new museum - Tsuyama Railroad Educational Museum

[miyakoji]

While gathering more info for my Japanese vacation that will happen someday, I happened upon this Wikipedia article.  This is another new museum within JR West's operating area, apparently to be operated by them and to open around the same time as the new Umekoji museum.  Some of the rolling stock is from the Osaka Modern Transportation Museum.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tsuyama_Railroad_Educational_Museum

https://www.westjr.co.jp/press/article/2015/10/page_7843.html

[katoftw]

Hey, thanks.  I wish JR Kyushu had dome something like this at the Bungo-mori roundhouse before selling it off.

 

JRW have to move around locos, so I guess they optioned this as a good location for a museum.  No need for 2 in the same close locations. 

Edited January 31, 2016 by katoftw

[miyakoji]

After I posted this, I was thinking about JR Kyushu.  JR East, JR Central, and now JR West will each have at least one.  JR Kyushu will have to follow suit eventually, won't they? :)

[katoftw]

After I posted this, I was thinking about JR Kyushu.  JR East, JR Central, and now JR West will each have at least one.  JR Kyushu will have to follow suit eventually, won't they? :)

Um?

Edited January 31, 2016 by katoftw

[miyakoji]

what?

[katoftw]

JR Kyushu "has" at least one museum.

 

I'll keep this short and sweet since JR Kyushu is not the discussion.  If they did do a second museum or relocate their current one.  They'd have to look into taking up some of the yards south of Kumamoto station.  It is central to all things Kyushu and has visitors and locals coming at it from all directions, and already has a station there for access.

 

Much like this new Tsuyama location.  It resides near a terminus station that services every direction possible.  A Kumamoto museum location would be similar.  Okayama to Tottori is a popular tourist route.  with also.  And the attempt to use the old roundhouse is a good way for JRW to preserve it also.  Congrats on them not just locking away the spare units and saving some cash in the process.

Edited January 31, 2016 by katoftw

[miyakoji]

You could infer from my post, or maybe you couldn't, that I'm not aware of it.  Why don't you try being constructive and posting a (working) link or its name or something rather than mojiko-guide-3.jpg

[katoftw]

You could infer from my post, or maybe you couldn't, that I'm not aware of it.  Why don't you try being constructive and posting a (working) link or its name or something rather than mojiko-guide-3.jpg

Wasn't aware you did know of the Kyushu museum.  Sorry.  I just made the assumption that you would have known.  The name of it is in the photo on the building in gold.

 

link- http://www.k-rhm.jp/ plus retro torroko train just north of the museum- http://www.retro-line.net/

Edited January 31, 2016 by katoftw

[SuRoNeFu 25-501]

One of the museum's collection is DD51-1187, which is well known among many people as the locomotive that hauled Joyful Train "Miyabi" on the day when the coaches fell off the Amarube bridge (the accident was happened on December 1986, only a few months before JNR's privatization).

[miyakoji]

One of the museum's collection is DD51-1187, which is well known among many people as the locomotive that hauled Joyful Train "Miyabi" on the day when the coaches fell off the Amarube bridge (the accident was happened on December 1986, only a few months before JNR's privatization).

 

+1 for obscure knowledge :).  I was aware of the accident, but I didn't know it was 1187 pulling the train.  I found a few more links while googling that:

 

• http://blogs.yahoo.co.jp/suhane24/3968520.html - this one is great mostly because of the cover image at the top--this guy definitely likes Okayama livery KIHA40s
• http://www.e-tsuyama.com/ichioshi/2008/05_train/barn/ - lists the 3 (maybe all of them?) diesels at Tsuyama: DE50 1, DD51 1187, and DE10 1
• http://www.tym-tetsu.net/profile1010.html - nice pic of 1187 with Izumo headmark.  Apparently it's been at Tsuyama since retirement in 2008

I went to Tsuyama in spring 2003 to see the cherry blossoms, I had been in Japan for less than 2 months at the time.  As I recall, the castle was closed for renovation, but the grounds were very nice nevertheless.  I hope this brings in some visitors.

[SuRoNeFu 25-501]

+1 for obscure knowledge :).  I was aware of the accident, but I didn't know it was 1187 pulling the train.

But thankfully, 1187 also once hauled the Imperial Train along with the older sister (the still in operation DD51-1186 of Gotou General Rolling Stock Plant), like Takasaki's DD51 did 

[miyakoji]

This museum is scheduled to open April 2nd: http://rail.hobidas.com/news/info/article/42_1.html

[katoftw]

The roundhouse gets some love in the city's tourism website and promo video that also features the old wooden stations north of Tsuyama

 

http://www.tsuyamakan.jp/en/sight/index.html

 

[miyakoji]

This museum opened Saturday, April 2nd.

 

http://railf.jp/news/2016/04/03/201000.html

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zypIEWNtB-s

 

[katoftw]

You can catch the joyful train there, (well just a hika 47 in J.N.R. revival livery):-

 

Edited April 3, 2016 by katoftw

[katoftw]

The website and museum facilities have greatly improved since the last discussion.

 

http://www.tsuyamakan.jp/manabi/index.html

 

the city itself came up in conversation last night as there was a episode of "House Hunters International" that featured Tsuyama.  So a did a search.

[yakumo381]

Visited this museum in October last year and was somewhat disappointed.

 

They put different locos or DMU on the turntable each weekend so that they can be turned around for pictures however the downside is you are not allowed inside the engine shed to photograph the others, pictures from the outside only. This is a shame as you cannot get pictures of the whole loco or DMU plus, as it happens, the inside of the shed has been gutted back to the walls so it is quite devoid of atmosphere. The over restoration of some of the locos does not help either. Also why preserve just one snow-plough car of the DD16 and not both, and then exhibit the plough and loco separately?

 

This could be a good museum if it was organised more as a preserved shed and less as a science or art museum as it gets lots of local support but they need to look at how it is done elsewhere. I did suggest to the local tourist office representative, who was marshaling the other visitors until he found he had a Brit on site to try his English out on, that they look on line at some of the UK preserved lines like the SVR and KWVR for ideas...

 

The ride up from Okayama is good though, I did it on a somewhat dark and damp day and it is very atmospheric as it is a single track line with over hanging vegetation interspersed with open country. In fact some parts were so overgrown with hanging branches brushing the windows on steep grades that it felt more like a Peruvian jungle line...