Outline

The Higuchi Family residence is located in the area closest to the Matsushiro Castle, where only the highest-ranking samurai families were allowed to live. It has a thatched roof and a half of its site, 2,131 square meters in area, was used as a vegetable farm to meet the family’s own needs back in those early days. The former vegetable farm is now a bamboo grove. This residence was not a private property per se but official housing that was provided by the clan government according to the occupying samurai’s managerial position. As such, its residents could be changed. The Higuchi Family was a high-ranking samurai assuming the position as inspector-general for the Matsushiro Clan government. The Higuchi Family lived in this residence since 1765 until recently, when the ownership was transferred to the city of Nagano. After undergoing repair and restoration work, this residence was opened to the public in 2010.