Kurashiki City is the second most populous city in Okayama prefecture with nearly 470,000 inhabitants, just after Okayama City, the prefectural capital. It is nationally known as a sightseeing city whose most representative area is The Kurashiki Bikan Historical Quarter, an area that extends from the front of Kurashiki Station, and is always teeming with tourists. Having been administered directly by the Tokugawa Shogunate during the Edo period (from the 17th century to the 19th century), the city prospered as a key spot for gathering goods and materials under the leadership of the local merchants. The Kurashiki Bikan Historical Quarter retains to this day what once served as warehouses or residents of the then wealthy merchants, handing down the splendor of their daily and cultural life to the present. This area is also endowed with cultural facilities such as museums in which Ohara Museum of Art excels. Beautiful rows of houses and streets form a townscape with traditional atmosphere. The Seto Ohashi Bridge, one of the largest for road and rail traffic in the world, connecting Honshu and Shikoku is another spot worth visiting. Speaking of industries, Kurashiki City is characterized by the successful promotion of its dynamic and diversified industrial activities, covering agriculture developed by use of the generous and rich blessings of nature, fishing, a traditional textile industry successfully converted into a steady production district of jeans and uniforms, and heavy industries such as Mizushima Complex.