Ashio was a silent mountain village begore copper was found. In 1610, two farmers were said to find copper in Mt.Bizentate. The Ashio Copper Mine then started under the direct administration of the Tokugawa Shogunate.The Ashio Copper Mine enjoyed remarkable prosperity, and was referred to as “Ashio,the Town of 1,000 House ”. Not only was the copper used in Japan,
but also it was sent to foreign countries. It was used to make the roofs for the “Toshogu Shrine”, the “Edo Castle”and the “Kaneiji Temple in Ueno”and so on. In addition to this, the copper was used to make money called “Kaneitsuho('Ashijisen')”
In 1877, Mr.Ichibe'e Furukawa began management of the Ashio copper mine. He used new machines and skills. As a result of this, the mine was electrified and modernized, and the amount of copper output increased. In 1916, the population of Ashio reached 38,428. Ashio was the largest town next to Utsunomiya(about58,000) in Tochigi prefecture.
However, people dug copper without sufficient planning during World WarⅡ;they couldn't produce as much copper as they thought.
At last, the Ashio copper mine was closed in February in 1973, closing the chapter to about 400 years of history.
