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Kure, Hiroshima

Coordinates: 34°14′57″N 132°33′57″E / 34.24917°N 132.56583°E / 34.24917; 132.56583
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"Kure" redirects here. For the Hawaiian atoll, see Kure Atoll.
Kure
呉市
Core city
JMSDF Kure District HQ JMSDF Kure Museum Yamato Museum JMU Kure shipyard Irifuneyama Museum Ondō Bridge & Ondo-no-seto
JMSDF Kure District HQ
JMSDF Kure MuseumYamato Museum
JMU Kure shipyardIrifuneyama Museum
Ondō Bridge & Ondo-no-seto
Flag of Kure
Flag
Official seal of Kure
Seal
Map
Location of Kure in Hiroshima Prefecture
Kure is located in Japan
Kure
Kure
Location in Japan
Coordinates: 34°14′57″N 132°33′57″E / 34.24917°N 132.56583°E / 34.24917; 132.56583
CountryJapan
RegionChūgoku (Sanyō)
PrefectureHiroshima
Government
 • MayorYoshiake Shinhara (from November, 2017)
Area
 • Total352.80 km2 (136.22 sq mi)
Population
 (April 30, 2023)
 • Total208,024
 • Density590/km2 (1,500/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+09:00 (JST)
City hall address4-1-6 Chūō, Kure-shi, Hiroshima-ken 737-8501
ClimateCfa
WebsiteOfficial website
Symbols
FlowerCamellia
TreeOak

Kure (呉市, Kure-shi) is a city in Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. As of 30 April 2023, the city had an estimated population of 208,024 in 106,616 households and a population density of 590 persons per km².[1] The total area of the city is 352.80 square kilometres (136.22 sq mi). With a strong industrial and naval heritage, Kure hosts the second-oldest naval dockyard in Japan and remains an important base for the Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force.

Geography

Kure City Hall
Port of Kure seen from Yasumi-yama
JMU Kure shipyard in July 2015
JMSDF submarine flotilla in Kure
Exterior view of the Yamato Museum and adjacent JMSDF Kure Museum

Kure is located 20 kilometres (10 mi) south-east of Hiroshima city and faces the Seto Inland Sea. Surrounded by steep hillsides to the north, the two major commercial and industrial centers of the city are bisected by Mount Yasumi 497 m (1,631 ft). The city is next to the Setonaikai National Park. As well as densely populated urban and industrial centers, the city also incorporates sparsely inhabited outlying islands such as Kurahashi-jima, Shimo-kamagari, Kami-kamagari and Toyoshima.

Adjoining municipalities

Hiroshima Prefecture

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Kure has been declining for the past 40 years.

Historical population
YearPop.±%
1940 355,297—    
1950 292,769−17.6%
1960 291,887−0.3%
1970 306,222+4.9%
1980 302,766−1.1%
1990 280,429−7.4%
2000 259,224−7.6%
2010 239,553−7.6%
Kure population statistics[2]

Climate

Kure has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa) with hot summers and cool winters. Precipitation is significant throughout the year and is heaviest in summer.

