Kure, Japan, features two key museums: the Yamato Museum and the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force Museum. The latter show cases maritime history and minesweeping efforts post-WWII. The island of Ōkunoshima, once a secret poison gas production site, now hosts numerous rabbits and a museum reflecting on its controversial past.

AI was used in the research of the factual content used below with subsequent editing.

1. A Kure for Decades of War
2. A (Iron) Whale of a Good Time
3. Rabbits are a (Poison) Gas
4. Pre-Bunny Times

Kure is home to two museums of interest to historians: the Yamato and Submarine museums. Unfortunately, the Kure Maritime Museum (aka Yamato Museum) was closed for renovations. Just as well, as I only had a single day in Kure and the Submarine requires at least a half day.

A Kure for Decades of War

It is the fall of 1945, and Japan is defeated and occupied. Recovery includes clearing the consequences of war, removing 10,000 to 25,000 water-based mines that blockaded the island. Japan’s post‑WWII effort to clear sea mines was a massive, decades‑long undertaking.

Minesweeping became a core identity and capability of the JMSDF, shaping its early development. This, as well as the need for Cold-War vigilance, are the major themes of the Japan Maritime Self‑Defense Force Kure Museum (also known by its nickname “Tetsu no Kujira Kan” (てつのくじら館, Iron Whale Museum).

Free, and one of Kure’s most distinctive attractions, the museum offers visitors an up‑close encounter with Japan’s modern submarine and minesweeping history. Its signature feature is the full‑size submarine.

A (Iron) Whale of a Good Time

Submarine Akishio is a 76‑meter Yūshio‑class submarine decommissioned in 2004. Visitors can explore its control room, living quarters, periscope, and other cramped interior spaces, gaining a vivid sense of life underwater.

As photos are not allowed in the submarine, images are from the indicated sources.

Rabbits are a (Poison) Gas

Ōkunoshima, also known as Rabbit Island, has two histories. The island is located about 50 KM due West of Kure and requires a ferry ride to get to it. Once there, you will be immediately greeted by cute domestic rabbits. If you stop for more than 2 seconds, they will come looking for a free meal. Both adorable and something from a horror movie. For example, when I reached down to tie my shoe, the inquisitive noses and soft fur gently tickled my hands.

The rabbits came from an original population of eight released in 1971 by school children. With no predators, the population exploded. Fast forward a few decades, and the rabbits are everywhere, even at the top of the central hill on the island.

Pre-Bunny Times

The island was not always so cute. For decades, the island was home to a secret military site. Beginning in the 1920s, the location was used as a poison‑gas production site. Mustard and tear gas were manufactured in strict secrecy. The island was even removed from some maps, and workers were not told what they were producing. After World War II, the facilities were abandoned, documents were burned, and the Allied forces disposed of remaining chemical agents.

The Ōkunoshima Poison Gas Museum was established in 1988. Mustard, lewisite, tear gas, and other chemical agents were produced from 1929 to 1945. The museum’s exhibits explain the harsh and dangerous working conditions faced by laborers, the severe health effects caused by exposure, and the broader human impact of chemical warfare.

According to the displays, the workers were the only victims of the island’s output. This is due to crude production facilities, secrecy, and protective gear prone to failure and leakage.

As photos are not permitted in the museum, some images are from the indicated source.