Kyoto Railway Museum

Kyoto Railway Museum
京都鉄道博物館
The museum entrance in October 2016
Kyoto Railway Museum is located in Kyoto city
Kyoto Railway Museum
Location of the museum
Kyoto Railway Museum is located in Japan
Kyoto Railway Museum
Kyoto Railway Museum (Japan)
Former name
Umekoji Steam Locomotive Museum
Established
  • October 10, 1972 (1972-10-10) (as Umekoji Steam Locomotive Museum)
  • April 29, 2016 (2016-04-29) (as Kyoto Railway Museum)
LocationShimogyō-ku, Kyoto, Japan
Coordinates34°59′14″N 135°44′33″E / 34.98722°N 135.74250°E / 34.98722; 135.74250
TypeRailway museum
OwnerJR West
Public transit accessUmekōji-Kyōtonishi Station, JR West Sagano Line
Nearest car parkUmekoji Park
Websitewww.kyotorailwaymuseum.jp/en/

The Kyoto Railway Museum (京都鉄道博物館, Kyōto Tetsudō Hakubutsukan) (formerly the Umekoji Steam Locomotive Museum (梅小路蒸気機関車館, Umekōji Jōkikikansha-kan) until 2016) is a railway museum in Shimogyō-ku, Kyoto, Japan. The original Umekoji Steam Locomotive Museum opened in 1972, but was expanded and modernized in 2016, becoming the Kyoto Railway Museum.

The museum is owned by the West Japan Railway Company (JR West) and operated by the Transportation Culture Promotion Foundation.

Exhibition zones

The museum is divided into the following exhibition areas, including the twenty-track roundhouse built in 1914.

  • Promenade
  • Main hall
  • Twilight Plaza
  • Roundhouse
  • Former Nijō Station
  • The Promenade area in May 2016
    The Promenade area in May 2016

Main hall

This is a three-storey building completed in April 2016; it is the main exhibit area.

  • Exhibits in the Main hall in May 2016
    Exhibits in the Main hall in May 2016
  • The Main hall viewed from the second floor in May 2016
    The Main hall viewed from the second floor in May 2016

Roundhouse

Roundhouse of the Kyoto Railway Museum

The 1914 roundhouse was built surrounding a turntable. It is an Important Cultural Property designated by the Government of Japan as the oldest reinforced-concrete car shed extant in the country.[1]

  • The roundhouse in May 2016
    The roundhouse in May 2016

Former Nijo Station

Nijo Station building

This two-storey structure was formerly part of Nijō Station in Kyoto until March 1996, and subsequently demolished and rebuilt at the Umekoji Steam Locomotive Museum, where it formed the entrance building. From April 2016 onwards, it acts as the museum exit and hosts the museum shop.[2]

  • The former Nijo Station building in February 2006
    The former Nijo Station building in February 2006

Exhibits

As of April 2026, a total of 54 rolling stock items are on display at the museum.[3][2]

Steam locomotives

8620 steam locomotive 8630 on the Umekoji Locomotive turntable
B20 10 in February 2006
C11 64
C61 2
D50 140
Type Number (and name if applicable) Manufacturer Year built Exhibition area Operational
JGR Class 7100 1/7105 Yoshitsune H.K. Porter (USA) 1880 Roundhouse *
JGR Class 1800 40/1801 Kitson & Company (England) 1881 Main hall
JGR Class 1070 1080 Dübs & Company (Scotland) 1901 Roundhouse
JGR Class 230 233 Kisha Seizo 1903 Main hall
JGR Class 8620 8630 Kisha Seizo 1914 Roundhouse *
JNR Class 9600 9633 Kawasaki Dockyard 1914 Roundhouse
JNR Class D50 D50 140 Hitachi 1926 Roundhouse
JNR Class C51 C51 239 Kisha Seizo 1927 Roundhouse
JNR Class C53 C53 45 Kisha Seizo 1928 Roundhouse
JNR Class C11 C11 64 Kawasaki Sharyo 1935 Roundhouse
JNR Class C55 C55 1 Kawasaki Sharyo 1935 Roundhouse
JNR Class D51 D51 1 Kawasaki Sharyo 1936 Roundhouse
JNR Class C57 C57 1 Kawasaki Sharyo 1937 Roundhouse *
JNR Class D51 D51 200 JNR Hamamatsu 1938 Roundhouse *
JNR Class C58 C58 1 Kisha Seizo 1938 Roundhouse
JNR Class C56 C56 160 Kawasaki Sharyo 1939 Roundhouse *
JNR Class B20 B20 10 Tateyama 1946 Roundhouse *
JNR Class D52 D52 468 Mitsubishi 1946 Roundhouse
JNR Class C59 C59 164 Hitachi 1946 Roundhouse
JNR Class C62 C62 1 Hitachi 1948 Roundhouse
JNR Class C62 C62 2 Hitachi 1948 Roundhouse *
JNR Class C61 C61 2 Mitsubishi 1948 Roundhouse *
JNR Class C62 C62 26 Kawasaki Sharyo 1948 Promenade

