A former city in northern Kyushu, Japan; it merged with neighboring municipalities in 1963 and now corresponds to the Kokurakita and Kokuraminami wards of Kitakyushu.
On August 9, 1945, atomic bomb Fat Man's primary target was Kokura, not Nagasaki. Smoke and clouds obscured the target through 50 minutes and three failed runs. With fuel critically low, the B-29 Bockscar diverted to Nagasaki, its secondary target.