Ino Tadataka Timeline: From 1745 to the 1821 Ino Map in Five Periods

Ino Tadataka’s life at a glance

Ino Tadataka lived for 74 years, and across that time he changed direction several times — merchant → late-life student → nationwide surveyor → editor of the final map. Listing dates and numbers alone makes the story hard to read, so this page is organized into five periods.

First the full timeline, then the periods, and finally an age-by-age quick reference.

Full timeline

Year Era Age Event
1745 Enkyō 2 0 Born in Kozeki Village, Yamabe District, Kazusa Province (today’s Kujūkuri Town, Chiba)
1762 Hōreki 12 17 Adopted into the Ino family of Sawara, Shimōsa Province (today’s Katori City, Chiba)
1781 Tenmei 1 36 Appointed village head; runs the family business while serving as a local official
1783 Tenmei 3 38 Tenmei Famine. Distributes rice to people in need, gaining strong local trust
1794 Kansei 6 49 Begins preparing for retirement
1795 Kansei 7 50 Hands the family headship to his adopted heir Kagetaka, moves to Edo, and becomes a student of Takahashi Yoshitoki
1800 Kansei 12 55 First survey (south coast of Ezo)
1801 Kyōwa 1 56 Second survey (Izu and the Pacific coast of eastern Japan)
1802 Kyōwa 2 57 Third survey (Sea of Japan coast of Tōhoku)
1803 Kyōwa 3 58 Fourth survey (Tōkai and Hokuriku)
1804 Bunka 1 59 Map shown to the shogun in Edo. From this point, the surveys are increasingly recognized as official shogunate work
1805 Bunka 2 60 Fifth survey (Kinki and Chūgoku)
1808 Bunka 5 63 Sixth survey (Shikoku)
1809 Bunka 6 64 Seventh survey (Kyūshū, first part)
1811 Bunka 8 66 Eighth survey (Kyūshū, second part)
1815 Bunka 12 70 Ninth survey (the Izu Islands)
1816 Bunka 13 71 Tenth survey (within the city of Edo). The nationwide surveying is now complete
1818 Bunsei 1 73 Dies in Edo. His death is concealed for a time so that the map work can continue
1821 Bunsei 4 (3 years posthumous) The Dai-Nihon Enkai Yochi Zenzu is completed and presented to the shogunate

Five periods

Period 1: Merchant years (1745–1794, ages 0–49)

For most of his life, Ino Tadataka was a merchant, not a surveyor. At 17 he was adopted into the Ino family of Sawara and gradually rebuilt the family’s sake-brewing business.

Sawara was a thriving river-trade town on the Tone River, with strong commercial and cultural ties to Edo — close enough that it later earned the nickname Edo-masari, “more Edo than Edo.” Ino ran his store, served as a village head, and during the Tenmei Famine distributed rice to those in need. By 49, he was an established figure with real local trust.

What matters here is that by the time he turned to scholarship, he had already lived a complete first life. His move at 50 wasn’t a desperate fresh start. It was a deliberate step away from a life that had already succeeded.

Period 2: Late-life student years (1795–1799, ages 50–54)

In 1795, at 50, Ino handed the family headship to his adopted heir Kagetaka and left Sawara for Edo. He settled in Fukagawa Kuroe-chō and became a student of Takahashi Yoshitoki, then an astronomer to the shogunate. Yoshitoki was 19 years younger than him — but Ino, with no apparent embarrassment, became his serious, full-time pupil.

These five years don’t have flashy events. But this is where the observational techniques, the methods for taking latitude and longitude, and the basic surveying procedure that would later support the nationwide work were quietly assembled.

Period 3: Nationwide surveying years (1800–1816, ages 55–71)

In 1800, at 55, Ino set out on his first survey, to the south coast of Ezo. At first the project was almost a private one. But after his maps were inspected by the shogun in 1804, the surveys became increasingly recognized as official shogunate work.

Over the next 17 years, his teams completed ten major surveys: Ezo, the Pacific coast of eastern Japan, the Sea of Japan coast of Tōhoku, Tōkai and Hokuriku, Kinki and Chūgoku, Shikoku, Kyūshū (twice), the Izu Islands, and finally the city of Edo. The total distance walked is commonly described as about 40,000 km — almost the circumference of the Earth.

Period 4: The editing years (1816–1818, ages 71–73)

In 1816 the tenth survey was finished and Ino returned to Edo for good. The remaining time was spent turning the survey records into map form. In 1818, at 73, he died in Edo without seeing the map completed.

Period 5: The disciples finish the work (1818–1821)

This is the most distinctive part of the story. Ino’s death was kept quiet for a time, and his disciples continued the editing work. In 1821, three years after his death, the Dai-Nihon Enkai Yochi Zenzu was finally completed and presented to the shogunate.

In other words, the Ino Map isn’t the work of one man. It’s a project centered on Ino, but ultimately carried across the finish line by his disciples after his death. As an ending to a timeline, that’s quietly powerful.

At a glance: what happened at what age

Age What happened
17 Adopted into the Ino family of Sawara
38 Distributes rice during the Tenmei Famine
50 Hands over the family business, moves to Edo, becomes Takahashi Yoshitoki’s student
55 First nationwide survey (south coast of Ezo)
59 Maps shown to the shogun; surveys become an official project
71 Tenth survey completed; the nationwide surveying is finished
73 Dies in Edo
(3 years posthumous) Dai-Nihon Enkai Yochi Zenzu completed

Quick questions

When was he born and when did he die?

Born 1745 in Kozeki Village, Yamabe District, Kazusa Province; died 1818 in Edo at 73.

At what age did he hand over the family business?

At 50, in 1795. He passed the headship to his adopted heir Kagetaka, left Sawara, and became a student of Takahashi Yoshitoki in Edo.

At what age did he start his first survey?

At 55, in 1800. The first survey was the south coast of Ezo, and over the next 17 years he ran ten major surveys across Japan.

When was the Ino Map completed?

In 1821, three years after his death. His disciples carried the work forward and presented the completed map to the shogunate.

References

Footscroll

Walk Ino Tadataka's Journey With Your Own Steps

Footscroll turns your daily step count into a quiet journey across a washi-style map of Japan, inspired by Ino Tadataka's survey routes.

See Footscroll App Store