Ishiguro Samurai House

The Ishiguro House is the only samurai residence on Kakunodate’s Samurai District Street where you can enter the main sitting rooms and tour the interior with a focus on the building itself. It is also the only one where direct-line descendants still continue to live in the main house as their residence. Because of this, the public area is about half of the entire property, but staff members provide careful explanations and guided information about the architecture, history, local climate, and lifestyle—something not typically offered at other sites—making it a must-stop attraction when visiting the samurai street. Exhibits include weapons and armor, old documents such as "Kaitai Shinsho," the oldest surviving main house and gate in Kakunodate as a samurai residence (built in the late Edo period), and storehouses expanded in the Meiji and Taisho eras, all on permanent display. Seasonal exhibits such as Hina dolls, May dolls, and kimono are also shown at certain times of year, and the variety of viewing points more than makes up for the smaller open area. Visitors also praise the thoughtful service: for guests who have difficulty hearing, staff guide using a flip-board style aid, and for visitors from outside the Japanese-speaking world, explanations may be provided in English. Access is about a 25-minute walk from Kakunodate Station on the JR Line / Akita Nairiku Jukan Railway.