Hamnam Line (Chōtetsu)

Hamnam Line was the name given by the Chōsen Railway (Chōtetsu) of colonial-era Korea to a small network of 762 mm (30.0 in) narrow gauge railway lines in South Hamgyeong Province.[1]

Hamnam Line
Overview
Native name	함남선 (咸南線)
Type	Heavy rail, Regional rail Passenger/Freight
Status	Operational (see text)
Locale	South Hamgyeong
Termini	Hamheung Hamnam Sinheung, Jangpung
Stations	28
Operation
Opened	1923–1926
Owner	Chōsen Forestry Railway (1923) Chōsen Railway (1923–1930) Sinheung Railway (1930–1938) Chōsen Railway (1938–1945)
Technical
Line length	56.6 km (35.2 mi)
Number of tracks	Single track
Track gauge	762 mm (2 ft 6 in)
Route map Songheung Line 41.0 Hamnam Sinheung Jangjin Line 13.3 Sangtong 33.5 Cheonbulsan 11.4 Dongjeong 30.7 Jeondong 9.1 Songdang 28.2 Jangpung 3.6 Dongyang 25.9 Pungsang 17.0 Oro 12.3 Jangheung 9.3 Bumin 6.6 Heungsang 1.1 West Hamheung 0.0 Hamheung Sentetsu Hamgyeong Line Namheung Line

History

A line from Hamheung on the Hamgyeong Line of the Chōsen Government Railway to Oro, 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 via Changjin and Huju. The first section, 17.0 km (10.6 mi) from Hamheung to Oro, was opened on 7 June 1923,[2] and on 25 August 1923, the 11.2 km (7.0 mi) Oro–Jangpung section and West Hamheung Station were opened.[3]

On 1 September 1923, the Chōsen Forestry Railway merged with five other private railway companies to form the Chōsen Railway (Chōtetsu);[4] Chōtetsu subsequently named the Hamheung–Jangpung line Hamnam Line.

On 1 October 1926, Chōtetsu opened a 15.1 km (9.4 mi) section of line from Oro to Sangtong;[5] this was followed on 1 February 1928 by the 20.0 km (12.4 mi) section from Pungsang to Hamnam Songheung.[6] Two years later, on 1 February 1930 the Hamnam Line was taken over by a newly established subsidiary company, the Sinheung Railway.[7]

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 1.0 km (0.62 mi) from Hasongheung, [8] and on 10 September 1933, the line was extended 31.6 km (19.6 mi) to Bujeonhoban.

The Sinheung Railway was absorbed by Chōtetsu on 22 April 1938,[9] and Chōtetsu separated the Hamnam Sinheung–Bujeonhoban section from the Hamnam Line, naming that portion the Songheung Line.

After the establishment of North Korea and the nationalisation of its railways, the Hamnam Line was split up, with the Hamheung - Oro - Sinheung section becoming the Sinhŭng Line, and the Oro - Sangtong section becoming part of the Changjin Line. At the same time, the Songheung Line was merged into the Sinhŭng Line.[1]

Services

In the November 1942 timetable, the last issued prior to the start of the Pacific War, Chōtetsu operated the following schedule of third-class-only local passenger services:[10]

Hamheung ~ Oro

Distance (read down)	Price K. yen	303/ 503	305	505	307	507	311	313	315	317	Station name	Distance (read up)	Price K. yen	400	402	300	302	502	304	306/ 504	308	506
0.0	-	07:10	09:30	10:30	12:00	15:00	16:10	19:10	22:24	23:15	Hamheung	17.0	0.70	05:39	07:54	09:09	11:39	13:44	14:34	17:49	20:59	22:23
2.5	0.15	07:24	09:55	10:55	12:29	15:26	16:30	19:37	22:45	23:35	West Hamheung	14.5	0.55	05:30	07:45	09:00	11:30	13:35	14:25	17:40	20:50	22:14
6.6	0.30	07:35	10:07	11:07	12:41	15:38	16:41	19:49	22:57	23:47	Heungsang	10.4	0.40	05:09	07:12	08:34	11:11	12:58	14:04	17:17	20:24	21:53
9.3	0.40	07:44	10:16	11:16	12:50	15:47	16:50	19:58	23:06	23:50	Bumin	7.7	0.35	05:01	07:04	08:26	11:02	12:49	13:55	17:08	20:15	21:45
12.3	0.55	07:52	10:25	11:25	12:59	15:56	16:59	20:07	23:15	00:05	Jangheung	4.7	0.25	04:52	06:55	08:17	10:53	12:40	13:46	17:00	20:06	21:36
17.0	0.70	08:04	10:37	11:37	13:11	16:08	17:11	20:19	23:27	00:17	Oro	0.0	-	04:40	06:43	08:05	10:40	12:27	13:33	16:47	19:53	21:24
Cont. to:		303: Sasu 503: B-hoban	Sasu	B-hoban	Sasu	H. Songheung	Samgeo	-	-	-		Arr from:		-	-	Samgeo	Samgeo	H. Songheung	Sasu	306: Sasu 504: B-hoban	Sasu	B-hoban

