Watari Castle (Watari Yogai) served as the residence of Date Shigezane, a senior retainer who had distinguished himself in numerous battles under Date Masamune. After the Battle of Sekigahara, in 1602, Masamune granted Shigezane the Watari domain of 18,000 koku, and the castle thereafter passed down as the seat of the Watari-Date family.

Date Shigezane, Masamune's cousin known as "Demon Shigezane," one of the Date clan's fiercest generals, was granted the 18,000-koku Watari domain after the Battle of Sekigahara and entered Watari Castle in 1602. He became the founding lord of the Watari Date family, and Watari Shrine on the castle grounds today enshrines Shigezane himself as its deity.