Misu Kōmon Locks

Misu Komon is a lock gate system built in 1929 to connect the Horikawa and Ujigawa rivers, which run at substantially different water levels due to flood embankments. Using the same engineering principle as the Panama Canal, the chamber between the gates raises or lowers water to match the target river's level. In its first year over 20,000 cargo boats passed through, keeping trade flowing between Kyoto and Osaka through Fushimi. After rail transport made river shipping obsolete, the locks ceased operation in 1962. Fully restored in 2000, the site now includes the Misu Komon Museum explaining Fushimi's history as an inland port.