is a

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

located in

Fukuoka Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Fukuoka Prefecture has a population of 5,109,323 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,986 Square kilometre, km2 (1,925 sq mi). Fukuoka Prefecture borders S ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

, on the island of

Kyushu is the third-largest island of Japan's five main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands ( i.e. excluding Okinawa). In the past, it has been known as , and . The historical regional name referred to Kyushu and its surroun ...

in southern Japan. Located near

Kitakyūshū is a city located in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. As of June 1, 2019, Kitakyushu has an estimated population of 940,978, making it the second-largest city in both Fukuoka Prefecture and the island of Kyushu after the city of Fukuoka. It is one of ...

and

Iizuka is a city located at the confluence of the Honami and Onga rivers in central Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city was founded on January 20, 1932. History Iizuka was an important post-station on the Nagasaki Kaidō during the Edo Era. As Jap ...

, Nōgata is in the center of the Chikuhō region of Fukuoka. The city was founded on January 1, 1931. As of May 31, 2011, the city has an estimated

population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction using a ...

of 58,878, with 26,056

household A household consists of two or more persons who live in the same dwelling. It may be of a single family or another type of person group. The household is the basic unit of analysis in many social, microeconomic and government models, and is im ...

s and a

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

of 953.03 persons per km². The total area is 61.78 km².

History

From the end of 19th century to the mid-20th century, Nōgata flourished as a center for mining

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when dea ...

. The Chikuhō region had the largest output of coal in Japan, but as the primary energy source changed from coal to oil, all coal mines were closed. Since then, Nōgata has suffered from a declining population. The oldest recorded meteorite fall occurred at Nōgata on May 19 in the year of 861. ( :ja:直方隕石)

Attractions and events

Nōgata Coal Memorial Museum

Nōgata's Coal Memorial Museum provides visitors with the history of coal mines in the area. Its exhibits include a steam locomotive, the machines for digging and extracting coal, coal miner's clothes, and other memorabilia. Closed Mondays. It is next to Taga Park.

Ongagawa Riverside Park

In spring, it features blooms of yellow flowers, and in April, a colorful

Tulip Tulips (''Tulipa'') are a genus of spring-blooming perennial herbaceous bulbiferous geophytes (having bulbs as storage organs). The flowers are usually large, showy and brightly coloured, generally red, pink, yellow, or white (usually in warm ...

Festival is held. About 200,000 people visit the festival for the period. The park is also a site where a fireworks show is held each year.

Art Museum

Closed Mondays.

Transport

The city has train services on the Chikuho Main Line operated by

JR Kyushu The , also referred to as , is one of the seven constituent companies of Japan Railways Group (JR Group). It operates intercity rail services within Kyushu, Japan and the JR Kyushu Jet Ferry Beetle hydrofoil service across the Tsushima Strait ...

and

Heisei Chikuho Railway The is the period of Japanese history corresponding to the reign of Emperor Emeritus Akihito from 8 January 1989 until his abdication on 30 April 2019. The Heisei era started on 8 January 1989, the day after the death of the Emperor Hirohito, ...

Ita Line. Trains stop at

Nōgata Station is a railway station on the Chikuhō Main Line operated by JR Kyushu in Nōgata, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The station also hosts the northern terminus of the Heisei Chikuho Railway Ita Line. Lines The station is served by the Chikuhō Main ...

. It is also the terminus of the Chikuho Electric Railroad Line. The

Coto Coto Train The Coto Coto Train is a touristic train service in the Fukuoka Prefecture region of Kyushu, southern Japan. The service started in 2019. The train is run by the Heisei Chikuhō Railway Company. It was designed by Eiji Mitooka and is based on th ...

touristic service stops here.

Famous people

Kaiō Hiroyuki Kaiō Hiroyuki (born 24 July 1972 as Hiroyuki Koga) is a former professional sumo wrestler from Nōgata, Fukuoka, Japan. He made his debut in 1988, reaching the top ''makuuchi'' division in 1993. He held the second highest rank of '' ōzeki'' or ...

sumo is a form of competitive full-contact wrestling where a ''rikishi'' (wrestler) attempts to force his opponent out of a circular ring (''dohyō'') or into touching the ground with any body part other than the soles of his feet (usually by thr ...

wrestler

References

External links

*
Nogata coal memorial museum
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nogata, Fukuoka Cities in Fukuoka Prefecture