Akashi, Hyōgo
The entire line between Kobe Station and Shimonoseki Station was originally opened by the private Sanyō Railway company. The section between Hyōgo Station (in Kobe) and Akashi Station (in Akashi, Hyōgo) opened first in 1888. In 1889 the line was extended to the east to Kobe Station (as a dual track section) and Tatsuno Station (in Tatsuno, Hyōgo Prefecture) to the west. The Sanyō Railway was progressively extended to the west, reaching Okayama and then Fukuyama in 1891, Hiroshima in 1894 and in 1901 it reached Bakan (now Shimonoseki) Station. Under the Railway Nationalization Act of 1906 it was purchased by the Japanese government and renamed Sanyō Main Line.