Shirahama Maru
Comment: The newly added sources (the company's website and a brief event announcement) do not contribute towards notability. Helpful Raccoon (talk) 06:45, 27 October 2026 (UTC)
- Comment: No independent coverage of this ship, only the operator's site, a travel guide and the builder's history. The Career section is unsourced and the dates don't match. El Banhara (talk) 20:42, 26 October 2026 (UTC)
| Shirahama Maru |
The Shirahama Maru is a Japanese roll-on/roll-off passenger car ferry operated by Tokyo-Wan Ferry Co., Ltd[1]. The vessel connects Kurihama Port in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, to Kanaya Port in Futtsu, Chiba Prefecture.[2]
Construction
The vessel was constructed in Japan by Sumitomo Heavy Industries at its Uraga Shipyard under yard number 1164. Construction commenced with her keel being laid down in June 1989, and she was launched and completed later that same year in December 1989.[3]
Career
Since the ship entered service in December 1989, She has reliably sustained the vital maritime corridor between the Miura and Boso peninsulas alongside her sister ship, the Kanaya Maru.[4]
Designed with a maximum passenger capacity of 680 people, her garage decks can simultaneously accommodate up to 110 standard passenger cars, or a mixed commercial load of 36 trucks and 16 buses. Over her decades of service, the Shirahama Maru has remained a highly popular option for leisure travelers targeting the Mount Nokogiri Ropeway. In recent years, she has frequently operated under a distinct "Black Ship" (Kurofune) commemorative livery[5], referencing the arrival of Commodore Perry's fleet in nearby Kurihama.[6] Journalistic coverage highlighted the physical and historical parallels engineered into the ship's redesign: the modern Shirahama Maru closely matches the physical proportions and capabilities of Perry's historical mid-19th-century steam-frigate flagship, the USS Susquehanna, which measured 78.3 meters and cruised at 10 knots
Following the visual transformation, portions of the main passenger cabins were permanently configured into an interactive floating museum featuring period tapestries, instructional panels, and historical artwork tracking the Perry Expedition and the subsequent opening of Japan.[7]
In addition to standard cross-bay commuter runs, the ship is regularly chartered for dedicated heritage events, regional historical re-enactment cruises, and special open-water seasonal tours across Tokyo Bay.[8]
See also
- Tokyo Wan Ferry
- Perry Expedition
- USS Susquehanna (1850)
- Mount Nokogiri (Chiba)
References
- ↑ "東京湾フェリー／TOKYO WAN FERRY". www.tokyowanferry.com. Retrieved 2026-10-26.
- ↑ "Tokyo Wan Ferry | GOOD LUCK TRIP". www.gltjp.com. 2026-07-01. Retrieved 2026-10-26.
- ↑ "住友重機械工業(株)横須賀造船所『浦賀・追浜百年の航跡 : 1897-1997』(1997.06) | 渋沢社史データベース". shashi.shibusawa.or.jp. Retrieved 2026-10-26.
- ↑ "Two ships connecting 11.5 km - Tokyo Wan Ferry". Tokyo-Wan Ferry. Retrieved 2026-10-28.
- ↑ 東京湾フェリー、9月6日に久里浜発着「黒船でいく！横浜港特別クルーズ」を運航. Funeco (Funeko Maritime News) (in 日本語). 2026-07-03. Retrieved 2026-10-28.
- ↑ Hashimoto, Atsushi (November 4, 2023). "黒船来航から170年「しらはま丸」も「黒船フェリー」に (170 Years Since Black Ship Arrival: Shirahama Maru Becomes a 'Black Ship Ferry')". Nikkan Sports. Retrieved October 29, 2026.
- ↑ Hashimoto, Atsushi (November 4, 2023). "黒船来航から170年「しらはま丸」も「黒船フェリー」に". Nikkan Sports.
- ↑ "東京湾フェリー、9月6日に久里浜発着「黒船でいく！横浜港特別クルーズ」を運航". Funeco Maritime News. July 3, 2026.
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