Hamnam Line (咸南線, ''Kan'nan-sen'') was the name given by the Chōsen Railway (''Chōtetsu'') of colonial-era Korea to a small network of narrow gauge railway lines in South Hamgyeong Province.Kokubu, Hayato, 将軍様の鉄道 (Shōgun-sama no Tetsudō),

History

A line from Hamheung on the Hamgyeong Line of the Chōsen Government Railway to

Oro Oro or ORO, meaning gold in Spanish and Italian, may refer to: Music and dance * Oro (dance), a Balkan circle dance * Oro (eagle dance), an eagle dance from Montenegro and Herzegovina * "Oro" (Mango song), 1984 * "Oro" (Jelena Tomašević son ...

, to exploit forestry and other resources in the area, was originally planned by the Chosen Forestry Railway as part of a trunk line connecting Hamhung to

Manpo Manpo () is a city of northwestern Chagang Province, North Korea. As of 2008, it had an estimated population of 116,760. It looks across the border to the city of Ji'an, Jilin province, China. History Manp'o was incorporated as a city in Octob ...

via

Changjin Changjin County is a mountainous county in South Hamgyong Province, North Korea. Geography Changjin lies on the Rangrim and Pujŏllyong ranges, and most of the county sits atop the Kaema Plateau. Due to this location, Changjin has a particul ...

and Huju. The first section, from Hamheung to Oro, was opened on 7 June 1923,朝鮮總督府官報 (The Public Journal of the Governor-General of Korea), Taishō No. 3251, 13 June 1923 and on 25 August 1923, the Oro–Jangpung section and West Hamheung Station were opened.朝鮮總督府官報 (The Public Journal of the Governor-General of Korea), Taishō No. 3320, 4 September 1923 On 1 September 1923, the Chōsen Forestry Railway merged with five other private railway companies to form the Chōsen Railway (''Chōtetsu''); Chōtetsu subsequently named the Hamheung–Jangpung line Hamnam Line. On 1 October 1926, Chōtetsu opened a section of line from Oro to Sangtong;朝鮮總督府官報 (The Public Journal of the Governor-General of Korea), Taishō No. 4244, 13 October 1926 this was followed on 1 February 1928 by the section from Pungsang to Hamnam Songheung.朝鮮總督府官報 (The Public Journal of the Governor-General of Korea), Shōwa No. 354, 7 March 1928 Two years later, on 1 February 1930 the Hamnam Line was taken over by a newly established subsidiary company, the Sinheung Railway.朝鮮總督府官報 (The Public Journal of the Governor-General of Korea), Shōwa No. 930, 10 February 1930 The Sinheung Railway continued to expand the network, and on 15 January 1932, after the existing Hamnam Songheung Station was renamed Hasonghung Station, the present Hamnam Songheung Station was opened from Hasongheung, 朝鮮總督府官報 (The Public Journal of the Governor-General of Korea), Shōwa No. 1510, 22 January 1932 and on 10 September 1933, the line was extended to Bujeonhoban. The Sinheung Railway was absorbed by Chōtetsu on 22 April 1938,朝鮮總督府官報 (The Public Journal of the Governor-General of Korea), Shōwa No. 3385, 3 May 1938 and Chōtetsu separated the Hamnam Sinheung–Bujeonhoban section from the Hamnam Line, naming that portion the

Songheung Line The Songheung Line (松興線, ''Shōkō-sen'') was a narrow gauge railway line of the Chōsen Railway (Chōtetsu) of colonial-era Korea, located in South Hamgyeong Province.Kokubu, Hayato, 将軍様の鉄道 (Shōgun-sama no Tetsudō), Ther ...

. After the establishment of

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...

and the nationalisation of its railways, the Hamnam Line was split up, with the Hamheung - Oro - Sinheung section becoming the

Sinhŭng Line The Sinhŭng Line is an electrified narrow gauge railway line of the Korean State Railway in South Hamgyŏng Province, North Korea, running from Hamhŭng ( Hamhŭng-si) to Pujŏnhoban ( Pujŏn-gun) on Lake Pujŏn via Sinhŭng ( Sinhŭng-gu ...

, and the Oro - Sangtong section becoming part of the

Changjin Line The Changjin Line () is an electrified narrow gauge line of the North Korean Korean State Railway, State Railway running from Yonggwang station (South Hamgyong), Yŏnggwang on the Sinhung Line, Sinhŭng Line to Sasu station, Sasu on Lake Changji ...

. At the same time, the Songheung Line was merged into the Sinhŭng Line.

Services

In the November 1942 timetable, the last issued prior to the start of the

Pacific War The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War or the Pacific Theatre, was the Theater (warfare), theatre of World War II fought between the Empire of Japan and the Allies of World War II, Allies in East Asia, East and Southeast As ...

, Chōtetsu operated the following schedule of third-class-only local passenger services:Tōa Travel Co. (東亜旅行社), Ministry of Railways Combined Timetable 1 November 1942 (鐵道省編纂時刻表昭和17年11月1日)

Route

References

{{ChosenRyLines Rail transport in North Korea Railway lines in Korea under Japanese rule Defunct railway companies of Japan Defunct railway companies of Korea Chōsen Railway