was the forty-eighth of the fifty-three stations

53 Stations of the Tokaido

The are the rest areas along the Tōkaidō, which was a coastal route that ran from Nihonbashi in Edo to Sanjō Ōhashi in Kyoto.-Stations of the Tōkaidō:...

 of the Tōkaidō

Tokaido (road)

The ' was the most important of the Five Routes of the Edo period, connecting Edo to Kyoto in Japan. Unlike the inland and less heavily travelled Nakasendō, the Tōkaidō travelled along the sea coast of eastern Honshū, hence the route's name....

. It is located in the present-day city of Kameyama

Kameyama, Mie

is a city located in Mie Prefecture, Japan.As of 2006, the city has an estimated population of 48,902 and the density of 256.15 persons per km². The total area is 190.91 km².The city was founded on October 1, 1954....

, in Mie Prefecture

Mie Prefecture

is a prefecture of Japan which is part of the Kansai regions on Honshū island. The capital is the city of Tsu.- History :Until the Meiji Restoration, Mie prefecture was known as Ise Province and Iga Province....

, Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

.

History

Sakashita flourished as a post town

Shukuba

were post stations during the Edo period in Japan, generally located on one of the Edo Five Routes or one of its sub-routes. They were also called shukueki . These post stations were places where travelers could rest on their journey around the nation...

 during the Edo period

Edo period

The , or , is a division of Japanese history which was ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family, running from 1603 to 1868. The political entity of this period was the Tokugawa shogunate....

 because of its location at the entrance to the Suzuka Pass (鈴鹿峠 Suzuka Tōge). However, the Suzuka Pass was also the reason for the post town's decline in the Meiji period

Meiji period

The , also known as the Meiji era, is a Japanese era which extended from September 1868 through July 1912. This period represents the first half of the Empire of Japan.- Meiji Restoration and the emperor :...

; the pass was too steep for rail lines to be laid, so the rail went through Tsuge Station

Tsuge Station

is a train station in Iga, Mie Prefecture, Japan.-Layout:There are a side platform and an island platform with three tracks on the ground level.The Kusatsu line tracks are electrified but the Kansai Line tracks are not.-Stations next to Tsuge:...

 (present-day Iga

Iga, Mie

was a town located in Ayama District, Mie Prefecture, Japan.On November 1, 2004 Iga absorbed the old city of Ueno, the towns of Ayama, the villages of Ōyamada and Shimagahara, all from Ayama District, and the town of Aoyama, from Naga District, to become the new city of Iga.-Geography:Located on...

), bypassing the formerly flourishing town.

Today, there are only a few private residences left at the site of the former post station, as well as very little historical architecture. The only thing that marks the former site is a stone marker built by the former town of Seki

Seki, Mie

was a town located in Suzuka District, Mie, Japan.As of 2003, the town had an estimated population of 7,051 and a density of 88.27 persons per km². The total area was 79.88 km².On January 11, 2005 Seki was merged into the city of Kameyama....

.

Neighboring post towns

Tōkaidō

Seki-juku

Seki-juku (Tokaido)

was the forty-seventh of the fifty-three stations of the Tōkaidō. It is located in the present-day city of Kameyama, in Mie Prefecture, Japan.-History:...

 - Sakashita-juku - Tsuchiyama-juku

Tsuchiyama-juku

was the forty-ninth of the fifty-three stations of the Tōkaidō. It is located in the present-day city of Kōka, in Shiga Prefecture, Japan.-History:...