KYURYOSEN!
(YATSUSHIRO MARU, sistership of KITAMI MARU, prewar)
IJN KITAMI MARU:
Tabular Record of Movement
© 2018 Gilbert Casse, Berend van der Wal and Peter Cundall
9 September 1930:
Hikoshima. Laid down by Mitsubishi Zosen K.K. shipyard as a 361-tons trawler for Kyodo Gyogyo K.K.
8 November 1930:
Launched and named KITAMI MARU.
15 December 1930:
Completed with Gross Registered Tonnage (GRT) and Net Registered Tonnage (NRT) respectively of 361-tons and 151-tons. Registered at Tobata. [1]
26 December 1930:
Kyodo Gyogyo K.K receives a steamer trawl fishing permit (No. 1-9) available for 10 years. Operation areas include: (A) Tokai and Yellow Sea, (B) Bering Sea E of 160E, within the line from Cape Olutluski to Cape Nawalin excluding sea level within 60 depths of water, (C) South China Sea.
Harvesting ports are: Tobata, Shimonoseki, Nagasaki, Osaka, Aomori and Hakodate.
Operations in Tokai and Yellow Sea are forbidden: 1 June ~ 31 August.
4 June ~ August 1931:
Operations in Tokai and Yellow Sea are forbidden.
11 March 1932:
Kyodo Gyogyo K.K. steamer trawl fishing permit is renewed. Harvesting ports are changed to: Tobata, Shimonoseki, Nagasaki, Osaka, Aomori, Hakodate and Hong Kong.
1933:
Her NRT is changed to 153-tons. [1]
14 May 1934:
Kyodo Gyogyo K.K. steamer trawl fishing permit is renewed. Operation areas include: North Pacific including the Bering Sea E of 160E, within the line from Cape Olutluski to Cape Nawalin excluding the inside of the line extending from Chronoski Cape to Africa Cape.
Harvesting ports are: Osaka, Tokyo and Hakodate.
22 May ~ 26 September 1934:
Chartered by Nihon Godo Kosen K.K.
26 September 1934:
Steamer trawl fishing permit is discontinued. The Company receives a new steamer trawl fishing permit (No. 1-9) available for 10 years. Operation areas include: (A) Tokai and Yellow Sea, (B) Bering Sea E of 160E, within the line from Cape Olutluski to Cape Nawalin excluding sea level within 60 depths of water, (C) South China Sea.
Harvesting ports are: Tobata, Shimonoseki, Nagasaki, Osaka, Aomori, Hakodate and Hong Kong.
Operations in Tokai and Yellow Sea are forbidden: 1 June ~ 31 August.
1936:
Her GRT and NRT are respectively changed to 397-tons and 198-tons. [1]
29 July 1936:
New steamer trawl fishing permit (No. 1-9) is issued for 10 years.
Operation areas include: (A) Tokai and Yellow Sea, (B) South China Sea.
Harvesting ports are: Tobata, Shimonoseki, Nagasaki, Osaka and Hong Kong.
Operations in Tokai and Yellow Sea are forbidden: 1 May ~ 31 August.
7 May 1937:
Ownership is changed to Nippon Suisan K.K.
4 June 1937:
Steamer trawl fishing permit is transferred to Nippon Suisan K.K.
5 April 1938:
Steamer trawl fishing permit is renewed.
Harvesting ports are: Tobata, Shimonoseki, Nagasaki, Osaka, Shanghai and Hong Kong.
10 April 1938:
Requisitioned by the IJN.
22 September 1938:
1740 ~ 1840: comes alongside to starboard of auxiliary gunboat DELHI MARU and replenishes her with fresh food.
28 September 1938:
Derequisitioned.
19 October 1938:
Requisitioned again by the IJN.
1 January 1939:
Derequisitioned again.
15 June 1939:
Registered as a general chartered ship (storeship) attached to the Yokosuka Naval District.
17 July 1939:
0850 ~ 0930: comes alongside to starboard of auxiliary gunboat DELHI MARU and provisions her with fresh food.
28 August 1939:
0910 ~ 1110: comes alongside to starboard of auxiliary gunboat DELHI MARU and provisions her with fresh food.
29 May 1940:
Purchased by the Yokosuka Naval District.
8 July 1940:
Begins replenishment.
21 July 1941:
At Jabor, Jaluit Atoll, Marshalls, first provisions auxiliary gunboat NAGATA MARU with 2,2t fresh food and thereafter provisions auxiliary gunboat ASAMA MARU with fresh food.
12 January 1942:
At 0700, departs Hong Kong with AFRICA, MIIKE, RYOYO and TEIYO MARUs and destroyers ARASHIO, MICHISHIO, OSHIO and ASASHIO as escort.
18 January 1942:
At 0115, arrives at Davao.
28 January 1942:
Graduated as an auxiliary storeship attached to Supply Corps under Yokosuka Naval District secret instruction No. 45.
7 February 1942:
Departs Yokosuka.
12 February 1942:
Arrives at Minami Shima (Marcus Island) and departs later this day.
17 February 1942:
Arrives at Otori Jima (Wake).
18 February 1942:
Departs Otori Jima.
22 February 1942:
Arrives at Eniwetok (Brown Island), Marshalls.
23 February 1942:
Departs Eniwetok.
25 February 1942:
Arrives at Kwajalein, Kwajalein Atoll, Marshalls. Departs there and arrives later that day at Roi, Kwajalein Atoll, Marshalls.
28 February 1942:
Departs Roi and returns back there later in the day. Departs again and calls at Kwajalein. Departs there later that same day.
1 March 1942:
Arrives at Wotje, Marshalls.
4 March 1942:
Departs Wotje.
5 March 1942:
Arrives at Taroa, Marshalls.
6 March 1942:
Departs Taroa.
7 March 1942:
Arrives at Majuro, Majuro Atoll, Marshalls.
8 March 1942:
Departs Majuro.
9 March 1942:
Arrives at Jaluit (Yaluit), Yaluit Atoll, Marshalls.
10 March 1942:
Departs Jaluit.
19 March 1942:
Arrives at Yokosuka.
25 March 1942:
Departs Yokosuka with IJA auxiliary transport ASAHISAN MARU and possibly others with unknown escort.
2 April 1942:
Arrives at Truk, Central Carolines.
6 April 1942:
Departs Truk.
10 April 1942:
Confirmed as an auxiliary storeship attached to Supply Corps under Yokosuka Naval District secret instruction No. 74.
11 April 1942:
Arrives at Rabaul, New Britain.
16 April 1942:
Departs Rabaul for Ponape, Carolines via Kavieng, New Ireland.
17 April 1942:
50 nautical miles SE of Kavieng. About midnight, LtCdr. John W. Murphy Jr’s (USNA ’26) USS TAMBOR (SS-198), running on the surface makes a visual contact. He fires two Mk. XIV Type 1 torpedoes and scores one hit on the auxiliary storeship. KITAMI MARU sinks rapidly by the stern with all hands (26 crewmen are KIA) at 03-00S, 152-00E.
Authors' Notes:
[1] NRT is a ship's cargo volume capacity expressed in "register tons", one of which equals to a volume of 100 cubic feet (2.83 m3). It is calculated by subtracting non-revenue-earning spaces i.e. spaces not available for carrying cargo, for example engine rooms, fuel tanks and crew quarters, from the ship's gross register tonnage (GRT). Net register tonnage (NRT) is not a measure of the weight of the ship or its cargo, and should not be confused with terms such as deadweight tonnage or displacement.
Thanks go to Gengoro S. Toda of Japan.
- Berend van der Wal, Gilbert Casse and Peter Cundall.
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