Japan Railway & Transport Review 30 • March 2002

Feature

16

Heritage Railways

Copyright © 2002 EJRCF. All rights reserved.

The Preservation of Railway Heritage in Japan:An Outline History and General View

Eiichi Aoki

Introduction

The first railway museum in Japan wasopened in 1921, but the first museum forpreservation of steam locomotives inworking order was opened in 1972, asthe Umekoji Steam Locomotive Museum.Although the last steam trains onJapanese National Railways (JNR) ceasedcommercial operations in 1975, regularsteam operations restarted in thefollowing year on Oigawa Railway, aprivate rural railway in ShizuokaPrefecture. The revival of steamlocomotive means a creation of newtourism resources, as well as preservationof railway heritage in regional societies.From these early beginnings the numberof preserved railways operating steamlocomotives and other old rolling stockhas increased throughout Japan. Thisarticle describes the general history ofpreserved railways in Japan with somespecific examples.

Prewar Railway Museums

The first railway in Japan, owned andoperated by the Japanese government,was opened between Shimbashi in Tokyoand Yokohama in 1872 with the technicalleadership of British engineers. Most ofthe materials for railway construction androlling stock were imported from Britain,but American and German manufacturerssoon became suppliers to Japaneserailways. Private railways extended theirmain-line network from 1883 but mostwere nationalized in 1906–07.In 1911, a railway museum project wasstarted and began preserving railwayheritage, such as locomotive No. 1, a2-4-0 tank engine built by VulcanFoundry in 1871; Benkei, a 2-6-0lightweight tender engine built by H. K.Porter in 1880 belonging to the first groupof locomotives in Hokkaido; Zenko, a0-6-0 saddle tank engine built byManning Wardle in 1880 for construction

works of Nippon Railway—the first privaterailway; and two early Imperial carriages.The railway museum was provisionallyopened in 1921 at Tokyo Station, butfound its final location in 1936 atMansebash i S ta t ion , the fo rmertemporary terminus of the Chuo Line.(The station was later abandoned in1943.) This was the sole museum relatedto railway history in prewar days, and itwas reorganized as the TransportMuseum after WWII.

Preservation of Steam Locosin 1950s and 1960s

From the latter half of the 1950s, Japanexperienced high economic growth andthe demand for railway traffic increased.Although manufacturing of steamlocomotives for JNR ended in 1949, thenumber of steam operating kilometerscontinued to increase until 1956.However electrification and conversionto diesel started in 1950s, so the mainmotive power changed gradually fromsteam locos to electric and dieselmultiple units (EMUs and DMUs).In 1951, Professor Eiichi Shimazaki ofHokkaido University published Hokkaidono kikansha ni tsuite (About locomotivesin Hokkaido) I, II and III on locomotivesworking in Hokkaido’s coalmines, anddescr ibed two valuable her i tagelocomotives working in a rolling stockbuilder’s works in Osaka and Muroransteelworks in Hokkaido. They wereYoshitsune and Shizuka 2-6-0 tenderengines built by H. K. Porter in 1880 and1882, respectively, and named after aJapanese medieval hero and heroine;Benkei, another 2-6-0 of the same classwas preserved in prewar at the TransportMuseum. These articles triggeredrestoration of the two locomotives by JNRin 1952 to commemorate the 80thanniversary of Japanese railways.Yoshitsune was restored to working orderand was preserved at Takatori Works in

Yoshitsune belonged to the first group locomotives built by H. K. Porter in 1880 for the Hokkaido Coalmine andRailway. Restored in 1952 and still in working order, it is preserved at the Modern Transportation Museum inOsaka, and is occasionally dispatched to exhibitions or festivals. (1990) (Author)

Japan Railway & Transport Review 30 • March 2002 17Copyright © 2002 EJRCF. All rights reserved.

