There is an example that Genbukan-dojo which was run by the head family of Chiba declined after Michisaburo CHIBA took it over, thus, it is thought that the grand master's ability decided the fate of dojo at the end of the Edo period.
本家筋にあたる玄武館道場が千葉道三郎の代になって衰退した例もあり、幕末期は師範の実力が道場の盛衰に直結する時代であったと推測さる。