THURSDAY ISLAND CEREMONY

Every year on August 15, an Obon Ceremony is held on Thursday Island. It is held at the Japanese Cemetery where around 800 Japanese are buried. Most of these graves are those of pearl divers. Japanese first came to Thursday Island around 1890 and there was a vibrant Japanese community living there until the outbreak of World War 2. Now, the descendants of those divers together with the Torres Shire Council and the Japanese Consulate hold an Obon Ceremony in their honour.