SUIRAI-BOKAN!
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(SHINSHO MARU, prewar)
IJN Destroyer Tender
Shinsho Maru: Tabular
Record of Movement
© 2009-2020 Bob Hackett and Peter Cundall.
Revision 4
9 November 1935:
Tama. Laid down at Mitsui Bussan K.K. Zosenbu Tama Kojo. as 4,836-ton passenger-cargo ship for Kuribayashi Shosen K.K., Tokyo.
9 June 1936:
Launched and named SHINSHO MARU.
27 July 1937:
Completed and registered at Tokyo. Her gross registered (GRT) tonnage and net registered tonnage (NRT) respectively are 4,836-tons and 2,870-tons. Her call sign is JIOK. [1] Placed in service on Kuribayashi Shosen’s Muroran, Osaka and Kobe route.
7 July 1937: The Marco Polo Bridge ("China") Incident:
Hun River. Lugouqiao, China. Japanese troops fire blank cartridges on night maneuvers at the bridge. Chinese troops fire back, but do not cause injuries. At morning roll call, the Japanese discover a soldier missing and assume the Chinese captured him. The Japanese demand entry to a Peking (Beijing) suburb to look for the soldier. The Chinese refuse. The Japanese then shell the city. An undeclared war on China begins.
4 August 1937:
Requisitioned by the IJN as a specially installed transport ship (charter) in the Kure Naval Distict. Navy Cdr. Osaki Yasushi is appointed Supervisor.
5 August 1937:
Takamori Riki Yoshi is appointed Commanding Officer.
29 August 1937:
Departs Sasebo.
9 October 1937:
Departs Kure.
10 October 1937:
Arrives at Saitozaki.
13 October 1937:
Departs Saitozaki.
14 October 1937:
Arrives at Chinkai (now Jinhae, South Korea).
17 October 1937:
Departs Chinkai.
19 October 1937:
Arrives at Ryojun, Manchuria (ex Port-Arthur , now Lushun, northern China).
21 October 1937:
Departs Lushun.
22 October 1937:
Arrives at Chinnampo, Chosen (now North Korea).
23 October 1937:
Departs Chinnampo.
25 October 1937:
Arrives at Sasebo.
26 October 1937:
Departs Sasebo for the central China coast area.
31 October 1937:
Arrives at Sasebo.
14 November 1937:
Departs Saishu Island, Chosen (Quelpart Island, now Jeju Island, South Korea) for the central China coast.
15 November 1937:
Between Hanzhou Bay and Woosung transfers passengers to auxiliary seaplane carrier KINUGASA MARU.
23 November 1937:
Arrives at Sasebo.
26 November 1937:
Departs Sasebo for the central China coast.
3 December 1937:
Arrives at Sasebo.
4 December 1937:
Departs Yokosuka.
5 December 1937:
Arrives at Li Chang Shan anchorage, North China.
8 December 1937:
Departs Li Chang Shan anchorage
10 December 1937:
Arrives at Nagashima Strait, near Nagoya. Lands the No. 1 Yokosuka Special Naval Landing Force (SNLF) on practice maneuvers for the planned invasion of Tsingtao (Qingdao), China.
12 December 1937:
Departs Sasebo for the central China area.
17 December 1937:
Arrives at Sasebo.
31 December 1937:
Departs Sasebo for the central China coast.
6 January 1938:
Arrives at Li Chang Shan Island Group.
8 January 1938:
Departs Li Chang Shan Island Group for the north China coast area.
10 January 1938:
The Japanese land on unfortified beaches about three miles below Tsingtao’s defenses and take Tsingtao without a struggle. A contingent of SNLF troops land at Shatzekow, 18 miles from the city, and march there on foot. Shortly afterward, KINUGASA, SHINSHO and SHINKO MARUs and four unidentified troopships enter Tsingtao’s harbor and begin disembarking additional SNLF troops. Five destroyers lay off shore.
19 January 1938:
Arrives at Sasebo.
25 January 1938:
Departs Saishu Island for the north China coast area.
7 February 1938:
Arrives at Sasebo,
16 February 1938:
Arrives at Kure.
15 March 1938:
Departs Tama.
16 March 1938:
Arrives at Kure.
17 March 1938:
Departs Kure.
