History
Kamaishi, once nothing but a cold fishing village, has continued to move forward as the birthplace of modern ironmaking since 1857. In that year, Takato Oshima, a feudal lord of Morioka, built a Western-style blast furnace in the Ohashi district. He succeeded in making iron from ore, opening the window to industrial modernization.
Kamaishi Steelworks in front of Kamaishi Station in the 1960s.
Besides, Kamaishi has left distinct track records in sports, represented primarily by two teams and two landmarking events. One group is “The Nippon Steel (Fujitetsu) Kamaishi Baseball Club,”
which has figured in national non-professional baseball tournaments. The team, known as “Tohoku Rampage,” produced famous players, such as Hisashi Yamada. The other group is “The “Nippon Steel Kamaishi Rugby Club,” which clinched eight championships, including seven consecutive titles, building an unprecedented era in the history of Japanese rugby. One event is “The Kamaishi Hamayuri Triathlon International Tournament,” highly acclaimed both inside and outside Japan for its homely atmosphere. The other event was “the Rugby World Cup 2019 Japan Tournament” held at the new Kamaishi Unosuma Reconstruction Stadium, still fresh to the memory.
Additionally, Kamaishi experienced the tsunami disaster in the wake of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake. Long before, it was devastated by gunfire from the US and British navies during World War II.