Diesel locomotives

DD51 756 on display in October 2016
DD54 33 on display in October 2016
Type Number Manufacturer Year built Exhibition area Remarks
Class DD54 DD54 33 Mitsubishi 1971 Promenade The sole survivor of the class.
Class DD51 DD51 756 Hitachi 1972 Main hall

Electric locomotives

EF58 150 (left) and EF81 103 (right) in the Twilight Plaza zone in May 2016
Type Number Manufacturer Year built Exhibition area Remarks
Class EF52 EF52 1 Hitachi 1928 Main hall Brown livery
Class EF58 EF58 150 Tokyo Shibaura Denki 1958 Twilight Plaza Blue livery
Class EF65 EF65 1 Kawasaki Sharyo/Kawasaki Denki Seizo 1965 Twilight Plaza Blue livery
Class EF81 EF81 103 Hitachi 1974 Twilight Plaza Twilight Express green livery
Class EF66 EF66 35 Toyo Denki/Kawasaki 1974 Main hall Blue livery

Shinkansen

100 series car 122-5003 in the Main hall in October 2016
Type Number Manufacturer Year built Exhibition area
0 series 21-1 Nippon Sharyo 1964 Promenade
0 series 16-1 Nippon Sharyo 1964 Promenade
0 series 35-1 Nippon Sharyo 1964 Promenade
0 series 22-1 Nippon Sharyo 1964 Promenade
100 series 122-5003 Hitachi 1989 Main hall
500 series 521-1 Kawasaki Heavy Industries 1996 Main hall

EMUs

80 series EMU car KuHa 86001 in May 2016
Type Number Manufacturer Year built Exhibition area Remarks
80 series KuHa 86001 Hitachi 1950 Promenade Orange/green Shonan livery
80 series MoHa 80001 Hitachi 1950 Promenade Orange/green Shonan livery
103 series KuHa 103-1 Nippon Sharyo 1964 Promenade Vermillion orange livery
581 series KuHaNe 581-35 Hitachi 1968 Main hall JNR beige livery
489 series KuHa 489-1 Tokyu Car 1971 Main hall JNR beige livery

DMUs

KiHa 81 series DMU car KiHa 81-3 in the Main hall in April 2016
Type Number Manufacturer Year built Exhibition area Remarks
KiHa 81 series KiHa 81-3 Kinki Sharyo 1960 Main hall JNR beige livery

Coaches

Former Twilight Express generator van KaNi 24-12 and lounge car OHa 25-551 in the Main hall in May 2016
Type Number Manufacturer Year built Exhibition area Remarks
SuShi 28 SuShi 28 301 Nippon Sharyo 1933 Promenade Brown livery
MaRoNeFu 59 MaRoNeFu 59 1 Takatori Factory 1938 Promenade Brown livery
OHa 46 OHa 46 13 Kisha Seizo 1955 Railway vehicle factory Brown livery
20 series NaShi 20 24 Nippon Sharyo 1970 Promenade Blue livery
24 series ORoNe 24 4 Nippon Sharyo 1973 Twilight Plaza Blue livery
50 series OHaFu 50 68 Niigata Engineering (also known as Niigata Tekko) 1977 Roundhouse Red livery, used as a resting spot
24 series SuShi 24-1 Kinki Sharyo 1972 Twilight Plaza Twilight Express livery
24 series SuRoNeFu 25-501 Fuji Heavy Industries 1975 Twilight Plaza Twilight Express livery
24 series OHa 25-551 Fuji Heavy Industries 1977 Railway vehicle factory Twilight Express livery
SuHa 32 MaITe 49-2 Ministry of Railways Oi Factory 1938 Railway vehicle factory Brown livery

