The Matsumaedō (松前道) was the continuation of the Ōshū Kaidō, one of the Edo Five Routes of Japan. It connected the Sendaidō's terminus at Sendai Castle with the northern tip of modern-day Aomori Prefecture. It was established by Tokugawa Ieyasu for government officials traveling through the area. The route is named after the Matsumae Domain, the only Edo period feudal domain to have been located in Ezo (now called Hokkaidō); Matsumae was accessible by boat from the northern terminus of the Matsumaedō.

Travel

In the early Edo period, travel along the road mostly consisted of daimyō and their retainers heading to-and-from Edo under their sankin kōtai obligations. After Hakodate's development, the late Edo period saw travel further increase as a result of increasing trade with Imperial Russia. Today, the path of the Ōshū Kaidō is followed by National Route 4, which runs parallel to the Tōhoku Expressway and the Hachinohe Expressway.

Stations of the Matsumaedō

The 44 post stations along the Matsumaedō are listed below in order and are divided by their modern-day prefecture. The present day municipality is listed afterwards in parentheses. The Sendaidō connected the beginning of the Matsumaedō with the end of the Ōshū Kaidō.

Miyagi Prefecture

Iwate Prefecture

Aomori Prefecture

National Historic Site

In the year 2010, seven surviving portions of the highway with a total length of 8.86 kilometers in the towns of Ichinohe, Iwate and Iwate, Iwate received protection as a National Historic Site of Japan. These surviving sections contain four of the original ichirizuka milestones of the highway.