Hokuto, Hokkaido

Hokuto (北斗市) is a city in the center of the Oshima Subprefecture in Japan's northern island of Hokkaido. It serves as a bedroom community for Hakodate, to the east of the city. Hokuto was formed on February 1, 2006, from merging the town of Kamiiso, from Kamiiso District, and the town of Ōno, from Kameda District. Hokuto is the third city to be established in Oshima. (The second, Kameda, no longer exists, being dissolved just two years after its founding in 1971). Hokuto is the second largest city in Oshima by population after the city of Hakodate.

Geography
Hokuto is in the middle of Oshima, a peninsula in Hokkaido's south. The southeast portion is mostly plains and the western part is more mountainous. The south borders the Hakodate Bay. The Ōno River runs north and south through the middle of Hokuto.
 * Mountain: Katsuratake (734m)
 * Rivers: Ōno, Hekirichi
 * Lake: Kamiiso
 * Forest parks: Hachirounuma Koen

Neighboring regions

 * Oshima Subprefecture
 * Hakodate City
 * Kamiiso District: Kikonai Town
 * Kameda District: Nanae Town
 * Kayabe District: Mori Town
 * Hiyama Subprefecture
 * Hiyama District: Assabu Town

History

 * 1900: Kamiiso village and Ono village were founded.
 * 1918: Kamiiso village became Kamiiso town.
 * 1955: Mobetsu village was merged into Kamiiso town.
 * 1957: Ono village became Ono town.
 * 2006: Kamiiso town and Ono town were merged to form Hokuto city.

Rail
Oshima-Ōno Station was scheduled to be rebuilt and renamed Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto Station by the time the Hokkaido Shinkansen in March 2016.
 * Esashi Line: Nanaehama - Higashi-Kunebetsu - Kunebetsu - Kiyokawaguchi - Kamiiso - Moheji - Oshima-Tōbetsu
 * Hakodate Main Line: Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto
 * Hokkaido Shinkansen: Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto

Road

 * JP Expressway E59.svg Hakodate-Esashi Expressway: Hokuto-Oiwake IC - Hokuto-chūō IC - Hokuto-Tomigawa IC - Hokuto-Moheji IC

High schools

 * Hokkaido Kamiiso High School
 * Hokkaido Ono Agricultural High School
 * Hokkaido Hakodate fisheries High School