The beginning of Tokoname ware, which drew its influences from the Sanage kilns, dates back to the late Heian era (around year 1100). These kilns were built on the hills of the Chita Peninsula. Their main products were clay bowls, pots, and jugs. The kilns used during these times were simple kilns called anagama (cellar kilns) and it is said that up to 3000 kilns were built in this area of the Chita Peninsula. According to archaeological findings, Tokoname ware pots were widely distributed to large cities across Japan, such as Hiraizumi, Kamakura, Kyoto, Sakai, Hiroshima, Hakata, and Dazaifu.

Bowls and dishes were mainly used for cooking, while pots and jars were used for storage. At the Kyodzuka ruins, a copper cylinder containing a transcript of Buddhist scriptures on paper was found placed in a wide-mouthed pot, enshrined in a cellar. It is not rare to find cremated human bones as well. Furthermore from the many bottles discovered at a site that has previous records of having a sake brewery during the Kamakura period, leads one to believe that these pots were used for the storage of sake. It is believed that these bottles were not only used for storing alcohol, but also for the storage of oil and indigo dye. Such pottery with a variety of everyday uses, was carried to various parts of the country, mainly by water as it was carried across the country by ship.

The simple kiln was widespread across the Chita Peninsula, but during the period of the northern and southern dynasties, the number of kilns rapidly declined, and the only ones that remained were those in the former Tokoname city area. In the 15th century, these kilns were improved to semi-underground-style kilns called “Ogama”. Pottery from this period is covered with a muddy, white natural glaze due to the use of grass, leaves, and twigs to fuel its kilns. In the Edo period, these large kilns were still used, but in the Tenpo period, in the late Edo period (Edo period:1603-1867), a new type of ascending kiln was introduced from Korea. This ascending kiln had a structure in which the firing chambers were connected by steps, enabling all products to be fired efficiently at high temperature.

One of the most recognized and known products of Tokoname ware is the “kyusu” teapot from the Edo period. In the late Edo period, sencha tea became popular. In Tokonoma it is widely considered that Inaba Shozaemon first began making teapots during the Bunsei period. After this, in the Tempo period, Ina Choza the 2nd discovered a white mud called “hakudeitsuchi” in Itayama and invented the "Hiiro-yaki" style, by placing dried seaweed on top of the mud before firing it. These seaweed-covered teapots have been excavated from various ruins of the Edo period. Moreover, the red-brown teapots produced today were invented by Sugie Jumondo in the first year of Ansei, based off the Yixing clay teapot (also known as “purple sand pots”) from the area of Yixing in the Jiangsu Province of China.

During the Edo period, new comers were severely restricted by the shareholder system, but when the old system was abolished after the Meiji Restoration, the number of foreign visitors increased. The new government's encouragement of exports created a demand for new products. In addition, sewage maintenance required modern clay pipes, which led to the creation of Tokoname ware pipes. Richard Henry Brunton, a hired foreign government advisor, ordered the production of these and Koie Hoju led the production of these clay pipes. During the Meiji era, energy was put into the education of young people through the founding of a handicrafts school by Koie Hoju, and the hiring of Naito Yozo.

The Imperial Hotel marked its opening with a ceremony in the fall of 1923 of the Taisho era (Taisho era: 1912-1926). Designed by American architect Frank Lloyd Wright, the surface was covered with Oya stone and tiles, using terracotta fired in Tokoname during the Taisho era. During the Great Kanto Earthquake, buildings made out of bricks were destroyed, but as the Imperial Hotel had been made out of reinforced concrete, it remained untouched, thus making a lasting reputation for its strength. Today, visitors can see the building at the Museum Meiji-Mura in Inuyama, Aichi. As a result, reinforced concrete construction became popular, and architectural pottery production came to occupy a large part of Tokoname's ceramic industry.