Ruins of Seed Store; Silkworm Farm
Near the current Baba Settlement Centre in the Taira area, there used to be a building where silkworm larvae were raised for distribution to silkworm farmers. It is said that farmers’ daughters worked there under supervision. East of here, there was a seed store that handled silkworm eggs, and sericulture instructors were stationed there to provide guidance.
In addition, 400m to the west, along the banks of the Hijikuro River, Matsumoto Nobuteru, a native of Hijikuro, set up a silkworm-raising facility and was engaged in sericulture research. Matsumoto succeeded in the storage of silkworms by using the cold air of the wind caves in Mount Unzen. He is regarded as the person who laid the foundations of sericulture in the Shimabara Peninsula.