Once the onsen started to prosper, the government placed officials called yuban-to to collect taxes──

In the 18th century, serious on-land reclamation works started, and Yushima floating out on the ocean, became increasingly accessible. In the 19th century, a bridge was built and it became possible to walk over to Yushima. As things became more convenient, visitors increased more and more and there was a point where the onsen became so popular that merchants would fill barrels with spring water and carry it all the way back to Osaka and Edo or old Tokyo.

As the onsen continued to flourish, confrontations with the yuban-to, who tried to take over management, also become deeper. For example, in order to fill barrels with the onsen water, you needed a seal of confirmation from the yuban-to. Those without a seal were forgeries and would be caught. The buzz around these forgeries actually inspired a song:

“Kick that small island’s detestable yuban-to
into the ocean, and after 20 days, pretend to raise him up and kick him again.”

There is actually a story that a former sumo wrestler of the town actually did push a yuban-to into the ocean, attesting to the antagonism against him. After deep and bitter fighting against this system for 200 years, it finally changed in 1872. After paying a large sum of te-chokin (the currency at the time), the people of Wakura were able to buy back control of the onsen.

After this, the stagnated redevelopment took off again. They finally reclaimed the remaining waters surrounding Yushima, connecting it to mainland with actual land instead of just a bridge. The first Souya was built as a public bathhouse and land reclamation reached as far as Benten-shima, which came to be known as Benten-zaki.

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