Omuta, Fukuoka
Encyclopedia
is a city
located in Fukuoka Prefecture
, Japan
.
As of January 1, 2010, the city has an estimated population
of 127,126 (Men 58,294; Women 68,832) and the density
of 1,558.87 persons per km². The total area is 81.55 km².
The current mayor
is Michio Koga.
to the south and east.
It contains Yamagi and Miike mountains, and the rivers Omuta, Suwa, Doumen and Kumagawa.
Ōmuta's zoo is known for being home to lesser pandas.
Ōmuta is the birth place of the Japanese card game karuta
.
, whose historical existence is doubtful http://www.city.omuta.fukuoka.jp/omuta-index.html.
In the late 12th century, three ponds were formed, supposedly as a result of volcanic activity. Miike, a neighborhood in Ōmuta, is named after those three ponds (jp: "三池 mi-ike").
In 1469, a farmer named Denzaemon eventually found coal in the mountains when he made a bonfire. Coal mining would become the main industry in this area.
During the Edo period
, Ōmuta was a part of the Miike han (Miike Domain
), ruled by the Tachibana clan who also ruled Yanagawa
. In 1721, Ono Harunobu, karō (steward) of Yanagawa han (Yanagawa Domain
) was granted Hirano Takatori yama, and started to mine coal. During the 1850s another two coal mines were opened.
In 1871, in a course of the Meiji restoration
, the Han system was abolished and prefectures were founded. Ōmuta belonged to the Miike (1871), Mizuma (1871–1876) and finally Fukuoka prefecture
s (1876–present) respectively.
The Ōmuta and Miike
townships, which would form the core of the current city, were founded on April 1, 1889, a consequence of the town and village administrative system, in Miike county, Fukuoka. The Meiji government ran coal mining in Miike
at first themselves, but soon sold it to a private company for a very low price, compared to its value, which caused a scandal.
On March 1, 1917, Ōmuta received city status. Ōmuta had developed as an industrial city, centered on the Miike coal mine, which existed from the 1860s until 1997. In 1891, a railway began to operate, connecting Ōmuta with Fukuoka. It is still operated today as the Kagoshima Main Line
. In 1902, Miike Port opened on Ariake Bay. New coal mines were opened, and Ōmuta became an industrial center in this region. 1908 Miike Port was opened to foreigners and in the next year the Trade Taxation Office was established along the port, as a branch of the Nagasaki Trade Taxation Office.
While miners enjoyed good wages, their working conditions were not very good, like many other Japanese laborers. In 1918 and 1924, big strikes and other protests arose. Through many protests and other activities, in the 1930s we found many of the strikers' wishes granted: women, prisoners, and horses were no longer found in mines, and miners were hired directly by the company.
In 1921 and 1941, mergers with neighboring towns and villages, including Ōmuta, occurred, and in 1941 the city became as large as it is now. The 1941 merger was a side effect of World War II
: the government led mergers in many places, thinking it would make municipal administration more efficient. During the war, Ōmuta was bombed in 1944 and 1945, not only in industrial areas, but also downtown. The prisoner-of-war camp
"Fukuoka 17
", where allied prisoners were forced to work in the mines, was located in the outskirts of the city.
In the late 1950s, Ōmuta reached the high point of its history. In 1959, Ōmuta recorded its largest population: 208,877. But Japanese industry began to switch their main energy resource from coal to oil. Coal mining became less popular and profitable, and many mines were closed, but Miike Mine remained one of the biggest coal mine in Japan until its closure in 1997. Many people left the city, since they couldn't find new workplaces in the city. It affects the local economy majorly, and many downtown shops were closed consequently.
In 1960, the Japanese media observed the Miike dispute which was linked with the reform of the Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security
between Japan and the United States
of America.
Thanks to coal mining, chemical industry was developed. Currently, there is movement in the environmental recycling industry, centered on the generation of electricity from waste products.
Another main industry is Alminium fining, which has been also in a hard situation due to high price of electricity in Japan and its international competency is insufficient.
Commercial fishing continues out of the port, Kurosaki.
designated yakuza syndicate is headquartered in Omuta.
due to its greater number of connecting flights and additional services.
