In April 1889, the government issued a regulation for municipalization and parochialism. The great controversy occurred over whether the area should be called Fukuoka City or Hakata City. Originally, the area was called Hakata; however, in 1600 a Japanese warlord, Nagamasa Kuroda, named this area Fukuoka in tribute to his ancestors' land, called Bizen Fukuoka (Bizen is now called Okayama). Since then, the eastern area of the city from the River Naka in the Nakasu region had been called Hakata, and the western area Fukuoka. But, now the locals had to choose between Fukuoka, a proud samurai town, and Hakata, the port and merchant district, for the name of their city. It is said that in 1890, when the votes were split 13-13 at a meeting of legislators, the chairman, who was a samurai in an ex-Fukuoka domain, stepped down from his position and voted for Fukuoka. That resulted in the name Fukuoka winning by one vote. In return, the name Hakata was chosen for the name of the new railway station that had just opened. This is how the confusion began between the names of Fukuoka City and Hakata station.