America Maru

America Maru (亜米利加丸, Amerika-Maru) was the second of three high speed passenger liners built for the Oriential Steamship Company (Tōyō Kisen).

[3] On her maiden voyage, America Maru called at Hong Kong – Xiamen-Shanghai – Nagasaki – Yokohama – Kobe and on to Honolulu and San Francisco.

Upon docking in Honolulu in October 1899, America Maru was suspected of bringing rats with the bubonic plague to Hawaii and was placed in quarantine by American authorities.

In June 1901, after Kuomintang leader Sun Yat-sen's revolt against the Qing dynasty failed, he fled to Japan aboard America Maru, which was in Tianjin conveying supplies to Japanese forces involved in the suppression of the Boxer Rebellion.

Shinano Maru's early contact with the Russian fleet was a major contributing factor in the decisive Japanese victory at the Battle of Tsushima.

On September 20, 1911, Toyo Kisen sold America Maru for 367,000 Yen to Osaka Shōsen K.K., which operated the vessel between Kobe, Japan and Keelung, Taiwan.

On May 14, 1944, while attempting to evacuate Japanese civilians, mostly women and children, from Saipan to Yokosuka, Kanagawa, she was hit by two torpedoes fired by the United States Navy submarine USS Nautilus 320 kilometres (200 mi) south-southwest of Iwo Jima (22°19′N 143°54′E / 22.317°N 143.900°E / 22.317; 143.900).