Nambô Pier

“Once a bustling business center”

N15 ̊12’15.625” E145 ̊42’59.097

Located just to the north of the main Garapan Dock are the remnants of the pier of the South Seas Trading Company (Nanyô Boeki Kaisha or more popularly Nambô). Nambô was a combination of two early Japanese companies—the Hiki Company and Murayama Trading Company—that merged during the German period. Nambô, which was present throughout Japanese Micronesia, started out buying copra and sea cucumbers and later expanded into freight and passenger transportation. Nambô was one of three Japanese business organizations that dominated development and exploitation of Micronesia during the Japanese period. The remnants of its stone and concrete commercial pier in Garapan is one of the few reminders of Japan’s commercial presence in the islands during the pre-war years.