Military Intelligence Service

The first Japanese Americans to serve in the military during World War II were linguists involved in the Military Intelligence Service Language School (MISLS). The MISLS was charged with training soldiers in the Japanese language for intelligence purposes. Japanese Americans served as both instructors and students at the school, which opened on November 1, 1941. The Language School began recruiting instructors and later students directly from concentration camps as early as July 1942. MISLS graduates were assigned in small teams to units fighting in the Pacific and to intelligence centers throughout the Allied command. They translated captured documents, interrogated prisoners of war, wrote propaganda, encouraged Japanese soldiers and civilians to surrender, and monitored radio broadcasts. After the war, they acted as interpreters at the war crime trials and for the occupation government in Japan.

World War II (231)
Military service (2806)
Military Intelligence Service (1145)

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1145 items

img Soldier at MacDill Field (ddr-densho-22-426)

Man wearing a Lordsburg shirt. Caption on front: "'Kanaka' Shigeta / MacDill Field Fla."

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-22-426/

img Soldiers and two women (ddr-densho-22-362)

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-22-362/

img Group of soldiers with a guitar (ddr-densho-22-363)

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-22-363/

img Henry Nakakihara in uniform (ddr-densho-22-357)

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-22-357/

img Volunteers for the Military Intelligence Service (ddr-densho-22-79)

Caption in album: "Volunteers please / Just prior to V-J day came a survey of Volunteers was made for the Camp Savage (later Fort Snelling) language school for men to ship to go to school and on to Japan to fight. Here the two above photos show as the volunteers were made ready to leave for …

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-22-79/

img Group of soldiers (ddr-densho-22-349)

Frank Takao standing left.

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-22-349/

img Yanamura Family (ddr-densho-22-156)

Caption on reverse: "Father 66 / Herbert 20 / Kenneth 15 / Franklin 11 / Aug. '44."

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-22-156/

doc Herbert K. Yanamura's citation for meritorious achievement with the 96th Infantry Division (ddr-densho-22-141)

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-22-141/

img Herbert K. Yanamura waving from a train (ddr-densho-22-147)

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-22-147/

img Mosque in Kolkata (ddr-densho-22-425)

Caption on front: "Muslim Mosque / Calcutta."

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-22-425/

doc The Scoreboard Vol. I No. 6 (ddr-densho-72-47)

From page of scrapbook "Scrapbook: 1946."

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-72-47/

doc Scrapbook page (ddr-densho-72-49)

Military Intelligence Service-related documents on page from scrapbook "Scrapbook: 1946."

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-72-49/

doc The Scoreboard Vol. I No. 4 (ddr-densho-72-46)

From page of scrapbook "Scrapbook: 1946."

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-72-46/

doc Military Intelligence Service documents (ddr-densho-72-48)

From page of scrapbook "Scrapbook: 1946."

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-72-48/

doc Pacific Citizen, Vol. 63, No. 9 (August 26, 1966) (ddr-pc-38-34)

Select article titles: "Chapters step up interests in human relations studies" (p. 1); "MIS vets to stage reunion" (p. 1); "Walked with Meredith in Mississippi" (p.1).

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-pc-38-34/

doc Pacific Citizen, Vol. 63, No. 20 (November 11, 1966) (ddr-pc-38-45)

Select article titles: "SJR 20 wins in close race" (p. 1); "Coordinator of House tribute to Nisei veterans to be guest at MIS reunion" (p. 1); "Retired Chief Justice Gibson labels Evacuation as black page in history" (p. 2); "New Yorker article on Evacuation cited" (p. 5).

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-pc-38-45/

doc Pacific Citizen, Vol. 63, No. 12 (September 16, 1966) (ddr-pc-38-37)

Select article titles: "Gen. Willoughby to address MIS veteran reunion" (p. 1); "Issei, Nisei Image in Japan Valuable, Says Professor" (p. 1); "Chicago Nisei Drum & Bugle Corps Ambassadors create goodwill on tour" (p. 1).

