Documenting Hiroshima of 1945: October 16–17, “Senninzuka” grave marker erected on coast of Ninoshima Island
Oct. 17, 2024
by Maho Yamamoto, Staff Writer
Between October 16 and October 17, 1945, a grave marker with the words “Senninzuka” (in English, ‘Grave for thousand people’) written in ink was erected on the coast of Ninoshima Island (in Hiroshima’s present-day Minami Ward), an outlying island in Hiroshima Bay located around 10 kilometers south of the hypocenter. Wounded people had been taken to the island one after another from Hiroshima immediately after the atomic bombing of the city. The cremation work could not keep pace with all of the dead bodies, meaning that some victims had to be buried.
Kichi, 49 at the time, the mother of Sadae Kasaoka, 92, who is a resident of Hiroshima’s Nishi Ward, was one of those that died on Ninoshima Island after the atomic bombing. Sadae said, “My brothers and I have visited the island almost every year to mourn our mother’s death.”
Ms. Kasaoka was 12 years old and a first-year student at Shintoku Girls’ High School (in Hiroshima’s present-day Minami Ward) when she experienced the atomic bombing at her home in the area of Eba-machi (in the city’s present-day Naka Ward), located around 3.5 kilometers from the hypocenter. Her parents had gone to the Zakoba-cho district (also in Naka Ward), around one kilometer from the hypocenter, to help acquaintances vacate their home, as the area had been marked for demolition.
On August 7, her father, Shinajiro, 52 at the time, was carried home on a two-wheeled cart by her older brother, Kichitaro, who died last year at the age of 98. Shinajiro’s burned body had grown weaker and weaker, and he ultimately passed away on August 8. Before he died, he told his family, “I got separated from Kichi along the way. Please look for her.”
On August 9, the next day, Kichitaro heard from someone that his mother, Kichi, was at a relief station on Ninoshima Island. When he arrived at the island, however, she had already been cremated. All he could retrieve was a small bag with bone fragments and hair from someone of uncertain identity. Ms. Kasaoka recalled that when she had visited Ninoshima Island shortly after the war, the wooden grave marker was standing there.
On Ninoshima Island was located an army quarantine station, which was converted into a temporary field hospital immediately after the A-bombing. The wounded were also laid on blankets and other materials in the stables of the facility’s equine quarantine station. By the time it closed on August 25, the facility had accommodated around 10,000 people.
(Originally published on October 17, 2024)
Between October 16 and October 17, 1945, a grave marker with the words “Senninzuka” (in English, ‘Grave for thousand people’) written in ink was erected on the coast of Ninoshima Island (in Hiroshima’s present-day Minami Ward), an outlying island in Hiroshima Bay located around 10 kilometers south of the hypocenter. Wounded people had been taken to the island one after another from Hiroshima immediately after the atomic bombing of the city. The cremation work could not keep pace with all of the dead bodies, meaning that some victims had to be buried.
Kichi, 49 at the time, the mother of Sadae Kasaoka, 92, who is a resident of Hiroshima’s Nishi Ward, was one of those that died on Ninoshima Island after the atomic bombing. Sadae said, “My brothers and I have visited the island almost every year to mourn our mother’s death.”
Ms. Kasaoka was 12 years old and a first-year student at Shintoku Girls’ High School (in Hiroshima’s present-day Minami Ward) when she experienced the atomic bombing at her home in the area of Eba-machi (in the city’s present-day Naka Ward), located around 3.5 kilometers from the hypocenter. Her parents had gone to the Zakoba-cho district (also in Naka Ward), around one kilometer from the hypocenter, to help acquaintances vacate their home, as the area had been marked for demolition.
On August 7, her father, Shinajiro, 52 at the time, was carried home on a two-wheeled cart by her older brother, Kichitaro, who died last year at the age of 98. Shinajiro’s burned body had grown weaker and weaker, and he ultimately passed away on August 8. Before he died, he told his family, “I got separated from Kichi along the way. Please look for her.”
On August 9, the next day, Kichitaro heard from someone that his mother, Kichi, was at a relief station on Ninoshima Island. When he arrived at the island, however, she had already been cremated. All he could retrieve was a small bag with bone fragments and hair from someone of uncertain identity. Ms. Kasaoka recalled that when she had visited Ninoshima Island shortly after the war, the wooden grave marker was standing there.
On Ninoshima Island was located an army quarantine station, which was converted into a temporary field hospital immediately after the A-bombing. The wounded were also laid on blankets and other materials in the stables of the facility’s equine quarantine station. By the time it closed on August 25, the facility had accommodated around 10,000 people.
(Originally published on October 17, 2024)