- Hikawa Maru
"Hikawa Maru" (named after the
Hikawa Jinja shrine) is aJapan eseocean liner that was built for theNippon Yusen KK line by the Yokohama Dock Company. She was launched on 30 September 1929, and made hermaiden voyage fromKobe toSeattle on 13 May 1930. She is one of three sister ships. The other two, both lost in the war, were "Heian Maru " and "Hie Maru ".The service provided on the ship was famous for combining splendid food and beautiful
art deco interiors. She was often referred to as theQueen of the Pacific .Charlie Chaplin is amongst the ship's more notable former passengers.In 1941, before
Japan 's entry to the World War II the "Hikawa Maru" was used byJewish refugees escaping theNazis via Japan. Reuben Goossens [ [http://www.ssmaritime.com/hikawamaru.htm Hikawa Maru] ] reports Zorach Warhaftig's experience about the ship. [Warhaftig, Zorach. Refugee and Survivor, Rescue Attempts during the Holocaust, Hara Shobo.] Zorach together with his family left from Yokohama on the "Hikawa Maru" on 5 June 1941 forVancouver ,Canada . He describes the trip as "a summer vacation and with the war seeming to be so far away" although, he said "I didn't have a peaceful mind because of the strong responsibility I had to help the Jewish refugees with the troubles they faced."After Japan's entry to the war "Hikawa Maru" became a
hospital ship , and as a result, she ultimately survived the Allied campaign against the Japanese merchant fleet. After the end of the war she was used by the U.S. for troop repatriation until 1947. [ [http://www.combinedfleet.com/Hikawa_t.htm Japanese Hospital Ships] ] Afterwards the "Hikawa Maru" was returned to Japan and carried cargo between Japan and the US.In 1954 she was taken out of service, but following a refit she returned to carrying passengers across the Pacific. Falling passenger numbers due to the growth of air travel led to the eventual termination of the service in 1960.
In 1961 "Hikawa Maru" became a floating youth hostel and museum permanently berthed at
Yokohama .In December 2006 the "Hikawa Maru" museum was closed and doubts about her future were raised. Happily, NYK Line began the restoration of the "Hikawa Maru" in August 2007, and the ship was reopened to the public on April 25, 2008, the vessel's 78th birthday. [ [http://www.nykline.co.jp/english/news/2008/0201_2/index.htm NYK Set to Reopen Renovated "Hikawa Maru"] ]
References
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