The Class C59 is a type of

4-6-2 Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles, six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles and two trailing wheels on one axle. The locomoti ...

steam locomotive designed by

Hideo Shima was a Japanese engineer and the driving force behind the building of the first bullet train (Shinkansen). Shima was born in Osaka in 1901, and educated at the Tokyo Imperial University, where he studied Mechanical Engineering. His father was p ...

and built by

Japanese National Railways The , abbreviated JNR or , was the business entity that operated Japan's national railway network from 1949 to 1987. Network Railways As of June 1, 1949, the date of establishment of JNR, it operated of narrow gauge () railways in all 46 pre ...

. The C classification indicates three sets of driving wheels. The C59 could haul 17

passenger cars A car, or an automobile, is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of cars state that they run primarily on roads, Car seat, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport private transport#Personal transport, peopl ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

limited their use as express trains, a function for which they were designed. C59s were transferred to

Kyushu is the third-largest island of Japan's Japanese archipelago, four main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands (i.e. excluding Okinawa Island, Okinawa and the other Ryukyu Islands, Ryukyu (''Nansei'') Ryukyu Islands, Islands ...

after electrification of the trunk lines after the war. 47 were rebuilt into Class C60 Hudsons between 1953 and 1961 at the railway's

Hamamatsu is a Cities of Japan, city located in western Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. In September 2023, the city had an estimated population of 780,128 in 340,591 households, making it the prefecture's largest city, with a population density of over the t ...

works and Koriyama works. In 1970, the locomotives were retired. Only three are preserved. C59 1 is preserved at the

Kyushu Railway was a company that built and operated railways in Kyushu, one of four main islands of Japan. Most of its lines came under the control of Japanese Government Railways following nationalization in 1907, and many are now operated by Kyushu Railway ...

History Museum on display. C59 164 is preserved at the

Kyoto Railway Museum The (formerly the 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 We ...

. C59 161 is preserved at the Hiroshima Children’s Museum.

Basis and years of service

The Class C59 where based on the earlier designs of the Railway such as the JNR Class C55 and the

JNR Class C57 The is a type of 4-6-2 steam locomotive built in Japan from 1937 to 1947. A total of 201 Class C57 locomotives were built and designed by Hideo Shima. Another 14 Class C57 locomotives were built for export to Taiwan in 1942 and 1953. The class ...

Pacifics that built in the 1930’s and early 40’s. The C59’s were built between 1941 and 1947 but only 173 C59’s were built during and after

. Between 1953 and 1961 47 Locomotives were rebuilt into the Class C60

Hudson Hudson may refer to: People * Hudson (given name) * Hudson (surname) * Hudson (footballer, born 1986), Hudson Fernando Tobias de Carvalho, Brazilian football right-back * Hudson (footballer, born 1988), Hudson Rodrigues dos Santos, Brazilian f ...

’s. The remaining 126 C59 Pacific’s remained in service until 1970 when they were all scrapped except for 3 surviving C59’s that are preserved in

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

Post WWII The aftermath of World War II saw the rise of two global superpowers, the United States (U.S.) and the Soviet Union (U.S.S.R.). The aftermath of World War II was also defined by the rising threat of nuclear warfare, the creation and implementati ...

. 46 of the rebuilt Class C60’s were scrapped by 1971 except for one Class C60 surviving in preservation.

References

{{Japanloco 4-6-2 locomotives 2′C1′ h2 locomotives Steam locomotives of Japan 1067 mm gauge locomotives of Japan Passenger locomotives Railway locomotives introduced in 1941 Hitachi locomotives Kawasaki locomotives Kisha Seizo locomotives

Basis and years of service

See also

References