Otaru City General Museum
The Otaru City General Museum is a museum located in Temiya 1-chome, Otaru, Hokkaido, Japan, which features exhibits related to the history and nature of Hokkaido, transportation in the area, and science.
Overview
On July 14, 2007, the functions of the Otaru City Museum and the Otaru City Youth Science and Technology Museum were integrated into the third sector at Temiya Station. The museum was established by utilizing the facilities of the Otaru Transportation Memorial Museum, and the administrative functions were consolidated into the facilities of the former Otaru Transportation Memorial Hall, making it the main building. The former Otaru City Museum was renamed Canal Museum.Main building
The Otaru City General Museum is a museum established in 1956 using the former Nippon Yusen Otaru branch in Ironai. Originally established as the Otaru City Museum, it was a museum that focused on the humanities, art and nature; it then moved to the former Otaru Warehouse,, in 1985.In December 1962, in commemoration of the 85th anniversary of the opening of railways in Japan, the Hokkaido Railway Memorial Museum, which was established by the Sapporo Railway Administration of Japan National Railways at that time, was operated and managed as an annex. When the museum first opened, the former locomotive storehouse was used as the main building, and in October 1964, the Taisho-go locomotive was brought in from the Hokkaido University Museum. The Railway Memorial Hall was temporarily closed in November 1992, and after renovation with the City of Otaru as the main financial backer, the exhibition range was expanded to include marine and land transportation on April 20, 1996. The space was expanded and re-opened as a comprehensive transportation museum, renamed the Otaru Transportation Museum. It was operated by the third sector ‘’Otaru Kotsu Kinenkan Co., Ltd.’’, but was closed in March 2006 due to a decrease in visitors.
The Otaru City Museum opened on July 14, 2007 after relocating to the site of the former Otaru Transportation Memorial Hall and was renamed the Otaru City General Museum, with the functional integration with the Otaru City Youth Science and Technology Museum. In September of the same year, in addition to being the starting point of the Tour de Hokkaido 2007, the ‘’Otaru Classic Car Expo’’ has been held yearly at the museum since that date.
The facility is located on the 5.8 hectare site of Temiya Station on the former Temiya Line, which is the birthplace of railways in Hokkaido. In addition to the three indoor facilities, there is an outdoor exhibition hall where valuable railway vehicles and automobiles are preserved and exhibited. The museum owns 8 out of 12 quasi-railway monuments in Hokkaido, including the Railway Vehicle Preservation Museum, which is the oldest existing locomotive depot and railway monument in Japan.
Main exhibits
- Former Temiya Agency Warehouse
- Former Temiya Engine Warehouse : Railway Monument, National Important Cultural Property
- Temiyaguchi Turntable: Former Otaru Chikko Locomotive Depot Turntable
- Hokkaido railroad starting point: Zero milepost of the railway