's Kagoshima Main Line
for national intercity rail services which connects the city with Fukuoka
, Kurume
, Kumamoto
or Kagoshima
directly. Nishi-Nippon Railroad
runs the Tenjin Omuta Line
connecting Omuta to Fukuoka
, in addition to industrial freight services. Both the Kagoshima Mail Line and the Tenjin Omuta Line stop in Ōmuta at Ōmuta Station
. The new Kyūshū Shinkansen
line stop at the Shin-Ōmuta Station.
(northern Shanxi Province in China
) Muskegon, Michigan
(United States of America)
Cities of Japan
||A is a local administrative unit in Japan. Cities are ranked on the same level as and , with the difference that they are not a component of...
located in Fukuoka Prefecture
Fukuoka Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located on Kyūshū Island. The capital is the city of Fukuoka.- History :Fukuoka Prefecture includes the former provinces of Chikugo, Chikuzen, and Buzen....
, 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...
.
As of January 1, 2010, the city has an estimated population
Population
A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...
of 127,126 (Men 58,294; Women 68,832) and the density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
of 1,558.87 persons per km². The total area is 81.55 km².
The current mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
is Michio Koga.
Geography
Ōmuta is located in the southernmost end of Fukuoka Prefecture, is bordered by the Ariake Sea in the west, and meets Kumamoto prefectureKumamoto Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located on Kyushu Island. The capital is the city of Kumamoto.- History :Historically the area was called Higo Province; and the province was renamed Kumamoto during the Meiji Restoration. The creation of prefectures was part of the abolition of the feudal system...
to the south and east.
It contains Yamagi and Miike mountains, and the rivers Omuta, Suwa, Doumen and Kumagawa.
Ōmuta's zoo is known for being home to lesser pandas.
Ōmuta is the birth place of the Japanese card game karuta
Karuta
is a Japanese card game.The basic idea of any karuta game is to be able to quickly determine which card out of an array of cards is required and then to grab the card before it is grabbed by an opponent. There are various types of cards which can be used to play karuta...
.
History
The oldest reference to Ōmuta, precisely Kunugi, one of the neighborhoods in the current Ōmuta city, is found in Nihonshoki (720), the chapter of Emperor KeikōEmperor Keiko
; also known as Ootarashihikooshirowake no Sumeramikoto, was the 12th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession.No firm dates can be assigned to this emperor's life or reign, but he is conventionally considered to have reigned from 71–130.-Legendary narrative:Keikō is...
, whose historical existence is doubtful http://www.city.omuta.fukuoka.jp/omuta-index.html.
In the late 12th century, three ponds were formed, supposedly as a result of volcanic activity. Miike, a neighborhood in Ōmuta, is named after those three ponds (jp: "三池 mi-ike").
In 1469, a farmer named Denzaemon eventually found coal in the mountains when he made a bonfire. Coal mining would become the main industry in this area.
During the Edo period
Edo period
The , or , is a division of Japanese history which was ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family, running from 1603 to 1868. The political entity of this period was the Tokugawa shogunate....
, Ōmuta was a part of the Miike han (Miike Domain
Miike Domain
The ' was a Japanese domain of the Edo period, located in Chikugo Province .-List of lords:*Tachibana clan, 1621-1806; 1868-1871 #Tanetsugu#Tanenaga#Taneakira#Tsuranaga#Nagahiro#Tanechika...
), ruled by the Tachibana clan who also ruled Yanagawa
Yanagawa, Fukuoka
is a city located in Fukuoka, Japan.On March 21, 2005 the towns of Yamato and Mitsuhashi, both from Yamato District, were merged into Yanagawa.As of April 30, 2011, the city has an estimated population of 71,848, with a household number of 24,507, and the population density of 934.55 persons per km²...
. In 1721, Ono Harunobu, karō (steward) of Yanagawa han (Yanagawa Domain
Yanagawa Domain
The ' was a Japanese domain of the Edo period, located in Chikugo Province . It was ruled for most of its history by the Tachibana clan.-List of lords:*Tanaka clan, 1600-1620 #Yoshimasa#Tadamasa...
) was granted Hirano Takatori yama, and started to mine coal. During the 1850s another two coal mines were opened.
In 1871, in a course 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...
, the Han system was abolished and prefectures were founded. Ōmuta belonged to the Miike (1871), Mizuma (1871–1876) and finally Fukuoka prefecture
Fukuoka Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located on Kyūshū Island. The capital is the city of Fukuoka.- History :Fukuoka Prefecture includes the former provinces of Chikugo, Chikuzen, and Buzen....
s (1876–present) respectively.