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-pc-38-37/

doc Pacific Citizen, Vol. 63, No. 21 (November 18, 1966) (ddr-pc-38-46)

Select article titles: "SJR 20 final tab: Yes 414,000; No 391,200" (p. 1); "MIS vets ask Army for lifting of secrecy" (p. 1); "VFW, 442nd Veterans, West L.A. JACL mark rescue of Lost Texas Battalion" (p. 3); "Boston ruling on Chinese students as white rejected" (p. 5).

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-pc-38-46/

doc Pacific Citizen, Vol. 58, No. 25 (December 20-27, 1963) (ddr-pc-35-51)

Special holiday issue organized into sections A 1-24 and B 1-24. Selected article titles: "Tributes to the Nisei GIs" (pp. A-1, A-3-A-12), "During World War 2: Military Intelligence Trains 6,000 Nisei" (pp. A-1, A-11-A-12, A-14), "Antidote for Pearl Harbor Myths" (pp. A-1, A-16-A-17), and "Constitution of the National Japanese American Citizens League (Amended as of 1962)" …

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-pc-35-51/

doc Pacific Citizen, Vol. 107, No. 20 (December 23-30, 1988) (ddr-pc-60-45)

Special holiday issue divided into sections A 1-12, B 1-12, C 1-16, D 1-12, E 1-24, D 13-24, C 17-32, B 13-24, and A 13-24. Selected article titles: "The President Signs the Redress Bill" (pp. B-1-B-2), "Decision to Cooperate" (pp. C-4-C-5), "Despite Wishes of Some: Comparatively Few Internees Came from Hawaii" (pp. E-2-E-3, E-19), and "John …

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-pc-60-45/

doc Pacific Citizen, Vol. 110, No. 17 (May 4, 1990) (ddr-pc-62-17)

Select article titles: "In Tribute to Sen. Spark Matsunaga: 'Initiated Probably more statues of Benefit to Those of Japanese Ancestry'"(p.1);"JACL Chicago Chapter Supports American Indian Rights"(p.2); "JACL Minidoka Project Memorial to List 73 Names of Nisei War Dead"(p.3); "Okinawan MIS Veteran, Educator, Sen. Inouye's Aide Tells His Story"(p.10).

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-pc-62-17/

doc Pacific Citizen, Vol. 102, No. 21 (May 30, 1986) (ddr-pc-58-21)

Selected article titles: "Yasui Case Can Go to Appeals Court" (p. 1), "Violence Against Minorities a Serious Problem, State Commission Concludes" (pp. 1, 12), "Reporter Regrets Onizuka Remark" (pp. 2, 7), and "East Wind: America's Secret Weapon" (p. 4).

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-pc-58-21/

doc Pacific Citizen, Vol. 85, No. 26 (December 16, 1977) (ddr-pc-49-49)

Selected article titles: "Outstanding Chemists to Be Honored" (p.1-2), "Predict Most Vietnam Refugees to Be at Work" (p.1-2), "The Day I Quit Judo" (p.4), "Equal Opportunity in California-A New Era" (p.5), "Women in JACL" (p.7).

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-pc-49-49/

doc Pacific Citizen, Vol. 74, No. 21 (June 2, 1972) (ddr-pc-44-21)

Selected article titles: "Nikkei Family Victims of Verbal Abuse by Owner of Beaumont Cherry Orchard" (p.1), "Agenda Papers Pepper Chapters" (p.1, 3), "PSWDC in Bid for $8,000 to Fund Welfare Group" (p.3), "Pride and Faith Personified: Nisei of MISLS" (p.5), "City Hall Jeopardizes Little Tokyo's Future" (p.8).

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-pc-44-21/

doc Pacific Citizen, Vol. 89, No. 2052 (July 20, 1979) (ddr-pc-51-28)

Selected article titles: "Mineta Lauds Nisei MIS Role During WW2 in Pacific Theater" (pp. 1, 7), "Major Cutback in Whaling Approved" (p. 1), "J. William Fulbright Says: Japan Acquires Secret for Humanity: Make Cultural Development, Not War" (p. 2), and "Ex-Kamikaze Pilot Teaches English to Foreign Students at Michigan State" (p. 8).

https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-pc-51-28/