In 1823 he married Taka, a daughter of the Wada family of the Tahara Domain, and inherited the Watanabe family following the death of his father, whereupon he took over the karoku (hereditary stipend) of 80 koku (the stipend returned to the original level with his father's promotion in the domain administration) in 1825.
文政6年（1823年）、田原藩の和田氏の娘・たかと結婚し、同8年（1825年）には父の病死のため32歳で家督を相続し、80石の家禄を引き継いだ（父の藩内の出世に合わせて、禄は復帰していた）。