History
Shimonoseki Station opened on 27 May 1901 as Bakan Station (馬関駅), the terminus of the San'yō Railway extension from Asa, sited about 700 m east of today's station in Hosoecho. The name 'Bakan' was an abbreviation of 'Akamagaseki', the city's name at the time. The station was renamed Shimonoseki on 1 June 1902 with the city renaming, and from this station services such as the Kanmon Renrakusen ferry (to Kyushu) and the Kanpu Renrakusen ferry (to the Korean peninsula) connected onwards. Japan's first regular limited-express train began running in 1912, making the station a hub for international through-services. After the San'yō Railway was nationalized on 1 December 1906 it became a national-rail station; the Kanmon Tunnel opened on 1 July 1942 (freight) with the station facilities relocated to their current site on 15 November 1942. The Kanmon Renrakusen ferry was abolished on 31 October 1964. Since 1 April 1987 it has been the JR West / JR Kyushu boundary station (the line east of the station is under JR West, the line west under JR Kyushu), with JR Freight as a second-tier rail operator. The last Kyushu Blue Train, the 'Fuji/Hayabusa', ended on 14 March 2009.
History summarized from Japanese & English Wikipedia · last reviewed 2026-06-09.
Notes
Shimonoseki Station was for decades the southern transfer point for the Kanmon Renrakusen ferry to Moji and for the Kanpu Renrakusen ferry to the Korean peninsula. After the Kanmon Tunnel opened in 1942 the ferry services were progressively wound down; the Kanmon Renrakusen was abolished on 31 October 1964.