Climate data for Kure (1991−2020 normals, extremes 1894−present)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 19.0
(66.2) 		21.5
(70.7) 		23.8
(74.8) 		28.1
(82.6) 		30.7
(87.3) 		33.7
(92.7) 		36.9
(98.4) 		37.8
(100.0) 		36.1
(97.0) 		31.1
(88.0) 		26.3
(79.3) 		22.7
(72.9) 		37.8
(100.0)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 9.5
(49.1) 		10.2
(50.4) 		13.6
(56.5) 		18.7
(65.7) 		23.3
(73.9) 		26.1
(79.0) 		29.9
(85.8) 		31.5
(88.7) 		28.1
(82.6) 		22.9
(73.2) 		17.3
(63.1) 		11.9
(53.4) 		20.3
(68.5)
Daily mean °C (°F) 6.1
(43.0) 		6.5
(43.7) 		9.6
(49.3) 		14.4
(57.9) 		19.0
(66.2) 		22.4
(72.3) 		26.5
(79.7) 		27.9
(82.2) 		24.5
(76.1) 		19.2
(66.6) 		13.6
(56.5) 		8.4
(47.1) 		16.5
(61.7)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 2.8
(37.0) 		3.0
(37.4) 		5.7
(42.3) 		10.4
(50.7) 		15.2
(59.4) 		19.4
(66.9) 		23.8
(74.8) 		25.0
(77.0) 		21.5
(70.7) 		15.8
(60.4) 		10.0
(50.0) 		5.0
(41.0) 		13.1
(55.6)
Record low °C (°F) −5.4
(22.3) 		−7.1
(19.2) 		−4.9
(23.2) 		−0.5
(31.1) 		4.7
(40.5) 		10.1
(50.2) 		14.8
(58.6) 		16.4
(61.5) 		9.7
(49.5) 		4.4
(39.9) 		0.0
(32.0) 		−5.5
(22.1) 		−7.1
(19.2)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 41.5
(1.63) 		59.3
(2.33) 		106.7
(4.20) 		126.0
(4.96) 		147.2
(5.80) 		217.9
(8.58) 		251.4
(9.90) 		113.2
(4.46) 		143.7
(5.66) 		97.2
(3.83) 		65.1
(2.56) 		48.3
(1.90) 		1,417.2
(55.80)
Average snowfall cm (inches) 1
(0.4) 		2
(0.8) 		trace 0
(0) 		0
(0) 		0
(0) 		0
(0) 		0
(0) 		0
(0) 		0
(0) 		0
(0) 		0
(0) 		3
(1.2)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) 4.7 6.5 8.8 9.0 8.6 10.6 9.6 6.5 8.1 6.4 5.8 5.3 89.9
Average snowy days (≥ 1 cm) 0.3 0.7 0.1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.1
Average relative humidity (%) 63 63 63 63 67 75 76 73 70 66 66 65 68
Mean monthly sunshine hours 140.7 145.7 181.7 194.8 212.3 155.9 183.9 217.9 166.8 176.0 150.5 141.6 2,067.9
Source: Japan Meteorological Agency[3][4]

History

The area of Kure is part of ancient Aki Province, and the port of Kure was an important seaport for Hiroshima Domain in the Edo period.

The Kure Naval District was first established in 1889, leading to the construction of the Kure Naval Arsenal and the rapid growth of steel production and shipbuilding in the city. Kure was formally incorporated on October 1, 1902. From 1889 until the end of World War II, the city served as the headquarters of the Kure Naval District.

Kure dockyards recorded a number of significant engineering firsts including the launching of the first major domestically built capital ship, the battlecruiser Tsukuba (1905)[5] and the launching of the largest battleship ever built, the Yamato (1940).[6]

During the Pacific War, Kure acted as the Imperial Japanese Navy's single-largest naval base and arsenal. Most of the city's industry and workforce were employed in the service of the naval installations, munitions factories and associated support functions. In the later stages of the conflict Kure came under sustained aerial bombardment culminating in the Bombing of Kure in June and July 1945.

From February 1946 until the end of Japan's postwar occupation in 1952, military establishments in Kure served at the operational headquarters for the British Commonwealth Occupation Force.

Since 2005, Kure has attracted attention as a tourism center with the Yamato Museum hosting a 1:10 scale model of the Yamato alongside a waterfront JMSDF museum of Japanese naval history.

The city continues as a major maritime center hosting both the dockyards of Japan Marine United and numerous shore-based facilities of the JMSDF including training centers and a major hospital. The city serves as the home port of an Escort Flotilla (Destroyers), a Submarine Flotilla and the Training Squadron of the JMSDF Regional Kure District.

Historic timeline

Government

Kure has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral city council of 31 members. Kure contributes five members to the Hiroshima Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of the Hiroshima 5th district of the lower house of the Diet of Japan.

