Taira no Masakado
Toride developed in the Edo period as a post town on the Mito Kaidō highway connecting Edo with Mito and as a nexus for water-borne traffic on the Tone River; however, the name is thought to derive from an ancient fort constructed by Taira no Masakado in the Heian period. The area was part of ancient Shimōsa Province, but was transferred to the newly created Ibaraki prefecture after the Meiji restoration. Toride town was created with the establishment of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889. It was elevated to city status on October 1, 1970. On March 28, 2005, the neighboring town of Fujishiro (from Kitasōma District) was merged into Toride, nearly doubling its size.