Ishinomaki Line

The Ishinomaki Line is a railway line in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan, operated by East Japan Railway Company. It connects Kogota Station in Misato with Onagawa Station in Onagawa, acting as a spur line from the Tōhoku Main Line to the central coast of Miyagi Prefecture. It connects with the Rikuu East Line and Tōhoku Main Line at Kogota Station, the Kesennuma Line at Maeyachi Station, and the Senseki Line at Ishinomaki Station, both in Ishinomaki, Miyagi. The line was damaged by the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, and the damage was so severe that service between Urashuku Station and Onagawa Station was not reinstated until 21 March 2015.

Station list

All stations are in Miyagi.

Station name	Japanese	Distance	Transfers	Location
Kogota	小牛田	0.0	Tōhoku Main Line, Rikuu East Line	Misato
Kami-Wakuya	上涌谷	3.5		Wakuya
Wakuya	涌谷	6.2		Wakuya
Maeyachi	前谷地	12.8	Kesennuma Line	Ishinomaki
Kakeyama	佳景山	17.1		Ishinomaki
Kanomata	鹿又	21.2		Ishinomaki
Sobanokami	曽波神	23.7		Ishinomaki
Ishinomaki	石巻	27.9	Senseki Line	Ishinomaki
Rikuzen-Inai	陸前稲井	30.9		Ishinomaki
Watanoha	渡波	35.9		Ishinomaki
Mangokuura	万石浦	37.0		Ishinomaki
Sawada	沢田	38.3		Ishinomaki
Urashuku	浦宿	42.4		Onagawa
Onagawa	女川	44.7		Onagawa

History

The Senpoku Light Railway opened a gauge line from Kogota to Ishinomaki in 1912. The line was nationalised in 1919 and converted to gauge in 1920. The Oshika Light Railway opened a gauge horse-drawn tramway from Ishinomaki to Watanoha in 1915, and extended it to Onagawa in 1924. A petrol-driven locomotive was introduced in 1926. The line was nationalised in 1939 and converted to gauge the same year.
In 1958, the line was extended to the Onagawa Port, but that extension closed in 1980.
The line was severely damaged by the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami on 11 March 2011; the Kogota - Ishinomaki section being out of service for two months, the Ishinomaki - Watanoha section for a year, and the Watanoha - Urashuku section for two years. The final section from Urashuku to Onagawa reopened on 21 March 2015.