Inauguration of the Tokyo-Yokohama Railway

The 29-kilometer Tokyo-Yokohama line represented Japan's entry into the railway age under Emperor Meiji's modernization drive. Built with British technical assistance and 3 ft 6 in gauge track, it used imported locomotives and featured the iconic Shimbashi station. The project overcame political resistance and engineering hurdles like swampy terrain near Tokyo Bay. British engineer Edmund Morel supervised construction. The railway carried dignitaries on its inaugural run and quickly became a symbol of Japan's rapid industrialization, spurring economic growth, urbanization, and further rail expansion across the archipelago.