Kobe; Shizuka was located at the NaeboWorks in Hokkaido.The 1962 opening of Ome Railway Parkin the western suburbs of Tokyo wasanother step symbolizing progress inpreserving railway heritage. Eight steamlocomotives and two deluxe carriages,representing the development of Japanesemotive power and passenger service wereassembled in the park, which was the firstopen-air railway museum in Japan.However, none of the eight locomotiveswere in working order.Two other important railway museumswere also opened in 1962: the OtaruTransportation Museum in Hokkaido andthe Modern Transportation Museum inOsaka. Shizuka was moved from NaeboWorks to the former museum in 1962 andYoshitsune was moved from TakatoriWorks to the latter museum in 1962.

Start of Working OrderPreservation

The Meijimura Museum in the northernsuburbs of Nagoya opened in 1965 wasoriginally established to preservearchitectural heritage, but two classicstreetcars were preserved in 1967 totransport visitors around the large open-air museum. They were two-axlewooden small electric trams belongingto Kyoto Municipal TransportationBureau with an open motorman’s seatand clerestory roof that had been retiredfrom service in 1961. This was the firstpermanent museum for preservation ofrailway heritage in working order. Themuseum also preserved two Imperialcarriages built in 1902 and 1910 as wellas a steam railcar, but none are inworking order. Another importantheritage item in this museum is a British-built truss bridge (1875), originally usedacross the Tama River between Tokyo andYokohama and on which a Brooks (1897)4-4-2 tank engine is stationed.The 1972 opening of the Umekoji Steam

Locomotive Museum to commemoratethe 100th anniversary of Japaneserailways was a great step in preservingrailway heritage in working order. Themuseum was a former 1914 engine shednear Kyoto Station with a roundhouseand a turntable. Eighteen steamlocomotives representing the standardJNR types were selected from all acrossJapan; 14 were repaired and kept inworking order but this was later cut tosix in working order. Some locomotiveswere operated inside the museum eachday and others were occasionallydispatched to haul special tourist trains.In 1974, the Meijimura Museum startedregular steam operations on a 743-mtrack using two locomotives and threesmall wooden carriages. The locosconsisted of a Sharp Stewart 2-4-0 tankengine (1874) and a Baldwin 0-6-0 tankengine (1912). The former was the oldestlocomotive in working order in Japan andworked the Kobe–Osaka–Kyoto sectionof the early government railways.

Withdrawal of Regular SteamOperations

JNR announced its long-term plan towithdraw steam locomotives from regular

operations in 1959. By March 1961, JNRhad electrified 2699 km of lines (13.2%of total of 20,482 km) and was operating3974 steam locomotives, compared to794 electric locomotives and 245 diesellocomotives. Electrification of main linesprogressed rapidly during the 1960s and1970s, reaching 4228 km (20.4%) in1965, 6021 km (28.8%) in 1970, and7628 km (35.9%) in 1975. Operationsby EMUs and DMUs expanded acrossJapan and the last JNR steam passengertrain ran on the Muroran Line inHokkaido on 14 December 1975. Thelast steam freight train ran on 27 January1976 and the last steam shunting endedin March of the same year.A few private lines to coalmines inHokkaido continued steam operationsbeyond 1970. Oyubari Line of MitsubishiCoalmine closed in 1975, and the YubariRailway—a subsidiary of HokkaidoCoalmine and Navigation—stoppedsteam operations in March 1976.

Oigawa Railway PioneeringPreserved Steam Railways

The Oigawa Railway is a 65-km localprivate railway in Shizuoka Prefecturerunning along the valley of the Oi River

A two-axle electric tram in Meijimura Museum, purchased from Kyoto Municipal Transport Bureau in 1967 andrestored for operation inside the open-air museum. This tram is believed to have been built at the turn of thecentury. (1997) (Author)

Japan Railway & Transport Review 30 • March 200218

Heritage Railways

Copyright © 2002 EJRCF. All rights reserved.

