Gunkanjima Island is located about 9 miles away
from the port of Nagasaki. For a long time the small island
served as a coal mine where over 5000 residents lived
until 1974.
Gunkanjima Island was once a
thriving coal mine with
over 5000 residents living on the battleship shaped
island until 1974. It is located 9 miles away from the
port
of Nagasaki and can only be reached by boat. The
formal name of the island is Hashima, but the
nickname
Gunkanjima, which means Battleship Island, is more
popularly known. It had the highest population density
in
the world before the mine was closed off. In 2015
Gunkanjima Island was designated a UNESCO World
Heritage Site along with many other places that were
important during the Meiji Industrial Revolution.
Coal was first found on Gunkanjima back in 1810 by
a
feudal lord of Saga. Industrial mining did not happen
until the late 1800s. This happened during the
beginning
stages of the Meiji Period (1868-1912) and the island
was later bought by the Mitsubishi Corporation. As
production increased so did the development on the
island. At one time there was a hospital, industrial
buildings, schools, restaurants, residential
complexes,
and many more. After Gunkanjima was abandoned it
became directly exposed to typhoons, which led to
the
deterioration of the buildings. For many years it was
closed off to the public until 2009 when a boat dock
was
built.
Please see below for tours
that include Gunkanjima Island:
