History Talk
July 16 @ 7:00 pm
The Remarkable Life of the Meiji Maru—Japan’s Oldest Surviving Iron Ship
日本最古の現存船、明治丸の驚くべき生涯
Thursday, July 16, 7:00 PM
Speaker: Mike Galbraith
This nautically flavored talk will be held four days before Marine Day (Umi no hi), a national holiday commemorating the Meiji emperor’s safe return from his “Tour of the North” exactly 150 years ago (20th July 1876). The young emperor made the journey from Aomori via Hakodate to Yokohama on a ship named in his honor, the Meiji Maru. Attendees will be introduced to the remarkable life of this beautiful clipper-like vessel, built in Glasgow, Scotland in 1874 as a lighthouse tender with a cabin specially designed for use by the emperor. The Meiji Maru rests today at what is now the Etchujima Campus of Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology where, quite remarkably, after WWII she was inducted into the US Navy under the name USS Gary Owen. Join us to find out more about the Meiji Maru, Japan’s oldest surviving iron ship and one of only two ships to be classified as National Important Cultural Properties.
The talk will be in English and will be followed by a Q & A session. To attend, please complete the form below.
Admission to the talk, organized by the Yokohama History Society, is free.