Ishikari was one of the destinations for Kitamae-bune which had overcome the raging rough waves of the Sea of Japan on their way to Hokkaido. When the period of the Matsumae clan and prohibition of Kitamae-bune visiting ports other than Esashi, Hakodate, and Matsumae was over, many Kitamae-bune headed north in search of dried and pressed boiled herring. In the age of Kitamae-bune, herring was traded at a high price, mainly as a fertilizer for crops such as cotton and indigo cultivated in Setouchi, not as food.
ports of call
Cultural Properties of Ishikari City
Former Nagano Store
A store and stone warehouse of the Nagano Store merchants who made their wealth through Kitamae-bune
Japanese restaurant Kindaitei
A Japanese restaurant used by shipowners and merchants of Kitamae-bune.
Omikoshi (portable shrine) of Kotan Shrine
Omikoshi dedicated by a shipowner of a Kitamae-bune (the Hisayoshimaru).
Funa-ema of Atsuta Shrine
Funa-ema dedicated by the shipowners of Kitamae-bune.
Torii of the Ishikari Hachiman Shrine
A torii made of granite that was transported by Kitamae-bune
Komainu (Guard Dog Statues) of the Ishikari Benten Shrine
A pair of Komainu made of Shakudani stone that dedicated to prayer for the safety of voyages
The Former Shiratori Banya (Ishikari City Hamamasu Folk Museum)
The fishery architecture that produced Nishin-shimekasu (fish fertilizer made from herring) transported by Kitamae-bune
Hamamasu Okiageondo (song for the herring fishing)
A worker's song of fishery catching herring transported by Kitamae-bune
