Article

20450 ／やまがたむら

Nagano Prefecture 東筑摩郡

Yamagata Village

Stone Nio stand at a highland gate.

Kiyomizu-dera Nio, in stone

Photo by Qurren (CC BY-SA 3.0)

01 ／ Kurumaya Bijin

On the back of the "Kurumaya Bijin" dosojin,an inscription names the village's mill houses.

The village calls this dosojin (roadside guardian stone) "Kurumaya Bijin," and it stands at the entrance of Karasawa. Its back is inscribed with the second year of Koka (1845) and Takeda Village's "kurumaya," which the village's local-history guidebook reads as water-mill huts. In Taisho 15, the Karasawa River system had 13 water mills, and two or three households shared each one. By 1963, no household in Karasawa was still turning a mill wheel.

Inscribed Koka 2 (1845)
13 water mills, Taisho 15
1963: no mill wheels turning

02 ／ Kurokawa Weir

A waterway that had stalledwas taken over by Momose Saburohei and seven others.

The Kurokawa Weir runs about 12 km from the Kuro River in Hata to Yamagata Village. Work begun by local volunteers in Hata stalled for lack of funds, and in Meiji 11 Momose Saburohei and seven others from Takeda took it over. Water first reached Takeda in Meiji 26, and the rice paddies were completed in Meiji 39. The guidebook calls it a turning point for a place known for millet rice.

Waterway about 12 km long
Eight men took over in Meiji 11
Paddies completed in Meiji 39

03 ／ Kiyomizu-dera Stone Pagoda

The temple's stone pagoda dates from Kyoho 15,the village's list records.

The stone three-tiered pagoda in the grounds of Kiyomizu-dera is dated to Kyoho 15 (1730) in the village's list of designated properties. On July 27, 1967, it was designated a village tangible cultural property together with the main hall, the gate and the Nio statues. The list also includes a stone pagoda of unknown date.

Kyoho 15 (1730)
Stone
Village designation, July 27, 1967

Yamagata Village 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 September 2023)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

No station in the village; 28 minutes by bus from Matsumoto.

about 8,000 people
Rural district town

There is no railway station in the village. An Alpico Kotsu Yamagata Line route bus runs from Matsumoto Bus Terminal to Yamagata Village Office, taking 28 minutes on the evening run and 32 minutes in the daytime. The village covers 24.98 km², and the village office is the gateway.

People living here: 8,400people
Area: 24.98km²
Households: 3,012households
Rent (average for rentals): —
Healthcare: 0 hospitals ／ 5 clinics

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

Children waiting for childcare: —2 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.

ACCESS

Where you can go from here.

Yamagata Village in Japan36.168°N 137.879°E

to MatsumotoLocal bus28min

Travel times follow アルピコ交通『山形線（76・77・78・70）平日・土休日時刻表』（2026年3月14日現在。松本バスターミナル5番のりば発。アルピコ交通のページと山形村公式『山形村の公共交通』が同じPDFを載せる） (checked 2026-10-20). They vary by time of day.

Shape

Borders 2 municipalities.

Territory of Yamagata Village

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

6.2km

Asahi Village, Matsumoto City

Yamagata Village isthis kind of town.

01The Nio gate of Kiyomizu-dera on the Kiyomizu plateau holds two stone Nio guardians, one with mouth open and one closed, and the two Nio were designated a village tangible cultural property in 1967
02In Karasawa, where a dosojin is inscribed with the word for mill houses, there were 13 water mills in Taisho 15, and the Kurokawa Weir was taken over by Momose Saburohei and seven others, with the paddies completed in Meiji 39
03The village list dates the stone three-tiered pagoda of Kiyomizu-dera to Kyoho 15; the village has no station, and the Alpico Kotsu route bus from Matsumoto takes 28 minutes

If something caught your eye, ask the town itself.

Yamagata Village official site ↗Wikipedia ↗

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