During the Nara period, this area served as the most important seaport in ancient Mutsu Province, with the provincial capital's ruins still found within city borders today.

The shrine sits atop Ichimoriyama, reached by a tree-lined stairway that rewards climbers with sweeping views of the Pacific Ocean and bay below.

The shrine's name uses an archaic kanji for salt (鹽) seen almost nowhere else in modern Japan. The city itself officially uses a different character, and the train station uses yet another simpler version.

Shiogama Jinja is a major Shinto shrine in Shiogama, Miyagi, and stands on Ichimoriyama hill.