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TI: Today is January 11, 2006, and we're in the Densho studio, and I'm Tom Ikeda, the interviewer, and behind camera we have Dana Hoshide. And today we have Grant Hirabayashi to do the interview. But Grant, I'm just going to start with the basic stuff, and why don't you tell me when and where you were born?

GH: I was born in a place called Thomas, it's between, located between Kent and Auburn.

TI: And when, when were you born?

GH: I was born 9th of November, 1919.

TI: The 9th of November. That's the same birthday as my, as my wife.

GH: Oh, is that right? [Laughs]

TI: [Laughs] Okay, 1919, and what was the full name that was given to you when you were born?

GH: Grant Jiro, J-I-R-O.

TI: Hirabayashi.

GH: Yes.

TI: And when you were born, what, what type of work did your parents do?

GH: Truck farming.

TI: And truck farming, what kind of things did they...

GH: Truck farming consisted mainly of lettuce, cauliflower, celery, and at times the crops did change from berries to peas, tomatoes, etcetera.

TI: And then your father, what was his name?

GH: Toshiharu.

TI: And where did he come from?

GH: A place called Hotaka, Nagano Prefecture, in Japan, and he came over in the year 1907.

TI: Now, do you know why he came to the United States?

GH: Well, he went to a private school called Kensei Gijuku, and many of his friends and relatives did attend Kensei Gijuku. And among the graduates there was a person, I think, who came to the United States, and he wrote back with favorable comments about the U.S. While attending Kensei Gijuku, the master of the school was a Christian, and my father was converted to Christianity. And in Japan, the custom is the oldest son inherits all the property, whereas the others are left on their own. And I think there was another factor; he was reaching draft age, and being a so-called conscientious objector, he came to the United States.

TI: Oh, so there were quite a few factors. One, was there religious persecution if you were a Christian?

GH: Yes. Not persecution, but at least he was very uncomfortable, because all the brothers didn't, relatives were Buddhist.

TI: Okay, so he was maybe ostracized a little bit by being Christian, or it was a little more...

GH: I don't know if he was ostracized, but he felt uncomfortable, yes.

TI: So there was a religious part, he wasn't, I take it he wasn't the eldest son?

GH: No.

TI: And so property would not have been transferred to him.

GH: Right.

TI: And then the third was the draft? Possibly wanting to avoid being drafted?

GH: Yes, uh-huh. And two of his brothers were involved in the Sino and Russo-Japanese War, and he heard about it and he didn't want any part of it.

TI: Now, did any of his other siblings come to the United States before him?

GH: No, no.

TI: So he was the first one?

GH: Yes.

TI: Okay, good. So he came in 1907, and then what did he do when he came to the United States?

GH: I think originally he worked in the sawmill, he worked in the railroad. I think he... worked on the farm, eventually he became a farmer.

TI: And so 1907, then how did he meet your mother?

GH: Well, actually, my mother's brother is married to my father's sister. [Laughs]

TI: Okay.

GH: So there's some relationship.

TI: And was your mother's brother, was he in the United States?

GH: No.

TI: Or this was all Japan?

GH: Yes.

TI: So was this an arranged type of marriage?

GH: Yes.

TI: And so did your father go back to Japan?

GH: No. He, in those days, I think you were able to transfer the koseki, and have a marriage without the presence of the individual. But when they, she came over, they had another wedding.

TI: Okay, and what year did she come over?

GH: 1915.

TI: Okay, so 1915. And going back to your father, what was he like? How would you describe him?

GH: He was a very religious man, and during his spare time, he had Bible, and he would, he did a great deal of reading. He was a very soft-spoken person. He did reprimand us, but I still recall he would quote the Bible. [Laughs] There was no spanking. But he got his point across.

TI: So when he quoted the Bible, was this all in Japanese? Was the Bible he read, was in Japanese?

GH: It was in both Japanese and English, mixed.

TI: I'm curious, when you, when you recall the sayings that he did from the Japanese Bible, do you have a sense of how well that was translated from English to Japanese?

GH: No, not... [laughs]

TI: Or just the philosophy. Could you, do you have a sense that it was a...

GH: It was the philosophy, yes.

TI: ...pretty good rendition of Christian philosophy?

GH: Well, I just accepted what Dad said. [Laughs]

<End Segment 1> - Copyright © 2006 Densho. All Rights Reserved.