About the Ogo Station Facilities
The Jomo Electric Railway Ogo Station Facilities are railway structures from the line's opening in 1928 at and around Ogo Station in Maebashi City, Gunma Prefecture: the station building, train depot, substation, four steel towers and the Aratogawa Bridge, all registered as Registered Tangible Cultural Property structures on July 31, 2007. The Agency for Cultural Affairs describes them as facilities of a railway linking Maebashi and Kiryu that supported sericulture and silk reeling, the core industries of modern Gunma.
According to the Jomo Electric Railway, the Ogo depot is a rare building that keeps its original appearance and is still used to house trains and store parts. The substation converts 60,000-volt alternating current to 1,500-volt direct current to run the trains.
Eight Structures
The station building is a single-storey timber gabled building clad in clapboard and plaster. The depot, about 200 metres west of the station, is a single-storey timber shed of two tall gabled bays side by side, holding two sidings under king-post trusses; the Agency regards it as one of the earliest surviving train depots in Japan (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
The substation is single-storey reinforced concrete, with an office wing added in 1943. Around it stand four steel towers: for power receiving, lightning arresters, relay and dead-ending. The Aratogawa Bridge east of the station is a four-span steel girder bridge using imported plate girders made in 1903 (Agency for Cultural Affairs). All eight were registered as contributing to the historic landscape of the country.
Visiting Ogo Station
Ogo is a working station on the Jomo Electric Railway, so the station building can be seen when using the line. Tours of the Ogo train depot are by advance reservation only, lasting about 30 minutes between 1:00 and 3:00 p.m. The fee is 500 yen for adults, 400 yen for junior and senior high school students and 300 yen for primary pupils, paid by buying an old-style card platform ticket. Book by telephone or email by 3:00 p.m. on a weekday three days before (Jomo Electric Railway).
The substation and towers are operational equipment, so view them from outside. Enquiries go to the Jomo Electric Railway general affairs department (027-231-3597, weekdays 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.).
References
- Registered cultural properties (Jomo Electric Railway)
- https://jomorailway.com/assets.html
- Ogo depot tours (Jomo Electric Railway)
- https://jomorailway.com/garage.html
- Ogo Station Building (Database of National Cultural Properties)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00006589
- Ogo Train Depot (Database of National Cultural Properties)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00006590
- Ogo Substation (Database of National Cultural Properties)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00006591
- Aratogawa Bridge (Database of National Cultural Properties)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00006596
Last verified: 2026.10.07
Basic Information
| Name | Jomo Electric Railway Ogo Station Facilities |
|---|---|
| Location | Mogi-machi and Ogo-machi, Maebashi City, Gunma Prefecture |
| Owner | Jomo Electric Railway Co., Ltd. |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Properties (8) |
| Coordinates | 36.41254, 139.15628 |
