Kure 呉
—  Special city  —
呉市
Ondo Bridge in Seto Island Sea
Flag
Location of Kure in Hiroshima
Kure
Coordinates: 34°15′N 132°34′E / 34.25°N 132.567°E / 34.25; 132.567Coordinates: 34°15′N 132°34′E / 34.25°N 132.567°E / 34.25; 132.567
Country	Japan
Region	Chūgoku (Sanyō)
Prefecture	Hiroshima
Government
• Mayor	Kazutoshi Komura
Area
• Total	353.74 km2 (136.58 sq mi)
Population (October 1, 2010)
• Total	240,820
• Density	681/km2 (1,760/sq mi)
Time zone	Japan Standard Time (UTC+9)
City symbols
- Tree	Oak
- Flower	Camellia
Phone number	0823-25-3100
Address	4-1-6 Chūō, Kure-shi, Hiroshima-ken 737-8501
Website	City of Kure

Kure (呉市, Kure-shi^?) is a city in Hiroshima prefecture, Japan.

As of October 1, 2010, the city has an estimated population of 240,820 and a population density of 681 persons per km². The total area is 353.74 km².

  History

  JMSDF Submarine Flotilla in Kure

The city was founded on October 1, 1902. Up until the end of World War II, it served as a military and naval center. Headquarters of Independent Field Records was situated there in 1956.

Kure was the home base of the largest battleship ever built, the Yamato. There is still one of the bases of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) located there, its former center became the JMSDF Regional Kure District. While there is a hospital as a building of the Marine Self Defense Force, there are Escort Flotilla (Destroyers), Submarine Flotilla and the Training Squadron in the Kure District. A museum with a 1:10 scale model of the Yamato is located in the city.

• July 1, 1889 — Kure Army base founded
• October 1, 1902 — The towns of Washō and Futagawa and the villages of Miyahara and Sōyamada merge to form the city of Kure.
• November 10, 1903 — Kure Naval Arsenal established.
• April 1, 1928 — The towns of Kegoya, Yoshiura, and Aga merge into Kure.
• April 21, 1941 — The town of Nigata and the village of Hiro into Kure.
• May 5, 1945 — Bombing of Hiro Naval Arsenal.
• June 22, 1945 — Bombing of Kure Naval Arsenal.
• July 1, 1945 — Kure Air Raid.
• July 24–28, 1945 — Battle of Kure, American bombers attack the remaining fleet in Kure Naval Base.
• July 1, 1954 — Japan Maritime Self Defense Forces founded.
• October 1, 1956 — The town of Tennō and the village of Shōwa in Aki District, and the village of Gōhara in Kamo District merge into Kure.
• November 1, 2000 — Kure becomes a Special City
• April 1, 2003 — Shimokamagari in Aki District merges into Kure.
• April 1, 2004 — Kawajiri in Toyota District merges into Kure.
• March 20, 2005 — The towns of Ondo, Kurahashi, Kamagari (in Aki District) and the towns of Yasuura, Toyohama and Yutaka (in Toyota District) merge into Kure.

  Geography

Kure is located in the south-west of Hiroshima prefecture and faces the Seto Inland Sea. It has a mild climate.

Kure is close to Setonaikai National Park.

  Transportation

  Kure station

Kure is served by the Kure Line, operated by West Japan Railway Company (JR West). It leads to Hiroshima, which is a terminal station.

There has been a municipal bus since December 1, 1942. The Kure City Transportation Bureau (Kure City Bus) started using natural gas in 2002. There is a bus route run by Hiroshima Electric Railway, too. In addition, there is Bōyo Kisen, which operates the San'yō Bus and Setouchi Sankō which runs two bus enterprises.

National Route 31 spreads out from Kure to Kaita, but the distance of the road is short. National Route 185 is connected from Kure to Mihara. This road has a view of the Inland Sea. National Route 375 is a 165 km long road to be connected from Kure to Ōda, Shimane. U.S. forces can use this way for their ammunition transportation. National Route 487 spreads out from Kure to the city of Hiroshima. This road crosses the Ondo Bridge, and goes around Etajima.

Though they are independent roads, separate from National Routes, there are a series of access roads toward the archipelago of the city. The Akinada Islands series of bridges conclude at Shimokamagari island, Kamikamagari island, Toyoshima, Osakishimojima, Herashima, Nakanoshima at seven bridges. Toyoshima Bridge, concluding at Toyoshima regards traffic of a ship as Kamikamagari island, and is 50 m high from the surface of the sea.

  Economy

• IHI Marine United (IHI Corporation)
• Nisshin Steel
• Yodogawa Steel Works
• Babcock-Hitachi (Hitachi Ltd)
• Sailor Pen Company
• Disco Corporation
• Mitutoyo
• Oji Paper Company

  Tourism

  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
• Yamato Museum

  Shrines

• Kameyama Shrine

  Historical places

• Former Kre-chinjyufu
• Mitarai
• Former House of Prince Takamatsu
• House of Kimiyo Fjii

  Parks and gardens

• Rekishi-no-mieru-Oka and Park
• Nagasako Park
• Allay Karasu Kojima Park
• Ondono-seto and Park
• Setonaikai National Park
• Kure Port-pia Park
• Nikokyo Park

  Mountains

• Mount Noro
• Haiga-mine
• Mount Yasumi
• Nikyu-kyo
• Honjo Suigenchi

  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)

  Sister cities

• Daisen, Tottori, Japan
• Bremerton, Washington, USA
• Marbella, Spain
• Jinhae-gu, South Korea
• Wenzhou, China - sister port city

  People from Kure

  Musicians

• Kenji Okahira (19)
• Akira Sakata
• Hitomi Shimatani
• Michiru Jo
• Miyu Matsuki

  Authors

• Hiromu Ono
• Komimasa Tanaka
• Shinji Wada

  Sports

• Tatsuro Hirooka
• Fumio Fujimura
• Shinji Hamazaki

  References

  External links

Media related to Kure, Hiroshima at Wikimedia Commons

• Kure official website (Japanese)
• official site (English)
• Kure City Travel and Event Guide

Hiroshima Prefecture Hiroshima (capital city) Aki Asakita Asaminami Higashi Minami Naka Nishi Saeki Other cities Akitakata Etajima Fuchū Fukuyama Hatsukaichi Higashihiroshima Kure Mihara Miyoshi Onomichi Ōtake Shōbara Takehara Aki District Fuchū Kaita Kumano Saka Jinseki District Jinsekikōgen Sera District Sera Toyota District Ōsakikamijima Yamagata District Akiōta Kitahiroshima