# C56 31 > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/C56_31 > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/C56_31.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C56_31 > Source revision: 1299447149 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) Preserved C56 class locomotive C56 31 C56 31 at the Yushukan in June 2011 Type and origin Power type Steam Builder Nippon Sharyo Build date 1936 Specifications Configuration: ​ • Whyte 2-6-0 Gauge 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) (JGR) 1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in) (IJA, SRT) Driver dia. 1,400 mm Length 14,325 mm Total weight 65.53 t Performance figures Tractive effort 8,290 kg Career Operators Japanese Government Railways Imperial Japanese Army State Railway of Thailand Retired 1977 Current owner Yūshūkan Museum, Tokyo Disposition Static display **C56 31** was the 31st of the [Class C56](/source/JNR_Class_C56) steam locomotives produced by [Japanese Government Railways](/source/Japanese_Government_Railways) (JGR). It was manufactured by [Nippon Sharyo](/source/Nippon_Sharyo) in 1936 and was operated on the [Nanao Line](/source/Nanao_Line) in [Ishikawa Prefecture](/source/Ishikawa_Prefecture) before [the war](/source/Pacific_War).[1] C56 31 was the first locomotive to run on the [Thai-Burma Railway](/source/Thai-Burma_Railway), also known as the Death Railway. It operated there during the war, after which it was used in Thailand. After the war it was brought back to Japan and restored, and is now displayed in the [Yūshūkan](/source/Y%C5%ABsh%C5%ABkan), the museum attached to [Yasukuni Shrine](/source/Yasukuni_Shrine) in Tokyo. It is displayed without reference to the deaths during the construction of the railway, which are estimated at around 100,000.[2][3][4][5] ## Wartime use In 1942, C56 31 was shipped to Thailand.[6] It was one of 90 Japanese steam locomotives sent south to regions occupied by Japan. It was used in the opening ceremony for the Thai-Burma railway and was the first locomotive to officially run on the railway.[1] ## Postwar use and return to Japan After the war it was used by the [State Railway of Thailand](/source/State_Railway_of_Thailand) who renumbered it from its original Japanese number of C5631 to 725. It was allocated to [Thungsong](/source/Thung_Song_district) Depot in [Nakhon Si Thammarat](/source/Nakhon_Si_Thammarat) alongside classmates 702, 705 and 718 (C564, 7 and 21 respectively) for a time until it was withdrawn from service in 1977, when plans were made to return it to Japan by an association of Southern Army Field Railway Corps officials. In 1979, it was returned to Japan alongside classmate number 735 (Ex- C5644) which is now preserved in running order on the [Oigawa Railway](/source/%C5%8Cigawa_Railway) in [Shizuoka](/source/Shizuoka_Prefecture), Japan. ## Display at Yūshūkan museum It has been displayed at the Yūshūkan museum at Yasukuni Shrine since 1979, where there is a volunteer group dedicated to preserving it.[7] The fact that it is displayed without references to the [atrocities carried out on the Thai-Burma railway](/source/Burma_Railway#Death_rates_and_causes) has attracted criticism, particularly from people from Australia and the US.[8][9][10][11] ## References 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Royal_Library_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Royal_Library_1-1) Royal Library [泰緬鉄道C56型蒸気機関車31号車](http://royallibrary.sakura.ne.jp/ww2/photo/C56_31.html) Retrieved March 22, 2016 (in Japanese) 1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** McNeill, David [Building a bridge to forgiveness October 9, 2005](http://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2005/10/09/to-be-sorted/building-a-bridge-to-forgiveness/) *[The Japan Times](/source/The_Japan_Times)* Retrieved March 17, 2016 1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** [Yasukuni Shrine: ground zero for unrepentant wartime remembrance July 27, 2013](http://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2013/07/27/commentary/yasukuni-shrine-ground-zero-for-unrepentant-wartime-remembrance/) *[The Japan Times](/source/The_Japan_Times)* Retrieved March 16, 2016 1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Lim, Robyn [Taro Aso has a history problem with Australia May 17, 2006](http://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2006/05/17/commentary/taro-aso-has-a-history-problem-with-australia/) *[The Japan Times](/source/The_Japan_Times)* Retrieved March 16, 2016 1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** Simone, Gianni [A trip around the Yushukan, Japan’s font of discord July 28, 2014](http://www.japantimes.co.jp/community/2014/07/28/issues/trip-around-yushukan-japans-font-discord/) *[The Japan Times](/source/The_Japan_Times)* Retrieved March 16, 2016 1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** American POWs of Japan website [Nippon Sharyo August 6, 2011](http://americanpowsofjapan.blogspot.jp/2011/08/nippon-sharyo.html) Retrieved March 23, 2016 1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** [Burma Railway JNR Class C56-31 Steam Locomotive Preservation Association (泰緬鉄道―C5631機関車保存会) Facebook page](https://www.facebook.com/c5631locomotive/timeline) Retrieved March 17, 2016 (in Japanese) 1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** A Social Nomad [Hellfire Pass and the Death Railway](http://asocialnomad.com/thailand/hellfire-pass/) Retrieved March 23, 2016 1. **[^](#cite_ref-9)** Flanagan, Richard [The Narrow Road to the Deep North](https://books.google.com/books?id=57VZAwAAQBAJ&dq=death+railway+train+c5631&pg=PT35) Retrieved March 23, 2016 1. **[^](#cite_ref-10)** Flanagan, Martin [Dark Chapters in Japanese History March 1, 2014](http://www.theage.com.au/comment/dark-chapters-in-japanese-history-20140228-33r7i.html) *[The Age](/source/The_Age)* Retrieved March 23, 2016 1. **[^](#cite_ref-11)** [Goodreads](/source/Goodreads) [Richard's Reviews > The Narrow Road to the Deep North February 16, 2016](https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1405176136) Retrieved March 23, 2016 --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [C56 31](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C56_31) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C56_31?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.