Hikawa Maru, built in 1930, was the only large Japanese passenger liner to survive World War II. Before the war she was on the Kobe-Seattle service and was taken over by the Japanese Navy in 1941, first to serve as a transport and later as a hospital ship. In 1945 she was seized by the US government and until 1947 was used to transport US personnel between USA and Japan. She then served as a freighter until 1953 when she was refitted for trans Pacific passenger service which continued until 1960. Since 1961 Hikawa Maru has been berthed in Yokohama as a museum, restaurant and hostel. Today the future of Hikawa Maru is unclear as the Hikawa Maru Marine Tower Co., which owns and operates the Hikawa Maru, has gone into restructuring after accumulating a debt of 1.5 billion yen.
Sea - Misc
Links: www.ssmaritime.com
By: Hinkkanen
