Mukaishima
向島町 | |
|---|---|
Town | |
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.svg) Flag .svg) Emblem | |
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| Coordinates: 34°23′10″N 133°12′03″E / 34.386088°N 133.200866°E | |
| Country | Japan |
| Prefecture | Hiroshima |
| District | Mitsugi |
| Area | |
• Total | 18.40 km2 (7.10 sq mi) |
| Population (2003) | |
• Total | 16,283 |
| • Density | 880/km2 (2,300/sq mi) |
 | This article includes a list of references, related reading, or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. (November 2007) |
Mukaishima (向島町, Mukaishima-chō) was a town in Mitsugi District, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan.
As of 2003[update], the town had an estimated population of 16,283 and a population density of 884.95 persons per km2. The total area was 18.40 km2, covering the majority of Mukaishima Island.
On March 28, 2005, Mukaishima, along with the town of Mitsugi (also from Mitsugi District), was merged into the expanded city of Onomichi.[1]
From November 1942 until September 1945, 100 British POWs who had been brought to Japan on the Dainichi Maru hell ship were imprisoned in Mukaishima and forced to work at the Hitachi Zosen shipyard. Twenty-three of these prisoners died due to a combination of disease, malnutrition and inadequate clothing for the harsh winter conditions. A further 116 American POWs were imprisoned in the same camp from September 1944 that were brought over from the Philippines on the hell ship Noto Maru.
- ^ 住民基本台帳人口移動報告年報 [Annual Report on Population Movement in the Basic Resident Register] (in Japanese). 総務庁統計局. 2005. p. 147.