The Ōmuta and Miike
Miike District, Fukuoka
was a district located in Fukuoka, Japan. It was dissolved on January 29, 2007 when the town of Takata merged with the towns of Setaka and Yamakawa from Yamato District to form the new city of Miyama....
townships, which would form the core of the current city, were founded on April 1, 1889, a consequence of the town and village administrative system, in Miike county, Fukuoka. The Meiji government ran coal mining in Miike
Miike coal mine
, also known as the , was a coal mine located in the area of Ōmuta, Fukuoka and Arao, Kumamoto, Japan. Mining began in the Edo Period and the mine was nationalised in 1872. The Mitsui zaibatsu took control in 1899....
at first themselves, but soon sold it to a private company for a very low price, compared to its value, which caused a scandal.
On March 1, 1917, Ōmuta received city status. Ōmuta had developed as an industrial city, centered on the Miike coal mine, which existed from the 1860s until 1997. In 1891, a railway began to operate, connecting Ōmuta with Fukuoka. It is still operated today as the Kagoshima Main Line
Kagoshima Main Line
The is a major railway line operated by the Kyushu Railway Company between Mojikō in Kitakyūshū, and Kagoshima Station in Kagoshima City, at the southern end of Kyushu...
. In 1902, Miike Port opened on Ariake Bay. New coal mines were opened, and Ōmuta became an industrial center in this region. 1908 Miike Port was opened to foreigners and in the next year the Trade Taxation Office was established along the port, as a branch of the Nagasaki Trade Taxation Office.
While miners enjoyed good wages, their working conditions were not very good, like many other Japanese laborers. In 1918 and 1924, big strikes and other protests arose. Through many protests and other activities, in the 1930s we found many of the strikers' wishes granted: women, prisoners, and horses were no longer found in mines, and miners were hired directly by the company.
In 1921 and 1941, mergers with neighboring towns and villages, including Ōmuta, occurred, and in 1941 the city became as large as it is now. The 1941 merger was a side effect of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
: the government led mergers in many places, thinking it would make municipal administration more efficient. During the war, Ōmuta was bombed in 1944 and 1945, not only in industrial areas, but also downtown. The prisoner-of-war camp
Prisoner-of-war camp
A prisoner-of-war camp is a site for the containment of combatants captured by their enemy in time of war, and is similar to an internment camp which is used for civilian populations. A prisoner of war is generally a soldier, sailor, or airman who is imprisoned by an enemy power during or...
"Fukuoka 17
Fukuoka 17
Fukuoka #17 Branch Prisoner of War Camp was a Japanese Prisoner-of-war camp located at the Mitsui Kozan Miike Kogyo-Sho coal mine and Mitsui Zinc Foundry in Shinminato-machi, Omuta-shi, Fukuoka-ken, Japan, during World War II.-History:...
", where allied prisoners were forced to work in the mines, was located in the outskirts of the city.
In the late 1950s, Ōmuta reached the high point of its history. In 1959, Ōmuta recorded its largest population: 208,877. But Japanese industry began to switch their main energy resource from coal to oil. Coal mining became less popular and profitable, and many mines were closed, but Miike Mine remained one of the biggest coal mine in Japan until its closure in 1997. Many people left the city, since they couldn't find new workplaces in the city. It affects the local economy majorly, and many downtown shops were closed consequently.
In 1960, the Japanese media observed the Miike dispute which was linked with the reform of the Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security
Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security between the United States and Japan
The was signed between the United States and Japan in Washington, D.C. on January 19, 1960. It strengthened Japan's ties to the West during the Cold War era...
between Japan and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
of America.
Industry
For the majority of its past in the modern age, Omuta was a coal mining town. However, with the recent closure of the Miike mine, industry has focused elsewhere.Thanks to coal mining, chemical industry was developed. Currently, there is movement in the environmental recycling industry, centered on the generation of electricity from waste products.
Another main industry is Alminium fining, which has been also in a hard situation due to high price of electricity in Japan and its international competency is insufficient.
Commercial fishing continues out of the port, Kurosaki.
Crime and safety
The Kyushu Seido-kaiKyushu Seido-kai
The is a yakuza organization based in Fukuoka Prefecture on the Kyushu island of Japan, with an estimated 380 active members. Headquartered in the southern Fukuoka region of Omuta, the Kyushu Seido-kai maintains its offices in five other prefectures including Tokyo....
designated yakuza syndicate is headquartered in Omuta.
