YOKKAICHI MUNICIPAL MUSEUM


Yokkaichi Port 3500

From around the Muromachi Period, the city of Yokkanoichi began to develop in conjunction with the development of the seaport. The Tokaido Shichiri no Watashi route that was used during the Edo Period to link Miya and Kuwana was replaced by the Juri no Watashi route connecting Yokkaichi Port and Miya, and was used by numerous travelers. The massive earthquake that struck during the final years of the Edo Period (Bakumatsu) however destroyed the port. In 1873, during the Meiji Restoration period, a wealthy wholesaler of ships named Inaba San-emon decided to restore and modernize Yokkaichi Port. This was the beginning of Yokkaichi's history of modernization.