Omihachiman, that sits at the foot of Mt. Hachiman-yama in the center of Shiga, is a castle town of Hachiman-yama-jo. The castle was built in 1585 on the eastern shore Japan’s largest lake, Lake Biwa. It is also known as a base town for Omi-shonin, or Omi merchants.
Until the mid 19th century, the town of Omihachiman was divided by Hachiman-bori, north of which was a residential area for the warriors and south was for the townsfolk. The area for the townsfolk was further divided into the merchants’ and craftsmen’s areas.
