Obuse-cho the town of chestnuts, Katsushika Hokusai, and flowers. The town of Obuse prospered from the late Edo period to the early Meiji era (about 1790-1887) with riverboats. Many Japanese artists of the time, including the painter Katsushika Hokusai, visited the town. Therefore, there are many museums and galleries, including the Hokusai Museum (Hokusaikan) where original paintings and woodblock prints by Katsushika Hokusai are on display.