What is my family crest?

I would like to know our family crest. According to my sister, Akiko, who is full blooded Japanese and lives in Japan, our mother's (Toyohara-from Sendai, Japan) great, great grandfather on her mother's side were samurai named Takahashi and worked for the Date Masamune descendants. My mothers' great great grandmother's father were all Shino priests in Sendai. Akiko has only three generations of family in our family book. Can you help me find the family crest for both the Takahashi and Toyohara families from Sendai, Japan? Please let me know if you need more information.

I love to research this kind of things, but as I mentioned here before with the similar requests, I have to remind you that not all Japanese families have family crests, and not all had even the family names before Meiji era.

- Takahashi Family
The Only Takahashi Family I could track was one of the samurai families under Kasai Clan, which was a powerful clan before Date took over the area. The Kasai Clan was terminated by Hideyoshi Toyotomi's order in the late 16th century, but some of members from Kasai lived by joining under Date, so I assume the Takahashi family continuously served Kasai, who worked for Date.

The next thing came up to me was Korekiyo Takahashi, the famed Japanese politician and the 20th prime minister of Japan. He was born in the Tokyo area, but was adopted by Kakuji Takahashi who was serving at the Tokyo Residence of the Date family at the end of the Edo era.

There is no way that you are blood-related with Korekiyo, since none of his offsprings are known to be married with foreigners or moved to the US, but his adopted father could have extended families back in the Sendai area. Kakuji was a low-ranking samurai called Ashigaru, so probably he didn't have a family crest, although the family could have been higher rank during the days Kasai ruled Sendai. Either way, I cannot trace family crest from that family.

- Toyohara Family
The historical Toyohara family extends only around Kyoto as Garaku-musicians but I don't think your ancestors have anything to do with them. If you can only trace your ancestors to a few generations up, probably it's because they were just farmers or commoners before Meiji Restorations. The only thing I could have found related to the name was "Toyohara village" nested in the eastern Yamagata prefecture, where Date had governed at the one point of its history (Many farmers simply adopetd their hometown name as their family name.) There are only 26 Mr. and Mrs. Toyohara in Miyagi prefecture so they say, so you might be able to somehow contact them and find your roots?

If you just want to adopt any family crest by your choice, you could have "Mithu-Gashiwa"(Three Oak Leaves) from Kasai clan I suppose. Just plege yourself to Kasai as your ancestorial master in your heart :)

Kashiwa was often used to make a bowl for Shinto ceremony, and many known Shinto families use the Mithu-Gashiwa as their crest.
http://bit.ly/1lGeiDQ

Hi,

Have you visited your family's grave??
See this photo.

http://www.takagisekizai.com/rehome/bw_uploads/RE_siro4.jpg

you can find a cross in the center of this grave. this is my family's crest.
a grave with crest is common.

I guess that checking your family's grave is a worth to know your crest.