The was the name given to a network of 400 km of 2 in 6 in (762 mm)-gauge light ("") railway lines that operated in the Kiso Valley

Kiso Valley

The is a geographical area that centers on the valley of the upper portions of the Kiso River in the southwestern part of Nagano Prefecture in Japan...

 of Nagano Prefecture

Nagano Prefecture

is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of the island of Honshū. The capital is the city of Nagano.- History :Nagano was formerly known as the province of Shinano...

, Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

.

The railway was used to support the logging of cedar

Cryptomeria

Cryptomeria is a monotypic genus of conifer in the cypress family Cupressaceae formerly belonging to the family Taxodiaceae; it includes only one species, Cryptomeria japonica . It is endemic to Japan, where it is known as Sugi...

 forests in the region. The Kiso Forest had historically been the possession of a local lord, but at the time of the Meiji Restoration

Meiji Restoration

The , also known as the Meiji Ishin, Revolution, Reform or Renewal, was a chain of events that restored imperial rule to Japan in 1868...

 had become the property of the Imperial family. In 1901, a railway was laid into the forests and was initially worked by hand or animals. The first 0-4-2T locomotives built by Baldwin Locomotive Works

Baldwin Locomotive Works

The Baldwin Locomotive Works was an American builder of railroad locomotives. It was located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, originally, and later in nearby Eddystone, Pennsylvania. Although the company was very successful as a producer of steam locomotives, its transition to the production of...

 were introduced in 1907. Further locomotives were obtained from Baldwin, as well as a Shay locomotive

Shay locomotive

The Shay locomotive was the most widely used geared steam locomotive. The locomotives were built to the patents of Ephraim Shay, who has been credited with the popularization of the concept of a geared steam locomotive...

 that was transferred to the Alishan Forest Railway

Alishan Forest Railway

The Alishan Forest Railway is an 86 km network of narrow-gauge railways running up to and throughout the popular mountain resort of Alishan in Chiayi County, Taiwan...

in Taiwan when that line opened. The railway was extensively rebuilt in 1920, with steel bridges and 24 tunnels.

The railway was abolished in stages between 1966 and 1976.