List of mayors of Kure (from 1903 to present)

# Name Term start Term end Japanese name
1 Giichiro Sakuma
4 February 1903
8 June 1903
 佐久間義一郎
2-3 Kingo Arao
27 August 1903
28 August 1911
 荒尾金吾
4-5 Toshio Sawahara
28 November 1911
6 July 1917
 沢原俊雄
6 Kentaro Amano
17 August 1917
16 August 1921
 天野健太郎
7 Kahei Shundo
2 February 1922
16 June 1925
 春藤嘉平
8 Masaharu Hashimoto
24 April 1925
11 March 1927
 橋本正治
9 Toichi Katsuta
13 June 1927
25 November 1930
 勝田登一
10 Hideo Sasaki
25 November 1930
21 December 1932
 佐々木英雄
11 Atsumu Watanabe
26 December 1932
12 May 1935
 渡辺伍
12 Katsutaro Matsumoto
13 June 1935
1 September 1936
 松本勝太郎
12-13, 15 Jinjiro Mizuno 4 May 1937
14 January 1946
 13 December 1941
15 November 1946
 水野甚次郎
14 Noboru Suzuki
11 June 1942
10 January 1946
 鈴木登
17-18 Jyutsu Suzuki
5 April 1947
21 March 1954
 鈴木術
19-20 Kenichi Matsumoto
18 April 1954
31 October 1961
 松本賢一
21-24 Yoshito Okuhara
19 November 1961
18 November 1977
 奥原義人
25-28 Ari Sasaki
19 November 1977
18 November 1993
 佐々木有
29-31 Shinya Ogasawara
19 November 1993
18 November 2005
 小笠原臣也
32-34 Kazutoshi Komura
19 November 2005
18 November 2017
 小村和年
35 Yoshiake Shinhara
19 November 2017
Present
 新原芳明

Economy

Education

Colleges and Universities

Primary and secondary education

Kure has 37 public elementary schools, 25 public junior high schools and one public high school operated by the city government, and seven public high school operated by the Hiroshima Prefectural Board of Education. There are also one private middle school and three price high schools. The prefecture also operates two special education schools for the disabled.

Transportation

Kure station

Railway

JR West (JR West) - Kure Line

Highways

Sister cities

As of September 2017, Kure has sister city agreements with the following cities.[10]

Sister cities

Friendship cities

Friendship ports

Local attractions

Museums

  • Kure Municipal Museum of Art and Museum Avenue
  • Irifuneyama Memorial Museum
  • Sannose Gohonjin Art and Culture
  • Rantokaku Art Museum
  • Kurahashi-cho Nagato Museum of Shipbuilding History
  • JMSDF Kure Museum (Displaying Yūshio-class submarine Akishio), nicknamed Iron Whale Museum
  • Yamato Museum

Shrines

  • Kameyama Shrine

Historical places

Parks and gardens

Mountains

Beaches

  • Romantic Beach Karuga
  • Kajigahama Beach

Festivals

  • Kure Port Festival
  • Kure Fireworks above the Sea (late July or early August)
  • Kameyama Shrine Festival (2nd Sunday in October, and the day before)

Notable people from Kure

Musicians

Authors

Sports

Politicians

See also

References

  1. ^ "Kure city official statistics" (in Japanese). Japan.
  2. ^ Kure population statistics
  3. ^ 観測史上1～10位の値（年間を通じての値）. JMA. Retrieved March 3, 2022.
  4. ^ 気象庁 / 平年値（年・月ごとの値）. JMA. Retrieved March 3, 2022.
  5. ^ Evans, David (1997). Kaigun:Strategy, Tactics and Technology in the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1887-1941. Annapolis, MD: First Naval Institute Press. p. 159. ISBN 978-0-87021-192-8.
  6. ^ Johnson, William (2006). The Pacific Campaign in World War II: From Pearl Harbor to Guadalcanal. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge. p. 17. ISBN 978-0-415-70175-4.
  7. ^ "Locations Archived 2021-03-07 at the Wayback Machine." Japan Marine United. Retrieved on September 23, 2017.
  8. ^ "Location list – Japan." Disco Corporation. Retrieved on September 23, 2017.
  9. ^ "Domestic Network Base list – Manufacturing." Mitutoyo. Retrieved on September 23, 2017.
  10. ^ 呉市の姉妹友好都市・友好港 [Kure Sister Cities and Friendship Ports] (in Japanese). Japan: Kure City. 2017. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
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