I’ve compiled a list of some of the TBR-related Hellships and who they transported where and when. The first 5 columns came from a Dutch website; the latter 2 are mine.
ship name arr date arr port onboard (deaths) origin> work party
destination
| Kyokusei Maru | 5/20/1942 | Victoria Point | 1200 | Sum>Burma | A Force | |
| Celebes Maru 1 | 5/24/1942 | Mergui | 1000 | Singa> Burma | A Force | |
| England Maru 1 | 5/24/1942 | Mergui | 500 | Sum>Burma | Br Sum Bn | |
| Toyohashi Maru | 5/24/1942 | Mergui | 2000 | Singa> Burma | A Force | |
| Maru Ni | 6/9/1942 | Singapore | 500 | Java>Singa | 500 Dutch | |
| Ume Maru | 7/17/1942 | Sandakan | 1494 | Singa> Burma | B Force | |
| Tufuku Maru | 8/11/1942 | Singapore | 500 | 29 | Java>Singa | unk |
| Tatu Maru | 8/17/1942 | Tavoy | 300 | within Burma | Br Sum Bn moved | |
| NN Maru 1 | 9/18/1942 | Singapore | 725 | Java>Singa | Java 1 Br & AUS | |
| NN Maru 2 | 9/26/1942 | Singapore | 1300 | Java>Singa | Java 2 Br | |
| Nissyo Maru 1 | 10/8/1942 | Singapore | 1200 | Java>Singa | Glodoc party B -A-D | |
| Oyo Maru 1 | 10/8/1942 | Singapore | 400 | Java>Singa | Java 3 Fitz | |
| Kenkon Maru | 10/12/1942 | Singapore | 1499 | 1 | Java>Singa | Java 4 AUS |
| Dainichi Maru 3 | 10/14/1942 | Singapore | 1000 | Java>Singa | Java 5 | |
| Singapore Maru 1 | 10/17/1942 | Singapore | 1500 | Java>Singa | Java 5A Tharp | |
| Tofuku Maru 1 | 10/19/1942 | Singapore | 2000 | Java>Singa | Java 5B AUS (Glodoc) | |
| Maebashi Maru 1 | 10/22/1942 | Rangoon | 1800 | Singa>Burma | Fitz Party; 213 Dutch dcd | |
| Shinyu Maru | 10/25/1942 | sunk | 500 | 100 | Singa>Burma | AUS -Dutch POWs |
| Yoshida Maru | 10/25/1942 | Singapore | 2700 | Java>Singa | Glodoc party B -D-Jv | |
| Kunitama Maru 1 | 10/26/1942 | Singapore | 4400 | Java>Singa | Java 5C-F | |
| Oyo Maru 2 | 11/1/1942 | Singapore | 1000 | Java>Singa | Zeigler Party | |
| Moji Maru 1 | 11/3/1942 | Singapore | 1000 | Java>Singa | unk | |
| Tacoma Maru 1 | 11/7/1942 | Rangoon | 1700 | 12 | Java>Singa | 3 Fitz late (Sizemore) |
| Dainichi Maru 4 | 11/24/1942 | Moji | 2000 | Singa>Jp | Br & Dutch | |
| Singapore Maru 2 | 11/25/1942 | Moji | 1100 | 60 | Singa>Jp | Scott Party |
| Kunitama Maru 2 | 11/27/1942 | Moji | Singa>Jp | unk | ||
| Tofuku Maru 2 | 11/27/1942 | Moji | 1200 | 27 | Singa>Jp | Zeigler to Jp |
| NN Maru 3 | 12/27/1942 | Rangoon | 1000 | Singa> Burma | Java 5B 1000 Dutch | |
| Pacific Maru | 12/30/1942 | Singapore | 350 | Java>Singa | Senior Officers | |
| NN Maru 18 | 1/3/1943 | Rangoon | 401 | Singa> Burma | Java 5B 400 Dutch | |
| Usu Maru | 1/7/1943 | Singapore | 1978 | Java>Singa | Java 6 Dunlop | |
| Harugiku Maru 1 | 1/8/1943 | Singapore | 992 | Java>Singa | Java 7 Dutch | |
| Nichimei Maru | 1/15/1943 | sunk | 1000 | 32 | Singa> Burma | Dutch/ Japanese [see below] |
| Moji Maru 2 | 1/17/1943 | Moulmein | 835 | Singa> Burma | Tharp [see below] | |
| Wien | 1/17/1943 | Singapore | 1699 | Java>Singa | Java 8 Dutch | |
| Harugiku Maru 2 | 1/18/1943 | Singapore | 3188 | Java>Singa | Java 9 Dutch | |
| Tacoma Maru 2 | 1/28/1943 | Singapore | 2000 | Java>Singa | Java 10 Dutch | |
| NN Maru 4 | 2/2/1943 | Singapore | 480 | Java>Singa | Java 11 Dutch | |
| Maebashi Maru 2 | 2/9/1943 | Singapore | 1900 | Java>Singa | Java 12 Dutch | |
| Roko Maru | 2/12/1943 | Singapore | 1000 | Java>Singa | Java 13 Br & Dutch | |
| NN Maru 5 | 2/13/1943 | Padang | 650 | Java>Sumatra | Java 14 Dutch > TBR | |
| Kinta Maru 1 | 3/2/1943 | Singapore | 7 | Java>Singa | Java 15 (3 US =Matthews) | |
