Article

07303 ／くにみまち

Fukushima Prefecture 伊達郡

Kunimi Town

A double moat was cut into bedrock.

Atsukashiyama Embankment

Photo by MChew (CC BY-SA 4.0)

01 ／ Stone storehouses

Kunimi has more than500 stone storehouses.

The town calls itself a town of stone and describes its stone storehouses as a landscape unique to it. Fireproof and quick and cheap to build, they spread to private homes, mainly from the 1950s to the 1960s. The town says that more than 500 still stand today.

More than 500 in town (town website)
Spread to homes mainly in the 1950s-60s
Fireproof; quick and cheap to build

02 ／ Western-style house

The Okuyama house's Western wing hasan octagonal tower on a high stone base.

Built in 1921, this modern building has both Japanese and Western reception spaces. The Western wing has an octagonal tower, tiled outer walls and a high base of piled stone, and uses local stone called Kunimi stone. It is a nationally registered tangible cultural property, and the interior is closed to the public.

Built 1921 (Taisho 10)
Nationally registered, 1998
Local Kunimi stone

03 ／ Memorial stone

The memorial stone's inscriptionis said to be by a Yuan-born monk.

This is a nationally designated historic site. According to the town, a monk erected it in 1308 to convey the merit of building a stone pagoda, with writing by a high priest who had come from Yuan China. One face of the stone bears an inscription and Sanskrit characters.

National historic site
1308
Inscription and Sanskrit on one face

Kunimi Town from the sky

Now and 1974–78. Tap a photo to zoom in.

Now1974–78

Wide (about 6 km across)

Close (about 1.5 km across)

Now (shot October 2024)Shot 1974–78

Source: Geospatial Information Authority of Japan (GSI) GSI Tiles（全国最新写真（シームレス）／国土画像情報（第一期：1974〜1978年撮影））

Open in GSI Maps (now)Open in GSI Maps (1974–78)

Living here

Fujita Station on the Tohoku Main Line is the gateway.

about 9,000 people
Rural district town

The town's railway stations are Fujita and Kaida on the JR Tohoku Main Line. The town website says it takes up to two hours from Tokyo, changing from the Tohoku Shinkansen at Fukushima Station to the Tohoku Main Line for Fujita Station. It gives 17 minutes from Fukushima to Fujita (the town's guidance, posted in 2016 and 2017).

People living here: 8,639people
Area: 37.95km²
Households: 3,123households
Rent (average for rentals): —
Healthcare: 1 hospital ／ 3 clinics

Area and habitable land at the same scalee-Stat B1101 / B1103

Children waiting for childcare: —1 nurseries and similar
Home purchase subsidy: —
Average annual temperature: —

These 3 items are waiting on a nationwide data source. We do not fill them with estimates.

Shape

Borders 3 municipalities across 1 prefectures.

Kunimi Town in Japan37.877°N 140.549°E

Territory of Kunimi Town

Boundaries: National Land Numerical Information (Administrative Area Data), MLIT. Processed by Machigatari.Lakes: National Land Numerical Information (Lake Data), MLIT. Processed by Machigatari. Prepared with the approval of the Director-General of the Geospatial Information Authority of Japan, using its Digital Map 25000 (Spatial Data Framework) and Digital Map 25000 (Place Names and Public Facilities). (承認番号平27情使、第585号)

North to south

7.4km

Fukushima Prefecture: Date City, Koori Town
Miyagi Prefecture: Shiroishi City

Travel times per leg are not published by the municipality, so they are not shown.

Kunimi Town isthis kind of town.

01The Atsukashiyama Embankment is a national historic site. The town says a double moat was cut into bedrock in the north-of-Route-4 section. In the Double Moat section, traces of a double moat and a triple earthwork remain; excavation found the moat about 15 m wide and V-shaped
02The town has more than 500 stone storehouses and calls itself a town of stone. The Okuyama house's Western wing, built in 1921 with an octagonal tower, is a nationally registered tangible cultural property
03The memorial stone pagoda in the town, erected in 1308, is a national historic site. The town's stations are Fujita and Kaida on the JR Tohoku Main Line, and the town gives 17 minutes from Fukushima to Fujita

If something caught your eye, ask the town itself.

Kunimi Town official site ↗Wikipedia ↗

From this town's themes