Saipan Shrine

Lyzelle Castillo

The photo above displays the Japanese Katori Jinja Shrine located at the Sugar King Park in Saipan. The Katori Jinja Shrine or commonly referred to as the “Saipan Shrine” is one of the most significant historical sites here in Saipan as the annual memorial service for those who died in World War II is held at this place. Furthermore, it is worth noting that the Saipan Shrine was originally built in 1914, but it was severely destroyed by the war. Forty years after the war, the Katori Shrine Association of Japan reached out to the government of Saipan with the desire to reconstruct the shrine. The Saipan Shrine was finally reconstructed in 1985 and eventually strengthened the relationship between Saipan and Japan. The Katori Jinja Shrine is constantly visited by Japanese tourists to this day to pay their respect to their ancestors who died in World War II.