Can you identify the Japanese trawler in this 1957 photo?

November 17, 2015 7:05 PM

This Japanese trawler was photographed in the North Pacific, probably not too far from the southern end of the Kamchatka Peninsula, in late June 1957. Its name may have been something like Hokusen Maru. Its home port may have been Hakodate. I want to find anyone who was part of its crew when the photo was taken.

As part of the research I'm doing for a book, I'm hoping to identify this trawler and ultimately any of her crew who are living. This is definitely an 11 in terms of difficulty, so even ideas on how to figure it out will be really helpful. Thanks!

posted by bassomatic to Media & Arts (4 answers total)

Do you have any other photos or information (where did that photo come from?). I tried running the image through Tineye to see if it was used elsewhere on the net without a result.

Have you tried approaching maritime museums in Japan (or the city museum in Hakodate)? There may also be "Merchant Seaman" or "Seafarer" associations that you may be able to approach and see if they have any maritime historians interested in your question (maybe the All Japan Seamen’s Union is a place to start - hey have been around over a hundred years by the looks of it...)
posted by inflatablekiwi at 7:56 PM on November 17, 2015

What else do you already know? This is from the first search result and has some possible alternate names

The Hokusen Maru was known by most POWs as the Benjo Maru or the Haro Maru. On October 1, 1944 approximately 1,100 American POWS boarded the Hokusen Maru at PIer 7 at the Manila dock area. They suffered in the cargo holds until October 3, 1944 before the ship joined a convoy and departed Manila. The convoy was attacked by submarines on two different occasions and the Hokusen Maru was one of only four ships left in the convoy to arrive at Hong Kong on October 11, 1944. The ship remained in the harbor where it was subjected to numerous air attacks by the Allied governments. On October 21st the ship departed for Formosa and arrived at Takao, Formosa on October 21, 1944. These POWS then boarded the Melbourne Maru and arrived at Port Moji, Kyushu, Japan on January 23, 1945.

posted by mikepop at 10:15 AM on November 18, 2015

Response by poster: Do you have any other photos or information (where did that photo come from?) The photo is in a private collection. It's never been published elsewhere, to my knowledge.

The Hokusen Maru was known by most POWs as the Benjo Maru or the Haro Maru. Same name, different ship. This is much bigger than the wooden vessel in my photo.

Again, it's possible I have the incorrect name.
posted by bassomatic at 11:31 AM on November 18, 2015

Given you are writing a book is there a specific event associated with this boat that makes it the subject of interest? (I noticed that there was some major volcanic activity on the Kamchatka Peninsula that ended around the June 1957 date you gave as an example - was speculating what your book is about :-) ).

My only other suggestion is to throw it on social media (looks like there are a few active Maritime History groups and podcasts where maybe you could get it mentioned/published to see if anyone can start giving you more clues.)

Good luck! That's quite a haystack you've built for storing your needles in......
posted by inflatablekiwi at 1:33 PM on November 18, 2015