The Tokugawa Shogunate ordered all daimyos to alternate between Edo and their home town (Sankin-Kotai). The lord of Kubota was no exception. Lord Satake’s procession spent 11 to 14 days travelling from Kubota to Edo, via Ushu High Street and Oshu High Street (except during the time of Yoshinobu, when the procession went through the Sasaya pass in Yamagata before joining Oshu High Street). The procession brought from home not only food but also plates, bowls, and even bedclothes. As many as 1,350 people took part in it in 1642. At post-towns, the lord stayed in the official accommodation (honjin) and the others in adjacent inns. The system of alternate residence between Edo and the home town with annual processions to/from Edo improved the high streets and accommodations and thus contributed to economic development along the high streets.