Oro ~ Jangpung/Hamnam Sinheung

Distance (read down)	Price K. yen	501	503	505	507	Station name	Distance (read up)	Price K. yen	500	502	504	506
Arr. from		-	Hamheung	Hamheung	Hamheung		Cont. to:		-	Hamheung	Hamheung	Hamheung
17.0	0.70	05:05	08:10	12:12	17:15	Oro	74.6	3.60	08:59	12:03	16:28	21:06
25.9	1.05	05:39	08:34	12:36	17:38	arr. Pungsang dep.	65.7	3.20	08:36	11:40	16:05	20:44
0.0	-	↓	09:50	↓	↓	dep. Pungsang arr.	2.3	0.15	↑	10:30	↑	↑
2.3	0.15	↓	10:00	↓	↓	Jangpung	0.0	-	↑	10:20	↑	↑
25.9	1.05	05:40	08:39	12:46	17:40	dep. Pungsang arr.	65.7	3.20	08:34	11:35	16:03	20:42
33.5	1.40	06:09	09:08	13:15	18:10	Cheonbulsan	58.5	2.80	08:12	11:16	15:41	20:21
41.0	1.65	06:56	09:55	14:14	19:09	Hamnam Sinheung	50.6	2.10	07:45	10:50	15:15	19:55
Cont. to:		H. Songheung	B-hoban	B-hoban	H. Songheung	Songheung Line	Arr. from:		H. Songheung	H. Songheung	B-hoban	B-hoban

Oro ~ Sangtong

Distance (read down)	Price K. yen	301	303	305	307	311	Station name	Distance (read up)	Price K. yen	300	302	304	306	308
Arr. from:		-	Hamheung	Hamheung	Hamheung	Hamheung		Cont. to:		Hamheung	Hamheung	Hamheung	Hamheung	Hamheung
17.0	0.70	06:51	08:25	11:12	13:48	17:40	Oro	58.6	2.80	07:51	10:17	13:12	16:03	19:33
22.1	0.95	07:09	08:42	11:30	14:06	17:58	Tongyang	53.5	2.20	07:37	10:03	12:58	15:49	19:19
26.1	1.10	07:24	08:57	11:45	14:21	18:13	Songdang	49.5	2.00	07:24	09:50	12:45	15:36	19:06
30.3	1.25	08:05	09:35	12:26	15:17	18:56	Sangtong	43.3	1.80	07:10	09:36	12:31	15:21	18:52
Cont. to:		Samgeo	Sasu	Sasu	Sasu	Samgeo	Jangjin Line	Arr. from:		Samgeo	Samgeo	Sasu	Sasu	Sasu

Route

咸南線 - 함남선 - Kannan Line - Hamnam Line

Distance		Station name
Total; km	S2S; km	Transcribed, Korean	Transcribed, Japanese	Hunminjeongeum	Hanja/Kanji	Connections
0.0	0.0	Hamheung	Kankō	함흥	咸興	Sentetsu Hamgyeong Line
1.0	1.0	Seohamheung West Hamheung	Nishi-Kankō	서함흥	西咸興	Namheung Line
6.6	5.6	Heungsang	Kōzō	흥상	興祥
9.3	2.7	Bumin	Fūmin	부민	富民
12.3	3.0	Jangheung	Chōkō	장흥	長興
17.0	4.7	Oro	Goro	오로	五老	Sangtong branch
25.9	8.9	Pungsang	Hōshan	풍상	豊上	Jangpung branch
30.7	4.8	Jeondong	Tentō	전동	典洞
33.5	2.8	Cheonbulsan	Senbussan	천불산	千仏山
41.0	7.5	Hamnam Sinheung	Kannan Shinkō	함남신흥	咸南新興	Songheung Line

上通支線 - 상통지선 - Shantō Branch - Sangtong Branch

Distance		Station name
Total; km	S2S; km	Transcribed, Korean	Transcribed, Japanese	Hunminjeongeum	Hanja/Kanji	Connections
0.0	0.0	Oro	Goro	오로	五老	Main line
5.6	5.6	Dongyang	Tōyō	동양	東陽
9.1	3.5	Songdang	Shudō	송당	松堂
11.4	2.3	Dongcheong	Tōsei	동정	東井
13.3	4.2	Sangtong	Shantō	상통	上通	Songheung Line

咸南支線 - 함남지선 - Chōhō Branch - Jangpung Branch

Distance		Station name
Total; km	S2S; km	Transcribed, Korean	Transcribed, Japanese	Hunminjeongeum	Hanja/Kanji	Connections
0.0	0.0	Pungsang	Hōshan	풍상	豊上	Main line
2.3	2.3	Jangpung	Chōhō	장풍	長豊

References

1. Kokubu, Hayato, 将軍様の鉄道 (Shōgun-sama no Tetsudō), ISBN 978-4-10-303731-6
2. 朝鮮總督府官報 (The Public Journal of the Governor-General of Korea), Taishō No. 3251, 13 June 1923
3. 朝鮮總督府官報 (The Public Journal of the Governor-General of Korea), Taishō No. 3320, 4 September 1923
4. Establishment of the Chosen Railway, Dong-A Ilbo, 3 September 1923 (in Korean)
5. 朝鮮總督府官報 (The Public Journal of the Governor-General of Korea), Taishō No. 4244, 13 October 1926
6. 朝鮮總督府官報 (The Public Journal of the Governor-General of Korea), Shōwa No. 354, 7 March 1928
7. 朝鮮總督府官報 (The Public Journal of the Governor-General of Korea), Shōwa No. 930, 10 February 1930
8. 朝鮮總督府官報 (The Public Journal of the Governor-General of Korea), Shōwa No. 1510, 22 January 1932
9. 朝鮮總督府官報 (The Public Journal of the Governor-General of Korea), Shōwa No. 3385, 3 May 1938
10. 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)