Prince Rupert , British Columbia — Canada’s West Coast (North America)

The Kazu Maru Memorial

Pacific Mariners’ Memorial Park

— Prince Rupert, British Columbia —

The Kazu Maru Memorial Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Bill Coughlin, August 24, 2026

1. The Kazu Maru Memorial Marker

Inscription. Inside this Japanese-style shelter is the fishing boat Kazu Maru, whose strange voyage was in part the inspiration for this Mariners’ Memorial Park.

On the morning of September 26, 1985 a retired Japanese civil servant named Kazukio Sakamoto left the town of Owase, in Mie Prefecture for a day of fishing aboard his beloved boat Kazu Maru.

He never returned, nor was any trace of him found.

In March 1987, Captain Ken Harley, aboard the Sooke Post, a patrol vessel of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, spotted the floating Kazu Maru, overturned and about to be smashed against the jagged rocks near Skidegate Inlet, on the West coast of the Queen Charlotte Islands.

Canadian Coast Guard transported the battered, barnacle encrusted hulk to Prince Rupert, where an investigation revealed the strange story of its lone year-long voyage. Stranger still is the fact that 25 years before, Prince Rupert and Owase had become sister cities.

With permission of Sakamoto’s widow Eiko, the boat became part of the marine display at the North Pacific Cannery Museum until 1990, when, rebuilt by craftsmen of the fisheries department, it was moved

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to the Pacific Mariners’ Memorial Park to become a permanent shrine to all those who lost their lives on the Pacific Ocean, and to form yet another bond between the two seaport cities separated by the Pacific.

Erected 1990.

Topics. This historical marker and memorial is listed in these topic lists: Disasters • Waterways & Vessels. A significant historical month for this entry is March 1987.

Location. 54° 19.042′ N, 130° 19.305′ W. Marker is in Prince Rupert, British Columbia. It can be reached from 1st Avenue East south of Manson Way, on the right when traveling south. Marker is located in Pacific Mariners Memorial Park. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 101 1st Avenue East, Prince Rupert BC V8J 3X4, Canada. Touch for directions.

Regionally, it is in North America,

on the Ring of Fire,

in the Pacific Rim,

in the Western Hemisphere,

in the Western World,

and in the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once a British colony.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: A different marker also named Kazu Maru Memorial (here, next to this

Photographed by Bill Coughlin, September 3, 2026

2. The Kazu Maru Memorial Marker

The marker can be seen here on the left. Another similar marker is on the right.

marker); Sons of Norway (within shouting distance of this marker); Mural: Our Wealth (about 90 meters away, measured in a direct line); a different marker also named Mural: Our Wealth (about 90 meters away); Eagle on Decayed Pole (about 90 meters away); Lloyd Ernest Bud Pierce (about 90 meters away); Triple Island Lighthouse / Le Phare de L'ile Triple (about 120 meters away); Private Allan Milton Olsen (about 150 meters away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Prince Rupert.

The Kazu Maru Memorial image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Bill Coughlin, September 3, 2026

3. The Kazu Maru Memorial

Identical markers are on both sides of the memorial, as seen here.

Pacific Mariners Memorial Park image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Bill Coughlin, September 3, 2026

4. Pacific Mariners Memorial Park

The Kazu Maru Memorial is located in Pacific Mariners Memorial Park.

Credits. This page was last revised on September 10, 2026. It was originally submitted on September 10, 2026, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey. This page has been viewed 6 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on September 10, 2026, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey.