San'yō Railway

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Sanyō Railway
File:SanyoRyLogo.svg
Locale Japan
Dates of operation 1888–1906
Successor JGR
Track gauge 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Length 667.7 km (414.9 mi) (1906)
Headquarters Kobe

The Sanyō Railway (山陽鉄道 San'yō-tetsudō?) was established in 1887 and served as a major railroad company during the Meiji period in Japan. The railroad was headquartered in Kobe, and Nakamigawa Hikojirō served as head of the railroad.[1]

Rail lines

The first rail line opened in 1888. By 1894, the Sanyō Railway had been extended west, along the coast of the Seto Inland Sea, from Kobe to Hiroshima.[2] The railroad was later extended to Shimonoseki. The Sanyō Main Line connected with the Tōkaidō Main Line in Kobe, and the Kyūshū Railway at Moji. The railway gained a reputation for being one of the most progressive and innovative in Japan in its day, introducing the first sleeping cars, dining cars, and electric lighting on its trains.[3] In 1904, the 530 km (330 mile) trip from Kobe to Shimonoseki took 11 hours.[4] An express train from Kobe to Hiroshima took 8​12 hours, travelling 304 km (189 miles).[5]

Railway operation of Sanyō Railway as of November 30, 1906[6]
Endpoints Length
(km)
Length
(miles)
Line names
(designated after nationalization)
Notes
KōbeShimonoseki 530.0 329.3 Sanyō Main Line
Himeji – Shikama 5.6 3.5 Bantan Line
HimejiWadayama 65.8 40.9 Bantan Line
AsaŌmine 19.6 12.2 Mine Line
HyōgoWadamisaki 2.9 1.8 Sanyō Main Line (Wadamisaki Line)
TakamatsuKotohira 43.8 27.2 Yosan Line
Subtotal 676.7 414.9
KaitaichiKure 20.0 12.4 Kure Line Leased from Government Railways
Hiroshima – Ujina 6.0 3.7 Ujina Line Leased from Army
Total 693.7 414.9

Steamship

Sanyō also operated steamship service, from Shimonoseki to Busan in Korea.[7] Sanyō Railway also operated a ferry from Miyajimaguchi Station, which opened on September 25, 1897, to Itsukushima (Miyajima).

Nationalization

The railroad was nationalized in 1906, under the Railway Nationalization Act, becoming the San'yō Main Line.

References

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  3. Free, Early Japanese Railways 1853–1914: Engineering Triumphs That Transformed Meiji-era Japan, Tuttle Publishing, 2008 (ISBN 4805310065)
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