People interaction(1)
Rail Connects People across Time and National Borders
Toward the end of the Edo period, Inoue Masaru was sent from Choshu to Europe and studied at University of London. He contributed to the development of Japanese rail and is known as “the father of Japanese railways.” Hasegawa Kinsuke, who constructed a railroad that connected Keelung City and Kaohsiung as the chief engineer for The Railway Department, Office of the Governor-General of Taiwan, is called “the father of Taiwanese railways.”
In Yamaguchi Prefecture, which is the birthplace of both men, steam locomotives, the starting point of rail, continue to operate, and Shinkansen railroad cars, which are at the cutting edge of technology, are produced and exported to countries such as the UK and Taiwan.
Note: Tezuka Takemasa, who published Japan’s first monthly train timetable and is known as “the father of Japanese timetables,” also was born in Yamaguchi Prefecture.
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SL Yamaguchi Train (JR Yamaguchi Line/Shin-Yamaguchi to Tsuwano)
The Class C57 No. 1 that pulls this train is a famous locomotive produced more than 80 years ago, and in 2017 the train was updated with a new model of passenger cars. The Class D51 No. 200 was also put back into operation that year.
JR Hagi Station
The station building, which opened in 1925, is a Registered Tangible Cultural Property. There is a rail museum inside the building, and in front of it is a bronze statue of Inoue Masaru.
Location: Tsubaki, Hagi-shi, Yamaguchi
Transportation: 65 min from JR Shin-Yamaguchi Station to Hagi Bus Center by bus
To get to the Hagi Station from Hagi Bus Center:
1) Take the bus from Hagi Bus Center for 9 min. Get off at “Hagi Station” bus stop and walk for 2 min.
2) 6 min by car
3) 23min on foot
Approx. 40 min from Ogori-Hagi Road Jumonji Interchange via Chugoku Expressway Mine-higashi Junction