The area Setouchi was part of ancient
Bizen Province. Port Ushimado was a famous port till the early modern era. It served
messengers from Korea to the Imperial Court and later to the
Tokugawa shogunate. The port is today a good spot for sightseeing and sailing. Osafune was famous for the production of
katana in the 12th century under the name of
Bizen Osafune. Fukuoka District, which flourished as a trade center and later a political center along the Seto Inland Sea until the beginning of the
Edo period, served by the Yoshii River and the Seto Inland Sea, is also included as a part of the city. The Fukuoka Market (
Fukuoka no Ichi) was recorded in the scroll
Ippen Shonin Emaki, drawn in the 13th century. At the end of the
Kamakura period a castle was built in Fukuoka. In the middle
Muromachi period, the
daimyō who governed Bizen province took this castle as their site, rebuilt and fortified it more than before. Because the Yoshii River changed its course and most of Fukuoka including the castle sank under the river, the castle was abandoned. During the
Edo Period, the area was part of the holdings of
Okayama Domain. After the
Meiji restoration, the area was organized into villages, including the village of
Oku within
Oku District, Okayama on June 1, 1889 with the creation of the modern municipalities system. Oku was raised to town status on April 1, 1952 after merging with five neighboring villages. The city of Setouchi was founded on November 1, 2004, by the merger of Oku with the towns of
Osafune and
Ushimado (all from
Oku District). Its city hall is the former town hall of Oku. ==Government==