between Ikawa and Kanaya, where itconnects with the Tokaido main line. Itwas opened during 1927–31 to transportmaterials for building hydropowerstations and to transport lumber from theupper reaches of the river. The linebetween Kanaya and Senyu waselectrified in 1949 and the steamlocomotives were sold. From the late1960s, traffic on the Oigawa Railwaydeclined as a result of motorization andduring 1970–75, the railway operatedsteam holiday trains along a siding inSenzu S ta t ion us ing some smal llocomotives. In 1976, steam operationsbegan between Kanaya and Senzu(39.5 km) under the strong leadershipof Akira Shirai (Director of TrainOperations and later Vice President), whointended to create both a new tourismresource and a means of preservingrailway heritage. A Class C11 (2-6-4standard tank engine for short-distancetrains, built in 1932–46) and a groupof passenger carriages built during the1930s and 1940s were purchased fromJNR for the holiday train, which ranevery Sunday and holiday exceptduring winter. The steam operationsattracted many tourists to the Oi Rivervalley, which has some very scenicspots and hot spring resorts.The Oigawa Railway continued todevelop steam operations by purchasingmore locomotives and passengercarriages. In 2001, the company had

five steam locomotives and 15 carriagesin working order and ran regular steamtrains every day including winter. Somed e l u x e e x p r e s s E M U s u s e d i nmetropolitan areas have also beenpurchased for regular services.

Japan National Trust andTrust Train

Information on preserved railways inEurope and the USA appeared in somerailway magazines in Japan from the late1960s. The first attempt to promote fundsfor preserving railway heritage in Japanwas made by the Rasuchijin RailwayInstitute, which purchased a Japanese-buil t (1930) 2 ’ gauge 0-4-0 l ightlocomotive in 1973 from KeelungCoalmine in Taiwan. The Institute laterpurchased more locomotives, carriagesand wagons. This was followed by theAkamon Narrow Gauge Rai lwayPreservation Society whose membersconsisted of graduates of the TokyoUniversity Railway Research Club. Theypurchased a locomotive shed and a dieselrailcar belonging to the abandonedOgoya Railway (2’ 6” gauge) in IshikawaPrefecture in 1977. Both the Institute andSociety continue to maintain and operatetheir rolling stock.Larger-scale railway heritage preservationwas started by the Japan National Trust,which was established in 1968. Thisnon-profit organization has contributed

Yamaguchi tourist steam train about to depart from Ogori Station. The Class C57Pacific (4-6-2) tender loco was built in 1937 as the standard model for passengertrains on main lines. It is dispatched from the Umekoji Steam LocomotiveMuseum. (1999) (Author)

Maruseppu Forest Railway, a 1.8-km, 2’6” gauge line, was restored in a recreationarea in Hokkaido in 1979. The locomotive is a small 0-6-0 tank engine built byAmemiya Works in 1928. (1999) (Author)

to purchasing and maintaining somepieces of cultural heritage. In the 1980s,the Trust decided to purchase a Class C122-6-2 tank engine, one of JNR’s standardlocomotives for short-distance trains(built between 1932 and 1947) and threepassenger carriages built in 1951 and1955. Donations from Trust membersand sponsors finally enabled purchase ofthese rolling stock and they wereentrusted to Oigawa Railway in 1987.The train is called the ‘Trust Train’ andoperates every Saturday in the summer.Volunteer Trust members maintain andrepair the rolling stock under theguidance of Oigawa Railway engineers.

Growth of Preserved Railways,Railway Museums and RPSJ

In 1979, JNR revived steam operationson the Yamaguchi Line between Tsuwanoand Ogori where the line connects to theSan’yo main line and San’yo Shinkansen,using a steam locomotive dispatchedfrom the Umekoji Steam LocomotiveMuseum. Since Tsuwano is an old townwith a feudal castle and many historicsights, the train drew many tourists andthe first projects were soon followed bymany similar schemes accompanied byreturn of more steam locomotives toworking order in the 1990s.Many small-scale preserved railways—mainly former forestry railways—havebegun operations. Large and small

Japan Railway & Transport Review 30 • March 2002 19Copyright © 2002 EJRCF. All rights reserved.

