A Farmhouse That Changed Dialect
The Former Sasaki Family Residence Main House (旧佐々木家住宅主屋, Kyū Sasaki-ke Jūtaku Shuoku) is a thatched Meiji-period farmhouse in Kamitsukumoushi, Tsukumoushi Town, Tōno City, Iwate Prefecture, registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 18 April 2008. It stands in the western part of Tōno Furusato Village, having been moved there in 1991.
The house did not begin its life in Tōno. It was built in Ōhasama, now part of Hanamaki City, roughly 40 kilometres to the northwest, and the move brought with it a decision that says a great deal about how relocated buildings are treated.
Magariya, and a Rearranged Interior
A Nanbu magariya is an L-shaped farmhouse in which the stable is not a separate outbuilding but a wing of the house itself, sharing one roof with the family. Horses were capital in the old Nanbu domain, and the form spread across most of what is now the Iwate portion of that territory.
This example measures 20 metres along the ridge by 10 metres across, under a hipped thatched roof. From it project the earth-floored doma and the stable, roofed in the hipped-and-gabled manner. The building area is 267 square metres, which puts it among the larger surviving examples and gives the exterior a weight that photographs tend to flatten.
Along the front runs a geya-bisashi, a lean-to eave. Above it the framing steps up one level to create a tsushi second floor, a low loft under the thatch. That loft was for silkworms. Sericulture money paid for a good many rooms in Meiji-period Tōhoku farmhouses, and the raised front is the visible sign of it.
Now the interesting part. In Ōhasama the rooms ran in sequence along the beam direction as upper zashiki, middle zashiki and lower zashiki, a plan characteristic of that district. When the house was re-erected at Tōno Furusato Village in 1991 the interior was reworked into the local Tōno arrangement: veranda, lower zashiki, upper zashiki. The shell is Ōhasama; the plan you walk through is Tōno. Visitors comparing this house with its neighbours are looking at a translation, not an original text, and that is worth knowing before you form an impression.
Registration cited the criterion of being difficult to recreate, which within the registration system applies to structures whose materials, scale or craft could not realistically be reproduced today.
The Village Around It
Tōno Furusato Village opened in 1996 across 8.8 hectares of managed woodland and field. Seven magariya and straight-plan farmhouses have been moved here, along with a watermill, a charcoal kiln and outbuildings, and the paths between them are left unpaved. Among the neighbours are Daiku-don of the middle Meiji period, Kawamae-bekke of the late Edo period, Yajūrō-don of 1812, and Kobiru-no-ie of 1762, which serves food.
Horses live in the village, so the stable wings are not empty display space. Staff called maburitto, meaning guardians, work in the houses and teach rope-making, buckwheat noodle cutting and rice-cake pounding to visitors who book ahead.
The location has drawn film and television crews for decades, with NHK historical dramas including Ryōmaden and Sanada Maru shot on site. Tōno is also the setting of Yanagita Kunio's Tales of Tōno, and the folklore that made the town famous is easier to picture standing in one of these rooms than reading about it.
Practical Notes
Tōno Furusato Village opens 9:00 to 17:00 from March through October, with entry closing at 16:00, and 9:00 to 16:00 from November through February with entry closing at 15:00. It is shut 30 December to 3 January and on Wednesdays from January to mid-March. Admission has recently been quoted at 750 yen general and 400 yen for primary, junior high and high school students, up from earlier published rates, so check before travelling. Telephone 0198-64-2300.
Interiors are open and photography is permitted. Pets are allowed. Allow two hours for the houses alone, longer with a hands-on programme.
The village is about 25 minutes by car from JR Tōno Station, roughly 12 kilometres, and about 17 minutes from Tōno Interchange. Buses on the Tsukumoushi route stop at Furusato Mura, but services are infrequent enough that a car is the practical choice. Parking is free.
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Q&A
- Where is the Former Sasaki Family Residence Main House and can you go inside?
- It stands in the western part of Tōno Furusato Village in Tsukumoushi Town, Tōno City, Iwate. Interiors of the relocated farmhouses are open to visitors who have paid village admission.
- What are the opening hours and admission for the Former Sasaki Family Residence Main House?
- Tōno Furusato Village opens 9:00 to 17:00 from March to October and 9:00 to 16:00 from November to February, with entry closing an hour before. Admission has recently been 750 yen general and 400 yen for students; confirm current rates before visiting.
- Where was the Former Sasaki Family Residence Main House originally built?
- It was built during the Meiji period in Ōhasama, now part of Hanamaki City, and relocated to Tōno Furusato Village in 1991 after alterations in 1961.
- What is distinctive about the Former Sasaki Family Residence Main House?
- It is a large magariya of 20 by 10 metres with a raised tsushi loft used for silkworms. Its original Ōhasama room sequence was rebuilt in the Tōno arrangement during relocation, so the plan and the fabric come from different districts.
- How do you reach the Former Sasaki Family Residence Main House from Tōno Station?
- The village lies about 12 kilometres from JR Tōno Station, roughly 25 minutes by car. Buses on the Tsukumoushi route stop at Furusato Mura but run infrequently.
Basic Information
| Name | Former Sasaki Family Residence Main House (旧佐々木家住宅主屋) |
|---|---|
| Location | 5-89-1 Kamitsukumoushi, Tsukumoushi Town, Tōno City, Iwate Prefecture (Tōno Furusato Village) |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure), registration no. 03-0066 |
| Year Designated | Registered 18 April 2008; gazetted 7 May 2008 |
| Quantity | 1 structure |
| Dimensions | Single-storey timber frame, thatched roof, building area 267 sq m; 20 m along the ridge by 10 m across |
| Owner | Not recorded in the Agency for Cultural Affairs database |
| Public Access | Open with admission to Tōno Furusato Village; hours vary seasonally |
References
- National Database of Designated Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00007163
- Cultural Heritage Online
- https://bunka.nii.ac.jp/heritages/detail/153765
- Tōno Furusato Village official site
- https://www.tono-furusato.jp/about
- Tōno City Tourism Information, Tōno Jikan
- https://tonojikan.jp/tourism/tono-furusatomura/
Last verified: 2026.08.06