| Kamakura Maru 2 | 3/4/1943 | Moji | 10 | Singa>Jp | E Battery to Japan | |
| Hawaii Maru 1 | 4/24/1943 | Moji | 1000 | Singa>Jp | Dutch Jv 12 grp | |
| Amagi Maru | 5/5/1943 | Haroekoe | 1030 | Java>Jp | 1000 Br | |
| Cho Saki Maru | 5/5/1943 | Haroekoe | 1030 | Java>Jp | 1000 Br = RAF | |
| Kyokko Maru | 5/21/1943 | Moji | 1500 | 2 | Singa>Jp | G Force = from Jv 7 |
| Wales Maru | 6/7/1943 | Moji | 950 | Singa>Jp | J Force Sawokla to Jp | |
| Matsue Maru 1 | 7/5/1943 | Singapore | Java>Singa | 3 US to Jp/Manchuria | ||
| Harugiku Maru 3 | 9/14/1943 | Singapore | 519 | Java>Singa | Java 16 Br & Dutch | |
| Makassar Maru | 9/30/1943 | Singapore | 2600 | Java>Singa | Java 17 Br & Dutch | |
| Seishin Maru | 10/12/1943 | Moji | 1500 | Singa>Jp | from Java 16 | |
| Ussuri Maru | 10/12/1943 | Moji | 500 | Singa>Jp | from Java 16 | |
| Matsue Maru 2 | 11/15/1943 | Moji | 1155 | Singa>Jp | from Java 17 | |
| Hawaii Maru 2 | 12/3/1943 | Moji | 1230 | Singa>Jp | from Java 17 Dutch | |
| Maru Shichi | 12/4/1943 | Moji | 500 | Singa>Jp | unk | |
| Chuka Maru | 5/17/1944 | Padang | 1925 | Java>Sumatra | Java 21 Dutch & Br | |
| NN Maru 17 | 5/22/1944 | Singapore | 800 | Java>Singa | Java 20 42 US | |
| Teia Maru 2 | 6/18/1944 | Moji | 1000 | Singa>Jp | TBR >> Jp B-A-D | |
| Miyo Maru | 6/19/1944 | Takao | 723 | Singa>Jp | Japan 1 convoy | |
| Hiyoki Maru | 6/24/1944 | Nagasaki | 450 | Singa>Jp | Japan 1 convoy | |
| Hozan Maru | 6/24/1944 | Nagasaki | 451 | Singa>Jp | Japan 1 convoy | |
| Kokusei Maru | 6/24/1944 | Nagasaki | 456 | Singa>Jp | Japan 1 convoy | |
| Tamahoko Maru 2 | 6/25/1944 | sunk | 772 | 560 | Java>Jp | 16 US POWs from Java lost among 212 POWs |
| Queen Elizabeth 1 | 6/26/1944 | Pakanbaroe | 207 | Singa>Sum | Sumatra Railway | |
| NN Maru 6 | 7/1/1944 | Singapore | 1260 | Java>Singa | Java 22 8 US | |
| Queen Elisabeth 2 | 7/1/1944 | Pakanbaroe | 1260 | Singa>Sum | Sumatra Railway | |
| Queen Elisabeth 3 | 7/27/1944 | Pakanbaroe | 728 | Singa>Sum | Sumatra Railway | |
| Hakushika Maru | 8/10/1944 | Moji | 609 | Singa>Jp | TBR >> Jp Br & Dutch | |
| Sekiho Maru | 8/13/1944 | Moji | 1024 | 2 | Singa>Jp | Japan 2 TBR>>Jp |
| Rakuyo Maru | 9/12/1944 | sunk | 1318 | 1023 | Singa>Jp | TBR/BG Varley >Jp [see below] |
| Kinta Maru 2 | 9/17/1944 | Singapore | 1080 | Java>Singa | Java 24 3 US | |
| Junyo Maru | 9/18/1944 | sunk | 2300 | 1626 | Java>Sum | Java 23 = US POWS |
| Hofuku Maru | 9/21/1944 | sunk | 1287 | 997 | Singa>Jp | TBR >> Jp |
| Shincho Maru | 9/28/1944 | Moji | 573 | Singa>Jp | Japan 2 TBR>>Jp | |
| NN Maru 16 | 1/11/1945 | Singapore | 958 | Java>Singa | Java 25 | |
| Awa Maru | 1/13/1945 | Moji | 525 | Singa>Jp | TBR >> Jp 32 US | |
| Kinta Maru 3 | 1/18/1945 | Singapore | 639 | Java>Singa | Java 25 B-A-D |
Thousands of POWs were lost when the ships the Japanese used to move them were attacked by Allied submarines or bombers. The small US contingent of POWs was involved in two of these incidents. The Tharp Grp was aboard the Moji Maru when it and the Nichimei Maru were bombed by US B-24s. Dozens of Dutch and a few Australian POWs were KIA or died of wounds in that incident. Fortunately, no US POWs were killed, although a few including LTC Tharp himself were wounded. [see Section 9.2]
