The MV HIKAWA MARU is shown at her Yokohama berth on 18 December, 1995. Photo by and copyright Peter Knego.
MV HIKAWA MARU
Built in 1930 for Japanese NYK Line's Kobe to Seattle service, the 11,622 gross ton 536 by 66 foot MV HIKAWA MARU carried 331 passengers in three classes until she was taken over by the Imperial Japanese Navy for duty as a hospital ship. She was powered by B&W diesels capable of 11,000 bhp that drove twin screws at a service speed of 17 knots. The only large Japanese passenger ship to survive World War Two, she was seized by the US government for use as a transport between 1945 and 1947. Between 1947 and 1953, she was used as a freighter on Japan to U.S. East Coast service, resuming her transpacific passenger duties between 1953 and 1960. With her engine spaces and lower accommodation largely gutted, she became a floating museum and hostel at Yokohama in 1961. Although the dormitory facilities were closed in 1973, she has remained at her berth until this day, serving as a popular attraction in the bustling Japanese port city. Vintage Passenger Ship Roundup index