A Meiji Truss Reused in 1946
The Tobu Railway Togawa Bridge (東武鉄道砥川橋梁) is a railway bridge of 1946 in Nikko City, Tochigi Prefecture, between Okuwamachi and Kuribara, and was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) on October 27, 2017 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
The Agency records a single girder span and a single truss span with a total length of 90 metres, together with the abutments and pier; registration number 09-240.
A Meiji-Era Truss in a New Place
The Tobu Railway Togawa Bridge joins a deck plate girder with a span of 25.2 metres to a through Pratt truss with a span of 61.9 metres (Agency for Cultural Affairs). It stands on the Tobu Kinugawa Line between Okuwa and Shin-Takatoku stations.
The truss was not new when it came here. It is 1 span of the trusses erected in 1897 as the Abukuma River Bridge of the Nippon Railway Iwaki Line, now the JR Joban Line (Agency for Cultural Affairs). The Japan Society of Civil Engineers dates its manufacture to 1896 and its reuse at this site to 1946.
Why It Was Registered
The Agency registered the Tobu Railway Togawa Bridge under the criterion of being a model of design, as a valuable surviving truss bridge that goes back to the Meiji era.
In fiscal 2017 the Japan Society of Civil Engineers also selected it, together with the Watarase River Bridge between Sano and Tatebayashi, as a Civil Engineering Heritage site under the name "Tobu Railway Watarase River Bridge and Togawa Bridge". The citation describes 2 imported trusses of the period after the shift in suppliers away from Britain toward the United States, with slender steel members and piers of brick and stone.
What to Look For
The Tobu Railway Togawa Bridge lets you compare 2 kinds of span in one bridge. On the deck plate girder the train runs on top of the beams; on the through Pratt truss it passes inside the triangulated frame. The slender steel members noted by the Japan Society of Civil Engineers show best in the diagonals of the truss.
Tobu Railway presents the bridge as a photo spot for the SL Taiju steam train and notes the cherry blossoms there in spring.
Visiting
The Tobu Railway Togawa Bridge carries trains in regular service, and the deck and track are off limits. See it from nearby, or cross it on a Kinugawa Line train. Tobu Railway gives the walk from Shin-Takatoku Station as about 10 minutes.
No visitor facilities or parking information were found. When taking photographs, stay off the track and private land. Directions and the other registered structures along the line are gathered on the Tobu Railway Kinugawa Line page.
Q&A
- When was the Tobu Railway Togawa Bridge built?
- In 1946. Its truss was first erected in 1897 as part of the Abukuma River Bridge of the Nippon Railway Iwaki Line and reused here (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- How is the Tobu Railway Togawa Bridge constructed?
- A deck plate girder with a span of 25.2 metres and a through Pratt truss with a span of 61.9 metres, 90 metres long in all (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- Where is the Tobu Railway Togawa Bridge?
- Between Okuwamachi and Kuribara in Nikko City, Tochigi Prefecture, between Okuwa and Shin-Takatoku stations on the Tobu Kinugawa Line, about 10 minutes on foot from Shin-Takatoku Station (Tobu Railway).
- Can I see the Tobu Railway Togawa Bridge up close?
- It is a working railway bridge, so the deck is off limits. View it from nearby or cross it by train.
- When was the Tobu Railway Togawa Bridge registered?
- On October 27, 2017 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
Basic Information
| Name | Tobu Railway Togawa Bridge (東武鉄道砥川橋梁) |
|---|---|
| Location | Lot 1233, Okuwamachi to Lot 333, Kuribara, Nikko City, Tochigi Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2017/10/27 (Heisei 29) |
| Quantity | 1 structure |
| Dimensions | Length 90 m (25.2 m deck plate girder span, 61.9 m through Pratt truss span), with abutments and pier |
| Owner | Tobu Railway Co., Ltd. |
| Public Access | Working railway bridge; no entry, viewed from nearby |
References
- Tobu Railway Togawa Bridge (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00011868
- Tobu Railway Togawa Bridge (Cultural Heritage Online, Japanese)
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/256765
- Registration of Registered Tangible Cultural Properties (Structures), attachment (Agency for Cultural Affairs, July 21, 2017, Japanese)
- https://www.bunka.go.jp/koho_hodo_oshirase/hodohappyo/pdf/2017072107_besshi01.pdf
- Tobu Railway Watarase River Bridge and Togawa Bridge (JSCE Civil Engineering Heritage, Japanese)
- https://committees.jsce.or.jp/heritage/node/955
- Photo spots (Tobu Railway SL Taiju, Japanese)
- https://www.tobu.co.jp/sl/nikko/spot/
Last verified: 2026.11.11
