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HEIKE SAMURAI CONNECTION RESEARCH:

There are probably over a 1000 locations that can make claims to a Heishi (aka Heiki or Taira Clan) Ochiudo connection after their demise when protecting the boy emperor at Dan no Ura in 1185.

It appears that my ancestors were in hiding in their tiny Yamaguchi mountain village (not even found on maps) for maybe as long as 800 years. From the hundreds of weather worn headstones in the village Ohaka I am not surprised.

To support my theory of a Heike connection, even if only circumstantially, local oral legend dictates that my ancestral village and a nearby village (just a 15-min. walk along a path) once had two boats (Nisou Bune) from the Heike period on the mountain top that they brought with them, as well as a Heike (Jyofuku-ji) temple, a reputation for making bows and arrows, a local Kyoto Ben accent (according to local Bhuddist head) used through the mid-1900s and a host of other stories that imply a link. After all, why would farmers in the mountains of Yamaguchi Ken need or have the skill to make bows and arrows?

One particularly interesting story says that the neighboring village once had over 200 villagers prior to the arrival of the fleeing Heike Samurai, but there was some sort of conflict over the Samurai bringing their own Buddhist temple (Jyofuku-ji) temple in 1185, which differed from temple of the indigenous farmers and that this resulted in a fight.

My theory is that the Samurai did not want to risk being turned over to the Genji (Minamoto) by the local farmers and fled to my ancestral village (a 15-min. walk away).

There is somewhat of a sense of urgency because only one elderly resident is left in the tiny village with any sense of the local history. Furthermore, there is construction starting to take place in the area, rendering any archaeological prospects negligible.

To summarize, I am looking for help with the following:

1. Finding Heike experts that can somehow help me find clues as to whether there may be some archaeological evidence, such as artifacts resembling Heike style craftsmanship (ex. bow and arrow, etc.), before they all disappear or are destroyed forever. At least sufficient insight to get me to a point, where I can go dig and look for myself.

2. An old woman in the village once told me that she is certain of a Heike connection to the village because of the Kojin-sama. What does Kojin-sama mean? When talking to her I figured she maybe meant some sort of mountain spirit, so we did inquire further. However, after talking it over with my mother and grandmother, the old woman possibly meant the little house with statues inside meant to protect the family or village dwellings from fire. Is it possible that a Heishi connection can be made through a Kojin-sama?

3. The Tanaka and Nakamura family Kamon is the Tachibana. In my research, I understand that a Taira Samurai family by the name of Ii also used the same Tachibana Kamon as mine. Is there any chance that the Kamon held more significance than use of family names that did not arrive until around the 16th century or is this mere coincidence? I understand that commoners also did not use Kamon until the around 17th century, so is it possible that Samurai families kept Kamon in lieu of surnames for near a millennia, esp. if they descended from the defeated Heike?

4. Finally, a somewhat indirectly related question - the local city government says they can only give my Tohon records back 3 generations from my eldest living relative - which is three generations past my grandmother - even though when we picked up our Tohon, the clerk said that they have records extending further back into the Edo period. Hence, is there any academic or research approach you may be able to suggest to gain access to these records before the city destroys them? My understanding is they destroy old records every so often. I know it will not get me back eight centuries, but the further back my paper trail, maybe the better I can find other candidates for DNA testing to eventually find a link.

Again, none of these stories are documented that we have found thus far, so any ideas or suggestions would be tremendously appreciated.

During the Edo era, a local Daimyo designated an area village to produce Washi. There were many Kozo (mulberry trees) that grew in that area and this was the source of their ability to produce good quality paper. Even today, there are some scattered Kozo trees. Apparently, the Daimyo set a policy that nobody from the village (who knew how to make such high quality Washi) could move out of the village, and if someone else outside of the village wanted to marry someone in the village, that person had to move into the village and stay in order to protect the trade secret. Some of those papermaking tools are still stored in one of the old Kura (storage building, on the second floor). We once asked to see if we could see them but the Yoshikazu and another woman were a little hesitant to show them to us because the owner of the storage was not there.

Tei A. Gordon