18 March 1938 :
Arrives at Saitozaki.
19 March 1938:
Departs Saitozaki.
21 March 1938:
Arrives at Maizuru.
22 March 1938:
Departs Maizuru.
24 March 1938:
Arrives at Ominato.
26 March 1938:
Departs Ominato.
28 March 1938:
Arrives at Yokosuka.
2 April 1938:
Departs Kure.
3 April 1938:
Arrives at Nagasaki.
4 April 1938:
Departs Nagasaki. Later that day, arrives at Sasebo.
6 April 1938:
Departs Sasebo.
7 April 1938:
Arrives at Kure.
12 April 1938:
Departs Kure.
13 April 1938:
Arrives at Osaka.
14 April 1938:
Departs Osaka.
16 April 1938:
Arrives at Yokosuka.
18 April 1938:
Departs Yokosuka.
20 April 1938:
Arrives at Kure. Captain Sekimoto Orinosuke (38) is appointed supervisor.
22 April 1938:
Departs Kure.
24 April 1938:
Arrives at Maizuru.
25 April 1938:
Departs Maizuru.
27 April 1938:
Arrives at Sasebo.
29 April 1938:
Departs Sasebo.
30 April 1938:
Arrives at Kure.
26 September 1938:
Departs Sasebo for the south China coast.
1 October 1938:
Arrives at Mako. Departs later that day for the south China coast.
9 October 1938:
Arrives at Chang Shan anchorage.
10 October 1938:
Alongside auxiliary gunboat DELHI MARU. From 1455 till 1705 replenished her with 60t water and from 1455 till 1700 supplied her with 30t coal. Later departs Chang Shan anchorage and arrives at Nanoku Island later that day. Departs Nanoku Island later that same day.
11 October 1938:
Arrives at Takao, Formosa (now Kaoshiung, Taiwan).
15 October 1938:
Departs Mako for the south China coast.
22 October 1938:
Arrives at Sasebo.
2 November 1938:
Departs Takao for the south China coast.
7 November 1938:
Departs San Hu anchorage.
20 November 1938:
Arrives at Mako.
26 November 1938:
Arrives at Sasebo.
11 December 1938:
Departs Sasebo for the south China coast.
16 December 1938:
Arrives at Mako. Departs Mako for Takao.
19 December 1938:
Departs Takao for the south China coast.
23 December 1938:
Arrives at Dao Ling Dao, China.
28 December 1938:
Departs Dao Ling Dao
30 December 1938:
Arrives at Takao.
January 1939: Hainan Island operation:
Attached to the Fourth Base Corps Naval Corps, Fifth Defense Air Base Transport Unit.
25 January 1939:
Departs Sasebo carrying a force of Special Naval Landing Force (SNLF) troops.
4 February 1939:
Departs Wan Shan archipelago, China.
9 February 1939: Hainan Island Operation:
At midnight, a convoy under Vice Admiral (later Admiral) Kondo Nobutake’s Fifth Fleet, South China Naval Force, enters and anchors in Tsinghai Bay, northern Hainan Island.
Kondo lands SNLF troops in southern Hainan. His forces include MYOYO (F), NAGARA and NATORI and eight destroyers that cover the invasion forces’ transports KAGU, KATSURAGI, KINUGASA, KOTOKU and MANKO MARUs. Carrier AKAGI and seaplane tender CHIYODA provide air cover.
10 February 1939:
At 1200, SNLF troops land at Haihow. IJA and IJN forces mop up the northern part of the island.
11 February 1939:
Kondo’s forces land at Samah, (also known as Sana or Sanya), southern Hainan and occupy Yulin and Yai-Hsien (Yacheng). Thereafter, the IJN and IJA take control of the entire island.
12 February 1939:
Depart Haikou Bay, Hainan, China for Gulf of Fukao, Hainan, China.
13 February 1939:
SHINSHO MARU arrives at Fukao Bay, Samah, Hainan Island.
14 February 1939:
Departs Samah landing zone.
4 March 1939:
Arrives back at Sasebo.
10 March 1939:
Removed from the Naval list under instruction No. 170 and returned to her owners.
13 March 1939:
Captain Sekimoto Orinosuke (38) assumes command of auxiliary transport MANKO MARU as an additional duty.
