Comment: http://www.michaelmcfadyenscuba.info/viewpage.php?page_id=240
This is THE wreck of Chuuk Lagoon and perhaps THE wreck of the world. The San Francisco Maru was one of about 50 almost identical ships. She was a Taifuku Maru class cargo/passenger ship. The San Francisco Maru was built in March 1919 by Kawasaki Dockyard Co Ltd in Kobe, Japan for Kawaski Dockyard Co Ltd. Launched on 1 March 1919 and placed into service on 14 March 1919, the new ship was 5,831 tons gross, 117 metres (385.0 feet) long and 15.5 metres (51.0 feet) wide. The San Francisco Maru was powered by a single compound coal powered (two boilers) steam engine built by Kawasaki producing 440 NHP. It had a crew of 40. It is said that this ship was a predecessor to the US Liberty ships but as they were 2,000 tons larger, diesel powered and built in a different country, I find this hard to believe.