In order to strengthen its northern coastal defences, in 1855 the Shogunate declared the whole of Hokkaido to be under its administration, establishing government offices in Hakodate on the southern coast of the island.

It was during the Tokugawa period that the Sapporo region was first inhabited by Japanese. In 1857 two families, totalling seven people, were registered as residents. In 1866 Kametaro Otomo was sent to Sapporo by the regional government to build a canal to serve as the main route for irrigation and transportation of construction materials. This canal, now known as the Sosei River, runs through the heart of the city. It was along this waterway that 28 families travelled into the region, gradually creating a farming community and eventually the village of Sapporo.

In 1868, a new government headed by the Meiji Emperor assumed direct control of Japan.

This transfer of power from the Shogunate to the Emperor became known as the Meiji Restoration.

The new government was eager to establish a strong nation, both militarily stable and economically sound. It was extremely interested in the development of the frontier land of Hokkaido and in 1869 established the Kaitakushi (Development Commission), a national government ministry devoted to planning and developing the island's resources. It was at this time the island's name was changed from Ezo to Hokkaido. Hakodate, the administrative centre until then, was deemed an unsuitable location for both interior development and defence of the northern frontier.

During the Tokugawa period, Takeshiro Matsuura had explored and surveyed the island. As a Kaitakushi commissioner, he strongly recommended that the capital of Hokkaido be established on the lshikari Plain. As a result, Yoshitake Shima was sent to Hokkaido as the commissioner responsible for founding a capital city. He first viewed the area that would become the city of Sapporo from Kotanbetsu Hill, part of the present Maruyama Park. From there, he planned a green belt dividing the city into north and south. This belt became the present Odori Park.

It was decided that the government buildings would be centred around the Kaitakushi office in the north, while to the south, amusement and commercial quarters would be located. The canal divided the city into east and west. However, in his eagerness to build a model city, he neglected financing and was recalled to Tokyo after squandering a one-year budget in three months.

Commissioner Michitoshi lwamura was appointed to complete the task and the Kaitakushi Office was completed in 1871, paving the way for the transfer of administration to Sapporo. Iwamura then surveyed Odori Park and the surrounding area and began to develop the city around the park in a grid pattern.

In 1870, the Vice-Governor of the Kaitakushi, Kiyotaka Kuroda looked to the West for help with colonisation. He felt that by inviting experts who had experience in climates similar to that of Hokkaido, he could speed up the island's development. In l871, Kuroda went to America to study its development techniques and to observe related facilities. As a result, he was successful in inviting Horace Capron, Secretary of Agriculture under President Ulysses S. Grant, to be an adviser to the Kaitakushi. At the same time, he began to import into Hokkaido, machinery, technology, and seeds from the United States to Hokkaido.

Government policy encouraged the establishment of many industries in this developing frontier.

Factories, built at governmental expense, were later transferred to private ownership. The commodities of those early factories, beer and dairy products, are still the main products of Hokkaido. Imported seeds and seedlings were first tested at the National Botanical Gardens in Tokyo and Sapporo and those which proved potentially profitable were made available to the farmers. Among these were wheat, corn, potatoes and asparagus.

The economy slackened after this initial surge of prosperity, but improved again in 1874, when the colonial militia system, called "Tondenhei," was founded to defend the northern frontier and to develop the island. An influx of people from Honshu helped revive the stagnant economy. In 1880, Japan's third operational railroad was established between Sapporo and Otaru, a major port city 34km to the west. It played a vital role in reducing costs and increasing the development of industry. Two years later, the extension of this line to the Horonai coal mining area enabled Hokkaido to become an exporter ofcoa1.

As Hokkaido's economy steadily developed, the Kaitakushi became unnecessary and was abolished in l882. In 1886, Hokkaido Prefecture was established with Michitoshi lwamura as its first governor.

In 1918, Hokkaido celebrated its 5Oth anniversary with a grand exhibition in Sapporo.

The city also became the first in Hokkaido to replace its horse-drawn trolley cars with electric streetcars. In 1922, Sapporo adopted a municipal administration as the city increased in size to over 24 sq.kilo meters with a population of 127,044 residents in 22,915 households.

Industrial development was well under way in food processing, forestry and other areas. Sapporo remained physically intact at the end of World War II and Hokkaido was thrust into the limelight as a key region of Japan. The Hokkaido Comprehensive Development Plan, approved in 1950, encouraged leading business and manufacturers in Honshu to open branch offices in Sapporo. This industrial expansion brought with it a huge increase in population.

With a population of over one million, as indicated by the 1970 census, Sapporo was designated as an autonomous city on April 1st 1972, under the Local Autonomy Law of Japan and became one of Japan's "eleven major cities," along with Tokyo, Yokohama, Nagoya, Kyoto, Osaka, Kobe, Kita Kyushu, Fukuoka, Kawasaki, and Hiroshima. Also in 1972, Sapporo hosted the 11th Winter Olympic Games, which helped speed up improvements to the city's cold climate facilities, including a subway system, district and road heating.

The city survey of May 1, 1983 recorded a population of 1,483,182, which made Sapporo the fifth largest city in Japan. Despite its intense growth from a small agricultural outpost to a pivotal city in northern Japan, the area continues to be an attractive, clean and healthy place to live and continued efforts will no doubt contribute to further development and prosperity in the future.