A Micro-History of Trade at Treaty Port Hakodate in the Bakumatsu and Meiji Eras

2022 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 20K13540
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Basic Section 07070:Economic history-related
• Research Institution: Kyoto University
• Principal Investigator: Ivings Steven 京都大学, 経済学研究科, 准教授 (70817957)
• Project Period (FY): 2020-04-01 – 2023-03-31
• Keywords: Economic History / Japanese History / Business History / Trade / Merchants / Hakodate / Hokkaido

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This project has been based on the materials gathered via several archival research trips at former Japanese treaty ports. Several results have already been published as papers in academic journals and in the coming years will be published as a book. Findings have also been presented at several prominent international conferences both online and in person. Though I was unable to gather as many historical source materials from overseas as planned, work done in domestic archives was more extensive than planned and has benefited the project. The project has confirmed the validity of the approach of a micro-history of Japan's trade and in future I hope (whilst completing a book from this project) to extend this study to other ports, tracing the roots of European and American firms to their home countries and other overseas locations as well as the links between activities in different Japanese treaty ports.

Free Research Field

経済史

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

This project has looked into the activities of foreign merchants at Hakodate in the bakumatsu and Meiji eras from the perspective of micro/global history. It has produced a number of case studies that show how trade was conducted in the early phase of Japan's integration into the global economy.