Kaname Family Residence Michi Storehouse

The Largest Storehouse

The Kaname Family Residence Michi Storehouse (要家住宅道蔵, Kaname-ke Jūtaku Michigura) is a late-Edo-period fireproof storehouse on the Kaname family estate in Hatakenaka 2-chome, Kaizuka, Osaka Prefecture, listed as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on June 28, 2017. It was renovated in 1996. The Agency for Cultural Affairs describes it as the biggest of the estate's clay-walled storehouses.

It stands at the midpoint of the lot's east side. The building is a 2-storey Dozo-zukuri structure of 7 by 3 ken, covering 68 square metres, under a gabled roof of hongawara tile. On its west side it touches the Kanenoto Storehouse, and with the south-facing Utensil Storehouse the three form a U-shaped group.

Why It Was Listed

The Kaname Family Residence Michi Storehouse was registered for its contribution to the historic landscape. Its central position on the east side and its size make it the anchor of that part of the estate.

At 68 square metres, it has nearly three times the footprint of the older Inner Storehouse, which covers 24 square metres. The family's storehouses multiplied from the mid-Edo period onward, and this one seems to have been built as the main repository of that expansion. Its sheer volume hints at how much a Seven Headmen household needed to keep.

Features of the Building

Inside, a partition 3 ken from the south end divides the long building into two rooms, presumably so that different kinds of goods could be kept apart. The ground floor is boarded on floor and walls, while the upper floor is finished in Shinkabe style with posts and beams exposed. The different finishes likely reflect different contents.

A canopy over the entrance rests on Mochiokuri brackets whose curved moldings include inome, a heart-like cutout sometimes said to ward off fire. For a building whose whole purpose was to survive fire, the choice seems apt.

There are windows only on the upper floor, and on the side the Agency calls the southeast face even the lattice windows were sealed with plaster. Since the storehouse stands on the edge of the lot, closing the openings that faced outward looks like a deliberate hardening against both fire and theft.

Visiting

The Kaname Family Residence Michi Storehouse is part of a private home and is not open to the public. Although it stands on the east edge of the lot, the earthen walls prevent any full view from outside. No viewing events were announced as of September 25, 2026.

An exterior photograph appears in the Agency for Cultural Affairs database. Anyone looking from the street should avoid photographing the living quarters.