In the Edo Period, Obama flourished continuously as a port of call for cargo freighters from the Sea of Japan. The sacred relic within the Hachiman Shrine’s Funadama shrine is a model of one such ship. Those who made their living off these ships prayed for safe passage through the seas and tidy profits for their business. They put their hearts into this, deifying their own ships. This kind of faith - one that would enshrine a ship - was rare throughout Japan.

Additionally, the name “Kadayu Furukawaya” is etched on an old copper garden lantern at the Hachiman Shrine. He was a merchant and cargo ship manager, and his guest house is the Former Furukawaya Residence, also known as Goshoen. Next to it is a Funadama ship relic dedicated by Furukawaya, expressing to the present what the cargo ships of the past were like.