This may be the better known incident but what happened aboard the Hellship Maebashi Maru was much worse. It had departed Singapore bound for Rangoon in mid-OCT 42 carrying about 1800 POWs. These were mostly Dutch but included the Fitzsimmons Grp of US POWs as well as some Australians. During the transit, there was a massive outbreak of dysentery among the Dutch. Upon reaching Rangoon, hundreds of them had to be hospitalized and never completed their journey to Thanbyuzayat. Other the next few months, 175 expired, primarily from dysentery. It is not well documented as to what happened to their remains. Most (126) are memorialized at the Dutch cemetery in Jakarta. Other (48) had their names inscribed on the plaque dedicated to unrecovered Dutch POWs at the Don Rak cemetery.
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Rescued from the Rakuyo Maru
USS Sealion II (SS- 315) sank the Rakuyo Maru carrying over 1300 Allied prisoners of war. It took 12 hours for Rakuyo Maru to sink, which allowed the surviving POWs some time to make rafts and search the doomed ship for food and water. The Japanese guards had left the ship immediately after the attack using most of the lifeboats. Of the 1,318 POWs on the Rakuyo Maru, 159 had been rescued by the four submarines.
On September 17th they began their search for rafts among the floating debris. They only had a few hours to search before a typhoon moved in, sealing the fate of those survivors not picked up in time. Before the storm hit. A final search following the storm revealed no further survivors. Loaded with oily, dehydrated survivors, the subs made their way to Saipan. En route, however, 7 men died and were buried at sea.
Early reports named 3 of these men but contended that the others had not been identified prior to burial. Trying to find a list of these men perfectly illustrates one of the major problems with the era records that have been archived = they are not searchable even using the most sophisticated of computer tools.
I learned long ago that one rather inefficient way to gather data is to access the vast data sets that ANCESTRY has digitized. Again these rosters, logs and lists can be accessed but not searched. By that I mean that if one id searching ANCESTRY for a particular individual their internal search engine will access these files, but once opened, they can only read but not searched. When I asked ANCESTRY for data on one of the 4 known men, it opened a 123 page document of random war-time notes and intel.
Via a series of rather disconnected searches, I was able to find other lists related to the Rakuro Maru until I had identified all seven of the rescued men who were buried at sea. These unfortunate souls, who came so close to freedom were:
| Private | 2884170 | JOHN | CAMPBELL |
| Gunner | 1115636 | CYRIL | GRICE |
| Private | 4753972 | ALFRED WILLIAM | LEE |
| Gunner | 923031 | GORDON | RAINE |
| Private | 5989149 | DOUGLAS FREDERICK | ROLPH |
| Gunner | 1686312 | HAROLD | SMITH |
| Private | 5955682 | HENRY WILLIAM | WINTER |
All seven were British veterans of the TBR. We honor their memory and sacrifice by listing them here.
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There is a wealth of information about the Hellships on this excellent site. Here is a sample:
https://www.roll-of-honour.org.uk/Hell_Ships/Rakuyo_Maru/
From the Imperial War Museum, London:
https://www.iwm.org.uk/history/the-sinking-of-prisoner-of-war-transport-ships-in-the-far-east
From the Dutch TRACESofWAR website: [This article was originally published in Dutch on the website Dodenakkers.nl.]
https://www.tracesofwar.com/articles/2872/Sinking-of-the-Junyo-Maru.htm
https://www.tracesofwar.com/sights/56828/Memorial-Japanese-Sea-Transports.htm