Four Cubicles in a Row
The Hojo Railway Hokkeguchi Station Toilet (北条鉄道法華口駅便所) is a single-story timber privy built in 1915 on the grounds of Hokkeguchi Station in Higashikasaharacho, Kasai City, Hyogo Prefecture, and it was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on April 25, 2014.
It stands east of the station building and faces west, toward it. The Agency for Cultural Affairs registered it (registration number 28-0590) as an early Taisho-era railway building put up together with the station, and as part of the historic landscape of the country.
A Meter Square, Times Four
The agency's description is precise: four rooms, each 1 meter square, lined up in a single row. With a building area of 4.0 square meters, the Hokkeguchi Station Toilet is the smallest of the four Hojo Railway structures on the register. The roof is laid in Sangawara-buki pantiles and takes the Maneki-yane form, a gable whose ridge is set off-center so that one slope runs much longer than the other.
On the west side, wooden brackets known as Udeki project to carry the eaves beam. The east wall has a continuous band of small windows set high up. Neither detail is showy, but together they give a plain four-cell building a recognizable face.
A new station toilet was added at Hokkeguchi in January 2012, according to a Kinki District Transport Bureau document. How the registered Hojo Railway Hokkeguchi Station Toilet is used today could not be confirmed from published sources.
What to Look For
The roof is the thing to notice. From the station side you can see the long sweep of the extended slope and the bracketed eaves along the west face. If you can step around to the east, look for the strip of windows under the eaves.
The agency records that the toilet was built in one campaign with the station building, so the two are pieces of the same 1915 station. Seen together with the Hojo Railway Hokkeguchi Station Building and Platform, they show an opening-era station with its full set of facilities still in place.
Visiting
The Hojo Railway Hokkeguchi Station Toilet stands within the station, and its exterior can be seen when you use the station. Published sources do not say whether the interior is open or in use. There is no charge to look at it.
As this is a working station, keep clear of trains and passengers while you look around.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Hyogo
- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Hojo Railway Hokkeguchi Station Toilet
- [ Himeji Castle & Kobe Night View Cruise ]
Q&A
- When was the Hojo Railway Hokkeguchi Station Toilet built?
- In 1915, together with the station building, according to the national record. It was registered on April 25, 2014.
- How big is the Hokkeguchi Station Toilet?
- It is a single-story timber building of four rooms, each 1 meter square, with a building area of 4.0 square meters.
- What is special about the roof of the Hokkeguchi Station Toilet?
- It is a pantiled maneki-yane roof with one slope extended well beyond the other, and the west eaves rest on wooden brackets.
- Can visitors still use the Hojo Railway Hokkeguchi Station Toilet?
- A newer toilet was added at Hokkeguchi Station in January 2012. Whether the registered building is still in use is not stated in published sources.
- Where is the Hokkeguchi Station Toilet?
- East of the Hokkeguchi Station building, facing west toward it.
Basic Information
| Name | Hojo Railway Hokkeguchi Station Toilet |
|---|---|
| Location | 245-2 Oki, Higashikasaharacho, Kasai City, Hyogo Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2014/4/25 (Heisei 26) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Single-story timber, tiled roof, building area 4.0 square meters |
| Owner | Hojo Railway Co., Ltd. |
| Public Access | Exterior visible within the station; interior access unconfirmed |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Cultural Heritage Database: Hojo Railway Hokkeguchi Station Toilet
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00010025
- Kasai City, Koho Kasai, December 2013 (in Japanese)
- https://www.city.kasai.hyogo.jp/uploaded/attachment/6157.pdf
- Kinki District Transport Bureau, Hojo Railway Revitalization Efforts, December 11, 2015 (in Japanese)
- https://wwwtb.mlit.go.jp/kinki/content/000010178.pdf
Last verified: 2026.10.08