Freight wagons

Brake van Yo 5008 in October 2016
Type Number Manufacturer Year built Exhibition area Remarks
WaMu 3500 WaMu 3500-7055 Nippon Sharyo 1917 Main hall Black livery
Yo 5000 Yo 5000-5008 Kawasaki Sharyo 1959 Main hall Light green livery

History

As early as 1967, plans were being made to turn the round-house at Umekoji depot, Kyoto into a live museum where good-order examples of Japanese steam locomotives could be displayed and also steamed and run. The Opening-eve ceremony was held on October 9, 1972 from 1:00 p.m. At the beginning, JNR president Mr. Isozaki planted a memorial young black pine tree. The opening ceremony was conducted in front of the Symbol-Zone. The ceremony invited the Kyoto prefectural governor, Kyoto city mayor, and successive Umekoji depot directors, and one hundred and thirty other celebrities as well as eighty JNR members. After the JNR president's congratulatory speech, the naming ceremony was done. It was named "The Umekoji Steam Locomotive Museum (Umekoji Jyoki Kikansha Kan)." The dedicated monument embodied the driving wheel from a C57 88 (Retired at 1 May 1972). There is an original English epitaph on the monument, as follows;

May the glory of steam locomotives over the past century be remembered and their gallant sight preserved here forever.
10 October 1972 Japan National Railways.

At the end of the ceremony, a special ceremonial train was run by the C62 2. The museum was opened by Japanese National Railways (JNR) on October 10, 1972 commemorating the centennial of the railway in Japan.[4] When JNR was divided into regional companies in 1987, the museum was inherited by JR West.

Expansion plans

On 19 December 2012, JR West officially announced its plans to modernize and expand the Umekoji museum.[5] It was announced on 18 December 2013 that the enlarged museum would be renamed the Kyoto Railway Museum.[6] The construction cost was 7.0 billion yen.[7][5]

Once the expansion was complete, the new museum exhibit space covered 31,000 square meters, becoming the largest railway museum in Japan both in terms of floor space and the number of trains exhibited, and surpassing JR East's Railway Museum in Saitama and JR Central's SCMaglev and Railway Park in Nagoya.

The expansion became necessary due to the aging facilities of the Modern Transportation Museum in Osaka. The MTM closed on 6 April 2014, and the exhibits housed there were subsequently moved to the new railway museum in Kyoto.[8]

Access

The museum is approximately 3 minutes on foot from Umekōji-Kyōtonishi Station.

See also

References

  1. ^ Official website of the museum Archived 2009-09-01 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved on August 29, 2009. (in Japanese)
  2. ^ a b 京都鉄道博物館 [Kyoto Railway Museum]. Japan Railfan Magazine (in Japanese). Vol. 56, no. 662. Japan: Koyusha Co., Ltd. June 2016. pp. 26–77.
  3. ^ 京都鉄道博物館の概要 [Overview of the Kyoto Railway Museum]. Tetsudō Daiya Jōhō Magazine (in Japanese). Vol. 45, no. 385. Japan: Kōtsū Shimbun. May 2016. pp. 12–34.
  4. ^ Japan Railfan Magazine October 1993 issue, p. 20
  5. ^ a b 2016年(平成28年)春、京都･梅小路エリアに新たな鉄道博物館が開業します [New railway museum to open in Kyoto/Umekoji area in spring 2016]. Press release (in Japanese). West Japan Railway Company. 19 December 2012. Archived from the original on 19 January 2013. Retrieved 19 December 2013.
  6. ^ 鉄道博物館の名称が決まりました [Railway museum name fixed]. Press release (in Japanese). Japan: West Japan Railway Company. 18 December 2013. Retrieved 19 December 2013.
  7. ^ 京都・梅小路エリアに新たな鉄道博物館 [New railway museum for Umekoji, Kyoto]. Japan Railfan Magazine Online (in Japanese). Japan: Koyusha Co., Ltd. 20 December 2012. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
  8. ^ 52年分の感謝と共に、交通科学博物館の営業を終了します [Modern Transportation Museum to close after 52 years]. Press release (in Japanese). West Japan Railway Company. 24 July 2013. Retrieved 13 August 2013.

Further reading

  • 京都鉄道博物館のすべて [Complete Guide to the Kyoto Railway Museum] (in Japanese). Japan: JTB Publishing. 20 April 2016. ISBN 978-4533110726.
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