The Ogata Clan of Bungo (豊後の緒方氏) was established by Ogata No Saburo Koreyoshi in 1174 as a Samurai Clan of humble origins. The Clan's history is recorded in several references and was a long lasting clan that lived in Bungo, now called Oita Prefecture. The family's main recorded history dates to the Tale of Genji and "Okuninushi no Mikoto" which explains the legend and history of Ogata No Saburo Koreyoshi.
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First English version
Helen McCullough translated the first English version of The Tale of the Heike which gives us the first historical recording of Ogata No Saburo Koreyosh, his command of the largest armies and importance that played a key role in the Minamoto's taking control of Early Japan. Dawson and De Benniville's works also explain the historical recordings of the first Ogata Clan from Bungo.
First Shogun
The Ogata Clan made a huge impact in the beginning of the First Shogun's rule. They helped established the Oka Castle, and help solidify the region with the large armies that Ogata No Saburo Keriyoshi commanded.
Late history
Japanese history books do not record the Ogata Clan's quick rise and fall, as a clan that had made a huge impact, in a role that helped the Kamamura Period to be established. The Ogata Clan descendants remained samurai until the last epic battles in the Meiji Restoration. The last recorded samurai of the Ogata Clan was Ogata Shuntaro, who was MIA as the Samurai's fought to protect their heritage. Ogata Masanori of Tokyo who was originally raised in Kumamoto Japan, traced the lineage of the Ogata's back to 1170's, his cusin Historian Sheldon T. Ogata completed the research of the Ogata family in 2008-2010 tracing back to Ogata No Saburo Koreyoshi. The first Ogata Clan was established in Bungo Japan. Many of Ogata No Saburo Koreyoshi's descendants have the same Kanji and writings as his last name can be found in Fukuoka and Kumamoto Japan. Many of his descendants now live in Hawaii, California, Brazil, and Georgia.