Archaeological excavation of the
Yoshigo Shell Midden and sites has provided evidence for human habitation of Atsumi Peninsula during the
Jomon Period. During Japan's feudal period, Atsumi Peninsula was the majority of land under the
Tahara Domain. After the fall of the
Tokugawa shogunate during the
Meiji period, the peninsula became the heart of
Atsumi District, with over 30 autonomous towns and villages. From the late 19th to the mid-20th century, most towns merged with neighbors or were consolidated by the government, until there were only two towns left:
Atsumi in the west, which included Cape Irago, and the city of
Tahara, to the east, which had the only railroad on the peninsula and shared a border with the larger city of
Toyohashi. In 2005, was absorbed into the city of Tahara, which now occupies the majority of the peninsula, with a small portion of the eastern end within the borders of Toyohashi. ==References==