Hitachi is known as the city where Hitachi Ltd. was founded. It’s located in the northern part of Ibaraki Prefecture, about 150 kilometers north of Tokyo. The origin of this city was Hitachi Copper Mine discovered in the late 16th century. It was rapidly developed in the early 20th century after introducing machinery such as rock drills, but this historical mine was unfortunately closed in 1981 due to running out of the resources.
Hitachi Mining Railway played an important role in the modernization of Hitachi Copper Mine. This railway was opened in 1908 to transport passengers, materials and resources. Connecting Sukegawa (present Hitachi) and Daiou-in, its total operating length was 5.4 kilometers. The gauge size was 762 millimeters. In 1957, there were 6,500 passengers per day taking this railway, but the route was unfortunately abolished in 1981 for streamlining.
Please look at the top photo. There's an electric locomotive... Unit 13. It's preserved in Nippon Mining Museum in the city. Unit 13 was built by Hitachi in 1926, and had been commissioned as mainly freight trains. It weighs 8,000 kilograms and has two 33 kW direct current motors. The axis arrangement is Ao-Ao. After operating for 34 years, it was retired from the track in 1960. What impressed me most was its pantograph. It looks like a tower. I don’t know how to insulate against current to ensure the safety of the locomotive body to avoid a short circuit. It was a mystery for me. Anyway, I enjoyed observing the precious electric locomotive in the early days.
Pantograph of Unit 13 electric locomotive
Official website, "Nippon Mining Museum": https://www.jx-nmm.com/english/museum/