page_title: Eniwa, Hokkaido
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Eniwa, Hokkaido / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Original site of the Karinba Ruins in Eniwa, Hokkaido. (with information sign) 日本語: 北海道恵庭市カリンバ遺跡現場(看板付き)
context_page_description: Eniwa is a city in Ishikari Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. It is on the Ishikari plain, 8 km north of Chitose, and 26 km south of the prefectural capital Sapporo. It is reached through route 36 and the Chitose Railway Line. The town is separated into three major areas: Eniwa in the south, Megumino in the center, and Shimamatsu in the north.
  Many farms are located around Eniwa, and the town has many manufacturing businesses, including the Sapporo Brewery Hokkaido factory. There are three Japan Ground Self-Defense Force camps in the city.
  Eniwa's 2012 population of 68,883 makes it the fourth largest city in the Ishikari Subprefecture, and the 13th largest in Hokkaido.
context_section_description: The first known settlement of Eniwa was in the Initial Jōmon period in 7000 BC, at the Karinba Ruins (カリンバ遺跡, Karinba Iseki). The settlement received a surge of people in 2000 B, and continued being settled for many years. Many artifacts have been found, including lacquered combs, beads, earthenware and stone accessories. Historical Satsumon culture (700–1200 CE) graves dating have been found around Eniwa, at the Moizari Kofun Site (茂漁古墳群, Moizari kofun-gun). The style is similar to those at the Ebetsu Kofun Site and northern Tōhoku historic graves. During the Ainu settlement period (1200 CE until the Meiji era), there is historical evidence for settlements in the villages and further away on the plains.
  After the Matsumae clan settled on the southern tip of Hokkaido in 1590, they traded goods with the Ainu who lived in the area. In the Edo period, one of the 13 trading locations across the Ishikari plain was Shuma-mappu Location (シュママップ場所, Shumamappu Basho) (Ainu: Shuma-o-mappu (シュマ・オ・マップ)), which corresponds to the modern-day Shimamatsu River basin. The trading area was active until the end of the Edo era. Early Japanese contact with the area included in 1755, when jezo spruce trees were harvested along the Izari river, and in 1805, when the river was farmed for salmon and trout.
  In 1857, the Hakodate magistrate decreed that a road between Otaru and Chitose be developed, leading to the development of the Ishikari Plain. When Hokkaido became a part of Japan in the early Meiji period, the area around Eniwa was incorporated into Iburi Province in 1869.
  Settlers from Kōchi Prefecture initially settled in Eniwa in 1870 in two villages: Izari Village (漁村, Izari-mura) in the south and Shimamatsu Village (島松村, Shimamatsu-mura) in the north. In 1873, the Sapporo Highway (札幌本道, Sapporo Hondō), the a road linking Hakodate with Sapporo was completed, and it was built through both villages. In 1873, rice farming started in Shimamatsu, as well as the first postal service.
  In 1880, the Chitose town hall began administering five surrounding villages to Chitose, including Izari and Shimamatsu. In 1886, 65 families from Waki, Yamaguchi and Iwakuni, Yamaguchi moved to the shores of the Izari river, which greatly increased the size of Izari. A year later, the Izari town hall was built, meaning Chitose no longer administered Izari or Shimamatsu. At this point, Eniwa had grown to 572 residents, and the first elementary school was opened. Shinto shrines were constructed in 1901: Toyosaka Shrine in Izari and Shimamatsu Shrine. The Buddhist temple Ten'yū-ji's main building was constructed in 1904.
  In 1906, Izari and Shimamatsu were merged to form Eniwa Village (恵庭村, Eniwa-mura), a second class municipality. The village also administered Hiroshima Village; in 1943 the village seceded. In 1922, the village received electricity, after the Izari River was used for hydroelectric power. By 1923, the town had grown enough to become a first class municipality. Eniwa was first connected to by rail in 1926, after the Sapporo Line (now known as the Chitose Line) was completed, and Eniwa Station and Shimamatsu Station were opened.
  In the 1930s, Eniwa became a site for mining gold and silver. In 1935, a small-scale private mine called the Kōryū Mine (光竜鉱山, Kōryū Kōzan) was opened in 1935 and run by the Fujita company. In 1939, the nationally run Eniwa Gold Mine (恵庭鉱山, Eniwa Kōzan) opened. A mining town to the north-northwest of Mount Eniwa was constructed, and Kōryū Mine was expanded. The town featured around 40 five-family apartments and additional buildings for administration and amenities, however, no restaurants or entertainment areas were constructed. Two elementary schools were operated for the area. Both mines were closed in 1943, due to the Order for Gold Mine Consolidation. By the end of the Eniwa Mine's operations, a total of 700 kg of gold and 3,500 kg of silver had been mined. The mines and buildings were dismantled, though the Kōryū Mine was reopened in 1949 by Yutani Mining.
  After the Occupation of Japan beginning in 1945, many agricultural r
caption: Site of the Karinba Ruins
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