The Hoeryŏng T'an'gwang Line (Hoeryŏng Colliery Line) is a non-electrified standard-gauge freight-only secondary line of the

Korean State Railway The Korean State Railway (), commonly called the State Rail () is the operating arm of the Ministry of Railways of North Korea and has its headquarters at P'yŏngyang. The current Minister of Railways is Chang Jun Song. History 1945–195 ...

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...

, running from Hoeryŏng Ch'ŏngnyŏn on the

Hambuk Line The Hambuk Line is an electrified standard-gauge trunk line of the Korean State Railway in North Korea, running from Ch'ŏngjin) on the P'yŏngra Line to Rajin, likewise on the P'yŏngra line.Kokubu, Hayato, 将軍様の鉄道 (Shōgun-sama n ...

to Yusŏn.Kokubu, Hayato, 将軍様の鉄道 (Shōgun-sama no Tetsudō), p. 93,

History

The Tomun Railway, which had completed its mainline from Hoeryŏng to Tonggwanjin on 1 November 1924,朝鮮総督府官報 (The Public Journal of the Governor-General of Korea), Shōwa No. 669, 28 March 1929 (in Japanese) expanded its network in order to serve the

collieries Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...

around Hoeryŏng by building a branchline from Hoeryŏng to Kyerim, which was opened for service on 11 August 1928.朝鮮総督府官報 (The Public Journal of the Governor-General of Korea), Shōwa No. 472, 25 July 1928 (in Japanese) Less than a year later, on 1 April 1929 the Tomun Railway was nationalised and absorbed by the

Chosen Government Railway Chosen or The Chosen may refer to: The chosen ones *Chosen people, people who believe they have been chosen by a higher power to do a certain thing including **Jews as the chosen people Books *The Chosen (Potok novel), ''The Chosen'' (Potok novel ...

(''Sentetsu''). Sentetsu continued to operate the line, and then further expanded it with the addition of a extension to Singyerim; this extension was opened on 21 December 1932,朝鮮総督府官報 (The Public Journal of the Governor-General of Korea), Shōwa No. 1782, 15 December 1932 (in Japanese) but was subsequently closed. The line has changed hands several times since its construction. Following the absorption of the Tomun Railway by Sentetsu in 1929, on 1 October 1933 the Hoeryŏng Colliery Line, along with the rest of Sentetsu's Tomun Line to

Unggi Sonbong County, formerly called Unggi (Chosŏn'gŭl: 웅기, Hancha: 雄基), is a subdivision of the North Korean city of Rason. It is located at the northeastern extreme of North Korea, bordering Russia and China. It lies on Unggi Bay, an extensi ...

, were transferred to the

South Manchuria Railway The South Manchuria Railway ( ja, 南満州鉄道, translit=Minamimanshū Tetsudō; ), officially , Mantetsu ( ja, 満鉄, translit=Mantetsu) or Mantie () for short, was a large of the Empire of Japan whose primary function was the operatio ...

(''Mantetsu'').朝鮮総督府官報 (The Public Journal of the Governor-General of Korea), Shōwa extra issue, 1 October 1933 (in Japanese) Mantetsu took over the management, operation and maintenance of these lines, until finally on 1 July 1940 it was transferred back to Sentetsu.Dong-A Ilbo, 29 June 1940
/ref> Following the

partition of Korea The division of Korea began with the defeat of Japan in World War II. During the war, the Allied leaders considered the question of Korea's future after Japan's surrender in the war. The leaders reached an understanding that Korea would be li ...

, all railways located in the

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

zone of occupation, including the Hoeryŏng Colliery Line, were nationalised by the

Provisional People’s Committee for North Korea The People's Committee of North Korea (Chosŏn'gŭl: 북조선인민위원회) was a provisional government governing the Northern portion of the Korean Peninsula from 1947 until 1948. Established on 21 February 1947 as the successor of the ...

on 10 August 1946, and following the establishment of

, the

was created.Kokubu, Hayato, 将軍様の鉄道 (Shōgun-sama no Tetsudō), p. 131, At some point, the stations at Yŏngsu and Pongŭi were closed, and Kyerim station was renamed Yusŏn.

Services

Coal is shipped from mines on this line to the Kim Chaek Iron & Steel Complex at

Kimchaek Kimch'aek (), formerly Sŏngjin (Chosŏn'gŭl: 성진, Hancha: 城津), is a city in North Hamgyong Province, North Korea. It was an open port in 1899. It has a population of 207,699. Etymology The city received its current name in 1951 durin ...

and the Ch'ŏngjin Steel Works in Ch'ŏngjin, with the order of collection from each line arranged in the order of the total weight of the outbound cars. This line also serves the Hoeryŏng Tobacco Factory located near the former station of Yŏngsu.

Route

A yellow background in the "Distance" box indicates that section of the line is not electrified.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hoeryong Tangwang Line Railway lines in North Korea Standard gauge railways in North Korea