The Date clan was a powerful group during the Edo period. They controlled Miyagi and southern Iwate. After the Edo period, in the Meiji period, many samurai lost their land during the Meiji Restoration. The Date clan also lost their land. Part of the family went to Hokkaidõ. They started another city, Date, Hokkaidõ. The family name of Date clan came from Fukushima.