26 March 1939:
Arrives at Humen, Pearl River estuary, southern China, near Canton.
27 March 1939:
Departs Humen.
20 April 1939:
Navy (Resv) LtCdr. Takamori Riki is appointed Commanding Officer.
12 November 1941:
Requisitioned by the IJN.
1 December 1941:
Registered as a auxiliary destroyer tender in the Yokosuka Naval District under instruction No. 1570. Captain (later Rear Admiral) Yokoyama Tokujiro (36) assumes temporary command. Assigned to Vice Admiral Takasu Shiro’s 1st Fleet’s CarDiv 3.
4 December 1941:
Uraga, at Uragasenkyo K.K. an outfitting office is established.
10 December 1941:
Attached to the Combined Fleet First Fleet.
18 December 1941:
Outfitting office is removed. Departs Uraga and arrives at Yokosuka later that day escorted by auxiliarty netlayer KOKAI MARU.
20 December 1941:
Inland supply and mothership activity starts.
13 January 1942:
Inland supply and mothership activity ends.
7 February 1942:
Departs Takao for Saigon, French Indochina (now Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam) then to the Penang(renamed Tojo-To by Japanese), Malaya (now Malaysia) and Sabang, Sumatra, Netherlands East Indies (now Indonesia) areas.
4 March 1942:
Arrives at Palembang.
5 March 1942:
Attached to Southern Army Air Force Transport Units.
7 March 1942:
Departs Palembang, Sumatra.
8 March 1942:
Arrives at Singapore.
10 March 1942:
Departs Singapore.
11 March 1942:
Arrives at Pemangkat, Borneo, Netherlands East Indies. (now Kalimantan, Indonesia).
14 March 1942:
Departs Pemangkat.
17 March 1942:
Arrives at Saigon.
22 March 1942:
Departs Saigon.
1 April 1942:
Rated as a Southern Army Air Force Transport Unit. Arrives at Kisarazu.
2 April 1942:
Transfers from Kisarazu to Yokosuka.
10 April 1942:
Rated as an Air Force Base Transport Unit.
11 April 1942:
Departs Yokosuka.
14 April 1942:
Arrives at Furue.
19 April 1942:
Departs Furue and later that day arrives at Kagoshima.
22 April 1942:
Departs Kagoshima and later that day arrives at Furue.
23 April 1942:
Departs Furue.
26 April 1942:
Arrives at Takao.
28 April 1942: Operation “MI”:
Departs Takao in support of Midway operation.
10 May 1942:
Arrives at Sabang, Sumatra.
11 May 1942:
Departs Sabang.
13 May 1942:
Arrives at Port Blair, Andamans.
14 May 1942:
Departs Port Blair.
15 May 1942:
Arrives at Penang.
16 May 1942:
Departs Penang.
20 May 1942:
Rated as an Air Force Base Transport Unit.
24 May 1942:
Arrives at Takao.
25 May 1942:
Departs Takao.
31 May 1942:
Arrives at Yokosuka.
15 June 1942:
Departs Yokosuka for Kwajalein via Emidj Island (E part of Jaluit Atoll), Marshall Islands on a transport mission carrying mail, aircraft weapons and fuel.
30 June 1942:
Arrives at Roi.
2 July 1942:
Arrives at Emidj.
8 July 1942:
Departs Jaluit.
9 July 1942:
11 miles SW of Kiiyo (Gea Pass), Kwajalein Atoll, Marshalls. At 0630 (JST), LtCdr W. J. Millican’s USS THRESHER (SS-200) torpedoes SHINSHO MARU. Hit by two torpedoes, she sinks at about 0800 at 08-43N, 167-33E.
USS THRESHER is damaged by bombs and depth charges and is hooked by a grapnel trailed by the Japanese. Millican applies full right rudder and makes a 10-minute high speed run that shakes the giant hook free. As a depth charge explodes near the conning tower, USS THRESHER goes deeper as about 30 depth charges explode in her wake. Shaken, but not seriously damaged, she remains on patrol.
31 July 1942:
Removed from the Navy List
Author's Note:
[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 for assistance goes tBerend van der Wal, Netherlands, and Gilbert Casse of France. Thanks also to Gengoro Toda of Japan.
- Bob Hackett and Peter Cundall.
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