1,800 hectares of rice paddies. The new service water was called Daikan moat after Tadatsugu, the Takigawa-Yosui (irrigation water) in general.

Kuragano Riverside

The starting point/destination of ships going directly to/from Edo. It was facing the Karasu river and was a hub of both river and land traffic. There were stages along the river, and the Kuragano Juku was located just upstream.

The river traffic was prosperous in the middle 18th century and it cost about half the price of land traffic. More than 150 ships and 9 shipping agents were located along the shore at it's height. Suga Kitaro and Suga Syobei managed Waki-honjin ( a resting-place for travelers) and the home of Teshigawara Hachizaemon served as Honjin (the home camp).

It usually took 12 days for one-way trip between Edo and Kuragano by express, and 1 month for a round trip.

Large Eruption of Mt. Asama

On April 9, 1783, Mt. Asama became activate and spewed a large amount of sand and ash. On July 6, it erupted restlessly and the Kanto area was covered with thick volcanic smoke. Some documents reported that people could not walk without carrying a light even in the daytime. 9 to 15 cm of ash fell on the ground in Takasaki City.

Farmers had to remove the sand which fell on the farmland before doing anything else. The Takasaki domain helped the life of farmers by reducing the tributes or providing financial assistance, however the needy farmers increased.

A recent excavational investigation has revealed some gutters where the ashes of the eruption were buried, which indicates the sufferings of the farmers in those days.