History
Matsubarako Station opened on 27 December 1932 as a general station with the inauguration of the Ministry of Railways' Koumi Line between Koumi and Saku-Umi-no-Kuchi. Locals had hoped for a stop near Yanachi but the terrain was too constrained; planners then proposed a minimal halt named Kitamaki, but the community pushed for a fuller station named after the nearby tourist lake. Freight was discontinued in June 1960, parcel handling in October 1970 (after which the station was destaffed), and the stop passed to JR East on 1 April 1987. At 986 m above sea level it is the ninth-highest JR station, and now has a single side platform on what was originally a passing track.
History summarized from Japanese & English Wikipedia · last reviewed 2026-05-18.
Notes
At 986 m above sea level, Matsubarako ranks ninth among all JR stations by elevation — a holdover of the Koumi Line's climb across the Yatsugatake foothills.