Airport
Saga and Kumamoto Airports are close, but a great many more passengers transit to or from Omuta through Fukuoka AirportFukuoka Airport
, formerly known as Itazuke Air Base, is an international and domestic airport located east of Hakata Station in Fukuoka, Japan. It is officially designated a second class airport. It is operating at full capacity, and cannot be further expanded. Flights stop at 10 p.m...
due to its greater number of connecting flights and additional services.
Railroad
The city is serviced by JR KyushuKyushu Railway Company
The , also referred to as , is one of the constituent companies of Japan Railways Group . It operates intercity rail services in Kyushu, Japan and the JR Kyushu Jet Ferry Beetle hydrofoil service across the Tsushima Strait between Fukuoka and Busan, South Korea.When Japan Railways was divided in...
's Kagoshima Main Line
Kagoshima Main Line
The is a major railway line operated by the Kyushu Railway Company between Mojikō in Kitakyūshū, and Kagoshima Station in Kagoshima City, at the southern end of Kyushu...
for national intercity rail services which connects the city with Fukuoka
Fukuoka, Fukuoka
is the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture and is situated on the northern shore of the island of Kyushu in Japan.Voted number 14 in a 2010 poll of the World's Most Livable Cities, Fukuoka is praised for its green spaces in a metropolitan setting. It is the most populous city in Kyushu, followed by...
, Kurume
Kurume, Fukuoka
is a city located in Fukuoka prefecture, Japan.The city has an estimated population of 303,277 and a population density of 1,319.51 persons per km²...
, Kumamoto
Kumamoto, Kumamoto
is the capital city of Kumamoto Prefecture on the island of Kyushu, Japan. Greater Kumamoto has a population of 1,460,000, as of the 2000 census...
or Kagoshima
Kagoshima, Kagoshima
is the capital city of Kagoshima Prefecture at the southwestern tip of the Kyūshū island of Japan, and the largest city in the prefecture by some margin...
directly. Nishi-Nippon Railroad
Nishi-Nippon Railroad
The , also called or NNR, is one of Japan's "Big 16" private railroad companies. With headquarters in Fukuoka, it operates local and highway buses, supermarkets, real-estate and travel agencies, as well as railways in Fukuoka Prefecture. In addition, from 1950 to 1972, the company owned the Lions...
runs the Tenjin Omuta Line
Tenjin Omuta Line
The is a heavy rail line in Fukuoka Prefecture in Kyūshū, Japan, being the main line of a Japanese private railway company Nishi-Nippon Railroad . The line is from Nishitetsu Fukuoka Station in Chūō-ku, Fukuoka, stretching south to Ōmuta Station in Ōmuta...
connecting Omuta to Fukuoka
Fukuoka, Fukuoka
is the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture and is situated on the northern shore of the island of Kyushu in Japan.Voted number 14 in a 2010 poll of the World's Most Livable Cities, Fukuoka is praised for its green spaces in a metropolitan setting. It is the most populous city in Kyushu, followed by...
, in addition to industrial freight services. Both the Kagoshima Mail Line and the Tenjin Omuta Line stop in Ōmuta at Ōmuta Station
Omuta Station
is a train station located in Ōmuta, Fukuoka.- Lines :*Nishi-Nippon Railroad**Tenjin Ōmuta Line*JR Kyūshū**Kagoshima Main Line- History :The JR station opened on April 1, 1891 and the Nishitetsu station opened on July 1, 1939.- JR Kyūshū :...
. The new Kyūshū Shinkansen
Kyushu Shinkansen
The ' is a Japanese high-speed railway line between the Japanese cities of Fukuoka and Kagoshima in Kyushu, running parallel to the existing Kagoshima Main Line and operated by the Kyushu Railway Company . The southern 127 km opened on 13 March 2004...
line stop at the Shin-Ōmuta Station.
Bus
General Shuttle and High-Speed buses are provided to nearby cities and airports by Nishi-Nippon Railroad.Sister cities
DatongDatong
Datong is a prefecture-level city in northern Shanxi Province of North China, located a few hundred kilometres west by rail from Beijing with an elevation of...
(northern Shanxi Province in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
) Muskegon, Michigan
Muskegon, Michigan
Muskegon is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 38,401. The city is the county seat of Muskegon County...
(United States of America)