A Small Stone Store for Torpedo Fuel
The Former Sasebo Naval Arsenal Kawatana Long-Range Torpedo Firing Range Oil Storehouse (旧佐世保海軍工廠川棚魚雷遠距離発射場油庫) is a single-story stone fuel store built in 1918 on Katashima in Kawatana, Nagasaki Prefecture, and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property of Japan on August 15, 2024. It stands just south of the machine room, 5.5 meters long and 3.7 meters wide, with a building area of 20 square meters.
Torpedoes of the day ran by burning fuel, and this is where that fuel was kept. The Agency for Cultural Affairs counts it among the facilities the whole test-firing system could not do without. Since fuel was loaded into the torpedoes next door in the machine room, the two buildings sit side by side for good reason.
The roof was a simple gable (Kirizuma-zukuri), with the entrance in the gable end (Tsumairi) facing east and a window to the west. It was once tiled; the timber roof frame has vanished, though some of its tiles still lie around the building.
Careful Masonry
The walls of the Former Sasebo Naval Arsenal Kawatana Long-Range Torpedo Firing Range Oil Storehouse are the same Hario stone tuff used for the machine room, laid with a rough split face and fitted with real precision. The corners are locked with alternating long and short stones (Sangi-zumi), and the mortar joints remain sound.
The national record praises it as carefully made, and the detail shows why. Even the fascia under the eaves and the barge boards along the gable are carved and polished from stone as one piece, rather than finished in timber or sheet metal.
Inside, the walls are plastered with mortar, and the north and south walls carry the marks of three tiers of shelving, presumably where fuel containers once stood.
A Family Resemblance at Hario
The Hario Radio Transmitting Station in Sasebo has an oil store of its own, built in 1922. Its stone type and block size closely match the Former Sasebo Naval Arsenal Kawatana Long-Range Torpedo Firing Range Oil Storehouse, and Kawatana's preservation plan concludes that the Sasebo Naval District used a standard design for its fuel stores.
Built four years before the Hario example, this one is an early instance of that standard type. It is a small building, but it offers a clue to how the naval district's facilities were designed.
It is also easy to miss. The Former Sasebo Naval Arsenal Kawatana Long-Range Torpedo Firing Range Oil Storehouse hides in the shadow of the much larger machine room, so walk around to that building's south side to find it.
Viewing the Storehouse
The Former Sasebo Naval Arsenal Kawatana Long-Range Torpedo Firing Range Oil Storehouse stands inside Katashima Park and can be viewed free of charge. The national database uses a northwest view for its main photograph, an angle that shows the gable wall and the interlocking corner stones well.
With the roof gone, you can look through the east doorway from outside and pick out the shelf marks within. Plants have taken root in some joints, and the town clears them as part of routine upkeep. Please do not climb on or handle the stonework.
Directions to Katashima Park and general visiting information are gathered on the page for the Former Sasebo Naval Arsenal Kawatana Long-Range Torpedo Firing Range as a whole.
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Q&A
- What was the Former Sasebo Naval Arsenal Kawatana Long-Range Torpedo Firing Range Oil Storehouse used for?
- It stored fuel for the torpedoes, and is regarded as one of the facilities essential to the test-firing system.
- Where is the Former Sasebo Naval Arsenal Kawatana Long-Range Torpedo Firing Range Oil Storehouse?
- Inside Katashima Park, just south of the machine room. It is tucked behind that larger building, so walk around to its south side.
- What should I look for at the Former Sasebo Naval Arsenal Kawatana Long-Range Torpedo Firing Range Oil Storehouse?
- The finely fitted split-face tuff walls, the interlocking corner stones, the stone-carved gable trim, and the marks of three tiers of shelves inside.
- Can you see inside the Former Sasebo Naval Arsenal Kawatana Long-Range Torpedo Firing Range Oil Storehouse?
- Yes, from outside. With the roof gone, you can look in through the east doorway and see the shelf marks. Please view it from outside to protect the stonework.
- When was the Former Sasebo Naval Arsenal Kawatana Long-Range Torpedo Firing Range Oil Storehouse registered as a cultural property?
- On August 15, 2024, together with the firing platform and three other structures of the range.
Basic Information
| Name | Former Sasebo Naval Arsenal Kawatana Long-Range Torpedo Firing Range Oil Storehouse |
|---|---|
| Location | 174 Katashima, Mitsukoshi-go, Kawatana-cho, Higashisonogi-gun, Nagasaki Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2024/8/15 (Reiwa 6) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Stone, single story, building area 20 square meters |
| Owner | Kawatana Town |
| Public Access | Inside Katashima Park; exterior viewable freely, no fee |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties: Former Sasebo Naval Arsenal Kawatana Long-Range Torpedo Firing Range Oil Storehouse
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00015109
- Kawatana Town: Preservation and Use Plan for the Former Sasebo Naval Arsenal Kawatana Long-Range Torpedo Firing Range (Japanese)
- https://www.kawatana.jp/cat03/c3-03/post_732/index.html
- Kawatana Town Tourism Guide: Torpedo Launch Test Site (Japanese)
- https://www.kawatana.jp/kankou/2010/12/post-24.html
Last verified: 2026.09.25
