SHIRITORU Old Makarov

---

Shiritoru in 1930

Shiritoru and Shisuka were in the center of east coast area, and were also the typical 'Sakhalinic (or Karafutical)' new towns, in which were developed by the investments of the Zaibatsu (major financial combines in Japan), and based on the railroads, paper mill and the coal mines. Before the paper mill was built, Shiritoru was very small town named 'Higashi-Shiritoru Mura [East Shiritoru Village]'. Concretely speaking, although the population of Shiritoru was only 450 in April 1923, Shiritoru had already had 2,820 households and 14,626 people in December 1926. the paper mill started to product in January 1927, and the railroad between Ochiai and Shiritoru was also opened in November 1927. Nevertheless, Shiritoru was not political town, for Moto-Domari near Shiritoru was one of the oldest fishery villages in Karafuto, and all administrative buildings were already built there before the development of Shiritoru.

---