(1887 - October 10, 1972), born in Iwanai District,

Hokkaidō is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel. The la ...

, helped to establish what became the

Scout Association of Japan The is the major Scouting organization of Japan. Starting with boys only, the organization was known as Boy Scouts of Japan from 1922 to 1971, and as Boy Scouts of Nippon from 1971 to 1995, when it became coeducational in all sections, leading to ...

. He was

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

's first Chief Scout.

Background

His father, , participated in the organization from the Kanezawa han, which developed land to make it suitable for habitation. After graduating from , he worked as an army officer.

Scouting

In 1914, during the fall season training of the Army Seventh Division, he was asked by Lieutenant General , to set up a youth organization and in 1916, he founded the . In 1920, from July 30 to August 7, he participated in the first

World Scout Jamboree The World Scout Jamboree is a Scouting jamboree of the World Organization of the Scout Movement, typically attended by several tens of thousands of Scouts from around the world, aged 14 to 17. The first World Scout Jamboree was organized by T ...

, held in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. The other participants from Japan were Koshiba Hiroshi and Richard Suzuki. He also met Sir

Robert Baden-Powell Lieutenant-General Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell, ( ; (Commonly pronounced by others as ) 22 February 1857 – 8 January 1941) was a British Army officer, writer, founder and first Chief Scout of the worl ...

. After returning from the jamboree, he established the ("Japan Stalwart Youth Troop") in 1921, and worked as Japan's first Chief Scout, using his own home as the organization's office. In 1928, while climbing the

Niseko Niseko ( ja, ニセコ町, , ) is a town located in Shiribeshi Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. To Japanese people, Niseko principally refers to a mountain range and a municipal area. However, overseas the name has come to refer to a wider area o ...

mountain range, he discovered a beautiful

marsh A marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous rather than woody plant species.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p Marshes can often be found at ...

area. Moved by its beauty, he named it ', meaning "a marsh where gods and

sennin ''Xian'' () refers to a person or similar entity having a long life or being immortal. The concept of ''xian'' has different implications dependent upon the specific context: philosophical, religious, mythological, or other symbolic or cultural ...

live."

Legacy

In 1964, the Japanese Scout Association awarded him the title of . The Shimoda Toyomatsu Memorial Hall,

Kutchan is a town located in Shiribeshi Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. Kutchan lies slightly north of the volcano Mount Yōtei, and is approximately 50 kilometers west of Sapporo. The subprefecture government offices are located in this town, making it ...

, Abuta District, Hokkaidō is named in his honor.

Related books

* (Kuniichi Komachi, Kuni Scouting Library)

References

Much of this information in this article was translated from the equivalent article in the Japanese Wikipedia, as referenced on October 28, 2006 Scouting in Japan 1887 births 1972 deaths Japanese writers Scouting pioneers Chief Scouts {{Japan-bio-stub