RIKUGUN YUSOSEN

(TOBA MARU, prewar)

IJA Transport TOBA MARU:
Tabular Record of Movement

© 2016 Bob Hackett

17 November 1915:
Laid down at Kawasaki Shipbuilding, Kobe as Yard Number 382, a 7,296-ton cargo steamship for Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK Line), Tokyo.

1 July 1916:
Launched and named TOBA MARU.

10 August 1916:
Completed.

11 July 1938:
Requisitioned by the Imperial Army (IJA). Alloted IJA No.486.

8 January 1939
Released by the IJA back to her owners.

15 July 1941:
Re-requisitioned by the Imperial Army (IJA).

18 December 1941:
TOBA MARU departs Bei Ji Shan Archipelago in a convoy also consisting IJA transports TOTTORI MARU escorted by auxiliary gunboats TOMITSU MARU and SHINKO MARU No. 1 GO.

26 March 1942:
TOBA MARU departs Mutsure, then Moji, in the second section of a nine ship Army convoy bound for Takao, Formosa and then Lingayen Gulf, Philippines also consisting of BOSTON, CEYLON, GENZAN, TENSHO, TOSHO, TOYO and YASUSHIMA MARUs escorted by destroyer WAKATAKE and subchaser CH-13.

25 April 1942:
Near the mouth of Lingayen Gulf. At 1310, LtCdr (later Rear Admiral) James C. Dempsey's ( USNA '31) USS SPEARFISH (SS-190) torpedoes TOBA MARU and sets her afire at 17-07N, 120-12E. Two crewmen are KIA. TOBA MARU takes on water and begins sinking.

26 April 1942:
Luzon, Philippines. 10 km W of Cape Candon, TOBA MARU's captain beaches her to prevent sinking.

27April 1942:
Refloated and towed towards Kirun (Keelung) harbor, Formosa (Taiwan).

1 June 1942:
Arrives at Kirun. Remains there for the duration.

16 June 1945:
Kirun. American planes bomb and wreck TOBA MARU in the anchorage, but she remains afloat.

11 July 1945:
Released by the IJA back to her owners.

Post war, TOBA MARU is confiscated by the Republic of China (ROC).

September 1946:
Kirun. Repair work is completed. TOBA MARU is sold to unknown Taiwanese firm and renamed TAI NAN. Later moves to Eki Sachi Funegyo Ltd., and renamed FOO YUU.

1958:
Arrives in Kaohsiung, Taiwan for scrapping.

Author’s Note:
Thanks go to Erich Muehlthaler of Germany.

Bob Hackett

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