The former second house of General Maresuke Nogi | kokosil Nasushiobara

Mr. Maresuke Nogi, who is still remembered as General Nogi today, obtained a land of 14 hectares and a farming house in Ishibayashi in 1891. This property was inherited from the uncle of his wife, Shizuko. The uncle had been a samurai of the Satsuma han (clan), Mr. Kiyoaki Yoshida.

There had already stood a house and a barn on the property, but General Nogi designed a second house in the simple style of farming house himself and had it built in 1892. It was a one story house with the roof created by piling chestnut wood panel one after another (called Korikobabuki style). Later, the roof was renovated and covered with Japanese roof tiles. The floor area is about 189 square meters. The length of standard used when the house was built was the western Japanese (Kansai) standard. According to the standard, the floor space is 53 tsubo (a Japanese unit of floor space). When translated into the eastern Japanese (Kanto) standard, the same area counts as about 57 tsubo. There are an earth floor and a hearth. There are rooms covered with tatami mats: three rooms with eight tatami mats each, and three rooms with six mats. There are also an attic and a space that serves as a barn.

General Nogi took four leaves of absence in his career. After the second house was built, he spent much of his leave of absence (48 months in total) in the house. He was said to have spent a simple life of farming in good weather and reading on rainy days and come to befriend the villagers. The residence burnt down in 1990, and was restored in March 1993.