A Modest Building Inside the Gate
Just inside the main gate on the south-east of the JR Tadotsu Works, facing west, stands a plain timber hall from 1935. Building No.1, known as Shosha No.1, is a single-story structure roofed in slate, with a ridge of 33.7 meters and a span of 13.7 meters over a floor of 460 square meters.
It greets anyone entering the grounds, and today it serves as a public-relations room for the works.
Why It Is Registered
The details are quiet but deliberate. The walls are clad in clapboard, while the upper wall and gable ends are finished in mortar, and a round vent window is cut into each gable. There is no ornament for its own sake; the simple form and finish read as a clear reflection of what a service building looked like in the Shōwa 10 era.
That very plainness is the point. No.1 was registered in 2012 as a contributor to the historic landscape, an unassuming counterweight to the great sheds nearby that shows the ordinary fabric of a working railway yard.
What to Notice, and How to See It
Look for the round vent windows set high in the gables and the crisp line where clapboard gives way to mortar. After more than eighty years the building keeps a working role rather than a museum one, standing at the threshold of the grounds.
The works is active railway property and closed to casual visitors. It opens to the public once a year around Railway Day in October for the event known as Kisha Poppo Matsuri, when a shuttle train runs from Tadotsu Station into the grounds; group tours can sometimes be arranged in advance. Because dates shift from year to year, confirm the current schedule with JR Shikoku before setting out.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Kagawa
- Find tours, activities & transport passes near JR Tadotsu Factory Building No. 1
- [ Naoshima Art Island & Kotohiragu Shrine Visit ]
Q&A
- What is Shosha No.1 used for now?
- It stands just inside the main gate and is used as a public-relations room for the Tadotsu Works.
- What are its distinctive details?
- Clapboard walls, mortar-finished gable ends, and a round vent window in each gable, all in a plain 1930s manner.
- When was it built?
- In 1935, and it was registered as a Tangible Cultural Property in August 2012.
- Can it be visited?
- It lies within an active JR Shikoku works and is closed to casual visitors, though the grounds open once a year around October.
Basic Information
| Name | JR Tadotsu Works Shosha No.1 (Building No.1) |
|---|---|
| Location | 122-3, Ōdōri, Tadotsu, Nakatado District, Kagawa |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure), registered 13 August 2012 |
| Registration No. | 37-0389 |
| Count | 1 building |
| Built | 1935 (Shōwa 10) |
| Structure | Single-story timber building, slate gable roof, floor area 460 sq m; clapboard walls, mortar gables with round vent windows; ridge 33.7 m, span 13.7 m |
| Owner | Shikoku Railway Company (JR Shikoku) |
| Access | Active railway works, not open to casual visitors; annual public open day around October |
References
- 国指定文化財等データベース（文化庁）
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00009393
- 文化遺産オンライン ＪＲ多度津工場諸舎一号
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/269416
Last verified: 2026.07.03