A Forest Railway Arch at Eshi
The Former Taisho Forest Railway Yusutanigawa Bridge (旧大正林道ユス谷川橋) is a single-span reinforced-concrete arch bridge of a forest railway, built in 1944 over the Yusutani River at Eshi, Shimanto Town, Takaoka District, Kochi Prefecture, and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) on March 7, 2008 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
The Agency for Cultural Affairs records a length of 8.0 metres and a width of 2.0 metres with stone walls, registration number 39-0249. Shimanto Town lists itself as the manager (Shimanto Town).
Two Bridges of Two Eras
According to Shimanto Town, state forests along the Yusuhara River were logged heavily from the Meiji to the Showa era. In 1911 the Miura timber company of Susaki laid the first forest tramway in the Shimanto basin; the forestry office bought it in 1925, set up a timber yard at Tanono (now Taisho, Shimanto Town) and extended the line inland, creating the Taisho line along the Yusuhara River to Shimotsui.
According to Shimanto Town, two bridges of different eras and methods cross the Yusutani River. One is the forest railway bridge, the Former Taisho Forest Railway Yusutanigawa Bridge, built alongside the old Route 439, over which locomotives hauled timber trucks every day. The other, the Yusutanigawa Bridge, was built around 1935 for a district road later taken over as a national road, and was registered on the same day (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
Value as a Registered Cultural Property
The Former Taisho Forest Railway Yusutanigawa Bridge was registered as a structure contributing to the historic landscape of the country. The Agency for Cultural Affairs records it as one of the former Taisho forest railway structures built along the Yusuhara River.
Shimanto Town says the two bridges, differing in material, method and purpose, trace the shift in the Shimanto basin from rafts and river boats to forest railways and then lorries, and presents the Former Taisho Forest Railway Yusutanigawa Bridge as a component of the Cultural Landscape of the Shimanto River Basin (Taisho Oku-Shimanto Area).
What to Look For
The Agency for Cultural Affairs notes that the Former Taisho Forest Railway Yusutanigawa Bridge crosses the lowest reach of the Yusutani River, a left-bank tributary, near its confluence with the Yusuhara River, with a semicircular reinforced-concrete arch of 5.1 metres and coursed stone walls along both banks.
Comparing it with the stone and brick road bridge just to the east shows the difference between road and railway engineering (Agency for Cultural Affairs, Shimanto Town).
Visiting
Shimanto Town notes that the Former Taisho Forest Railway Yusutanigawa Bridge is easy to miss from the town road. It is at Eshi, Shimanto Town. See the group page Former Taisho Forest Railway (Shimanto) for all four structures.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Kochi
- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Former Taisho Forest Railway Yusutanigawa Bridge
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Q&A
- When was it built?
- In 1944, according to the Agency for Cultural Affairs.
- What kind of bridge is it?
- An 8.0-metre reinforced-concrete bridge with a single semicircular arch of 5.1 metres (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- What is the bridge next to it?
- The stone and brick Yusutanigawa Bridge, built around 1935 for a district road and also registered (Agency for Cultural Affairs, Shimanto Town).
- What did it carry?
- Forest railway trucks loaded with timber from the state forests (Shimanto Town).
- When was the Former Taisho Forest Railway Yusutanigawa Bridge registered?
- On March 7, 2008.
Basic Information
| Name | Former Taisho Forest Railway Yusutanigawa Bridge (旧大正林道ユス谷川橋) |
|---|---|
| Location | Eshi, Shimanto Town, Takaoka District, Kochi Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2008/03/07 (Heisei 20) |
| Quantity | 1 structure |
| Dimensions | Reinforced-concrete single-span arch bridge, length 8.0 metres, width 2.0 metres, with stone walls |
| Owner | Not listed in the national database (managed by Shimanto Town) |
| Public Access | Outdoor structure; no public access information |
References
- Former Taisho Forest Railway Yusutanigawa Bridge (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00006950
- Yusutanigawa Bridge (Database of National Cultural Properties)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00006951
- Cultural Landscape of the Shimanto River Basin, Taisho Oku-Shimanto Area 1 (Shimanto Town)
- https://www.town.shimanto.lg.jp/life/detail.php?hdnKey=1284
- Cultural Landscape of the Shimanto River Basin, Taisho Oku-Shimanto Area 2 (Shimanto Town)
- https://www.town.shimanto.lg.jp/life/detail.php?hdnKey=1283
Last verified: 2026.10.11
