The Takasaki Light Railway

The Daruma Line

The History of the Line.

1. Japanese railway history          2. Fictitious history          3. The brewery

A little Japanese Railway History.

 

Living in Japan one grows to appreciate the Internet.  An open link with old England.  I must confess to have missed the steam railway bug of years gone by.  My brother wasn't so lucky.  He got involved with Brambleton Railway in our hometown of Harpenden.  But I wasn't infected, or so I told myself.  Years later with a new life in far away Japan the only pastime I could link with England is gardening.  Well it's relaxing, pottering around, deadheading the odd rose.  So when I use the Internet I often search for things of a garden nature.  Ah, I hear you say, accidently wandered into to a garden railway web site.  Yes, that was what put the idea in my head.

 

 

 

In 1872 the first Japanese railway was established between Tokyo and Yokohama.  This covered a distance of 29km using a gauge of 3 foot 6 inches (1067mm).  One might consider this to be narrow gauge until one understands that this is the standard gauge for most railways in Japan.  That being the case, what I consider a real narrow gauge of around 2 foot would be referred to as a light railway here in Japan.  For the initial stages of the Japanese railway steam engines were obtained from Britain.  Engineers from Britain were employed in all manner of positions, having considerable influence on the face of early Japanese railways.

 

 

Other narrow gauge railways existed such as a mining line (1880) running on 2 foot 9 inches (838mm), a railway linking a port and city (The Iyo Railway, 1888) using 2 foot 6 inches (762mm).  This latter gauge was more common with future light railways whose main operation was of passenger transportation?

 

Enough history.  In fact, just enough history for me to begin thinking about creating a light railway, set some time in the past, in the mountainous edge of the Kanto plain.  Enter Takasaki.  Now it is a city of 240,000 people with a Shinkansen (Bullet) line, main lines, the most expensive private line in Japan, but lacking a true narrow gauge line.  Eighty years ago it could very well have had a small line, linking the fruit growing areas of Haruna and Misato with the growing town of Takasaki.

 

Well, that is what I imagine had happened.  This gives me the basis for a small circular line linking three areas of interest, providing farmers the means to deliver their produce to Takasaki for sale.  But that isn't the only reason for the line.

 

Japan is blessed with numerous 'onsen', or hot spa, which attract a wide variety of people looking for a traditional relaxational activity.  The natural volcanic geography gives rise to many onsens which are very popular now and in the past.  This means there is a need for said people to gain access to those often remotely located havens.  Ah, another cunning reason for a little railway line.

 

There's more.  Takasaki is the main producer of the Daruma doll.  A lucky charm famous for it's round red wooden body and scary face.  Transport from the local family production areas to Takasaki town  calls for some kind of cheap system.  The roads are just tracks, no good for the poor early motor vehicles.

 

So the scene is set.  And a little light railway, using the cheaper narrow gauge locos and rolling stock, will do nicely.

 

Fictitious History

 Takasaki, a growing town in south Gunma, Japan is looking for a way to improve transportation of local fruit farm produce from the farms to Takasaki.  The roads are nonexistent.  At present, horse-drawn carts are used which are slow and shake the fruit something rotten.  A light railway is suggested as a solution at a town meeting, which is received favourably and plans are made.

 

Farmers will fund some of the development.  The local 'sake' (rice wine) producer agrees to contribute substantially if the line is extended as far as their popular 'onsen' (hot spa).  The last contributor is the 'Daruma' company, which is keen to get it's dolls from the local 'cottage industry' workers to Takasaki.  So the money is collected and a line is made, connecting Haruna (an area of pears, plums -used for the traditional pickled plums 'umeboshi'and other fruit), Misato (the rice and vegetable producing area), the 'sake' brewery and it's 'onsen' with Takasaki.

 

A steam loco is ordered from England (well, it will be) and the rolling stock will be produced at a nearby carpenter/construction company in Takasaki (my shed actually), the undercarriage to be bought from further afield.  Until the loco arrives another production company will attempt to build a railcar with a petrol engine taken from a new bus which couldn't cope with the less-than-flat countryside.  The railbus (and carriage) is based on the Kiha 201 petrol engine railcar which ran from 1928 through to the sixties.  Go to the Railcar construction page for more details.

 

The local brewery 'Kabuto Beer' has been using the waters of the Tone River to produce beer and sake for quite some time.  With the advent of narrow gauge railways transportation of the finished products, not to mention the raw ingredients, has become much easier.  In fact, forward-thinking managers at the brewery have suggested investing substantially in a light railway which would serve the brewery.  The transportation of ingredients and raw materials to the brewerry is just the first step.  Shunting stuff around the brewery itself merits the aquisition of a couple of small locomotives, preferably also capable of taking the barrels and casks to Takasaki for distribution.  Plans are made to aquire a couple of small locos from England and also suitable rolling stock.

A little more history.

Further research has discovered that in some parts of Japan some lines used petrol railcars for quite a few years.  In Chiba (west of Tokyo) petrol railcars were used from 1928 until the 1960s.  Various upgrades were made and passengers used the service enough for it to survive well after the introduction of electrified lines.

The Brewery

Quite by accident I wandered into a truly educational website.  This site has an immense amount of historical information on industrial railways.  Have a look for yourself, at The Industrial Railway Society.  In particular, the 'Guinness Brewery Tramways' (vol.2, No.22) has inspired me to develop the storyline of a brewery. 

My brewery is called the Kabuto Brewery, which was a real brewery here in Japan until perhaps twenty years ago.  I found some posters which I miniaturized for this railway.  Why shouldn't there be a local branch of the brewery on this branch line?  Well, that's the premise and it gives me scope to develop suitable locos and rolling stock for transportation of the raw materials into the brewery and for the finished product to be carried to Takasaki Station for distribution.

Have a look at one of the posters HERE.