railway museums have also appeared onabandoned tracks and stations, somerunning small trains.In 1990, the Railway Preservation Societyof Japan (RPSJ) was formed with membersfrom non-profit organizations, localau thor i t ie s , ra i lway companies ,museums, and amusement parks. Theregular meetings discuss and exchangeinformation on maintenance of steamlocomotives, f inancial problems,relationships with regional development,schoo l educa t ion on indus t r i a larchaeology, etc. In the future, the RPSJwill play a greater role in the field ofrailway preservation as well as studies ofother industrial heritage.In 2001, the Society members included sixcommercial railway companies (includingfour JRs), five museums, three non-profit

Eiichi Aoki

Dr Aoki is Professor at Surugadai University and Emeritus Professor at Tokyo Gakugei University.

After graduating from Chiba University in 1957, he obtained a doctorate from Tokyo University of

Education (now Tsukuba University). He is a specialist in transportation geography and a leading

scholar of transport history. His many publications include History of World Sea Power, Japanese

Railways—Their Formation and Growth, and A History of Japanese Railways 1872–1999 (in

English).

Operating Steam Trains in Japan

A

BC

D

EF

G

HI

JK

LM

NO

P

Q

R

Sapporo

Kita Kyushu

Fukuoka

Hiroshima Kobe

Osaka

Kyoto Nagoya

TokyoKawasaki

Sendai

Yokohama

Operation on ordinary railway0 100 200 300 km

1 JR Hokkaido Senmo main line (Kushiro–Shibecha)2 JR Hokkaido Furano Line (Asahikawa–Furano)3 JR Hokkaido Rumoi main line (Fukagawa–Mashike)4 JR Hokkaido Hakodate main line (Otaru–Niseko)5 JR Hokkaido Hakodate main line (Hakodate–Onuma)6 JR East Ban’etsusai Line (Niitsu–Aizu Wakamatsu)7 JR East Joetsu Line (Takasaki–Minakami)8 Chichibu Railway (Kumagaya–Mitsumineguchi)9 Moka Railway (Shimodate–Motegi)0 Oigawa Railway (Kanaya–Senzu)- JR West Hokuriku main line (Maibara–Kinomoto)= JR West Yamaguchi Line (Ogori–Tsuwano)~ JR Kyushu Hohi main line (Kumamoto–Miyaji)

A. Maruseppu Forest Railway (Maruseppu)B. Mikasa Railway Museum (Mikasa)C. Otaru Transportation Museum (Otaru)D. Imoko Steam Train (Kahoku)E. Yanagawa Kibo no Mori Park (Yanagawa)F. Greenpia Nihonmatsu (Nihonmatsu)G. Western Village (Imaichi)H. Musashino Mura (Kazo)I. Museum of industrial Technology (Miyashiro)J. Narita Dream Farm (Shimofusa)K. Tokyo Disneyland (Urayasu)L. Usui Pass Railway Monument Park (Matsuida)M. Nobeyama SL Land (Minamimaki)N. Shuzenji Niji no Sato (Shuzenji)O. Aichi Children Land (Hazu)P. Meijimura Museum (Inuyama)Q. Umekoji Steam Locomotive Museum (Kyoto)R. Yoneyama Industry (Matsuyama)

organizations, and ten amusement parks orforest recreation areas.Despite development of preservedrailways, the Japanese public does nottake much in teres t in indus t r ia larchaeology and heritage and itsintroduction to the school system isrelatively low level. However, I expectto see a gradual future growth in interest.

�

This article was first presented at the internationalconference ‘Slow Train Coming: Heritage Railways in

the 21st Century,’ held in York in September 2001.

Further ReadingE. Aoki, Jouki-kikansha no hozon: sono igi to jittai (ThePreservation of Steam Locomotives: Its Significance andActual Circumstances), Railway Journal, No. 61, pp. 62–69, 1971.S. Yamada, Jouki-kikansha no fukkatsu (The Revival ofSteam Locomotives), Railway Pictorial, No. 531, pp. 10–13, 1990.J. Shirakawa, Zenkoku hozon tetsudo (Preserved Railwaysin Japan), Vols. III and IV, Japan Travel Bureau, 1998.