<Begin Segment 42>

TI: And so talk about it. So the next day, you right away start working. You're at the Pinedale Logger.

HH: Yes, and at the beginning, we didn't have any kind of a program, so I was helping as kind of an assistant editor, general articles. And then...

TI: Now, can you recall what type of articles were needed at this point, what you guys were writing?

HH: Well, this is for instructions, because it wasn't like we had reporters to go out, even at the beginning. Because this was an assembly center set up by the military, not the War Relocation Authority. All your assembly centers were set up by the military so that down in California, they had mostly fairgrounds like Alameda and especially Puyallup, they had a stables area that they had to set up as part of their room. Very small area, but this is the way the assembly center was. Not partitioned off, except for the barracks that was in Puyallup in the parking areas, and that's where we thought that we would be going.

TI: Okay, but so originally -- going back to the Pinedale Logger, so you started writing more general information, notices and things like that.

HH: Yes.

TI: And, but eventually you started, because your expertise or what your experience was was more sports. Now, so did you start doing some more sports type of organizing and writing?

HH: Well, they wanted to have some kind of -- this is just before Fourth of July. Anyway, I think it was May that we left, and by the time we were not organized yet as far as different departments, but the kids, children especially, they had nothing to do, and there was no field or baseball field or anything like that, basketball, so they just decided to have a baseball league. And so I was able to find help from various California team and then also from Tacoma area and Auburn and such, that were in the Courier League.

TI: So how did you find all these people? How did you go about identifying and knowing who to contact?

HH: Well, when we organized, we did announce that we wanted teams made up from certain areas, where they came from, and that way they can make up the team easier.

TI: So this was almost similar to what you used to do with the Courier League. That you had these different communities, and you in the same way said, "Okay, let's do the same thing. Every community put together like a baseball team, and then we'll start a league and start doing this."

HH: Yes. And especially California teams, I had previous contact with them, and I met some of the leaders of, coaches of San Francisco and Oakland and San Jose group, teams that came up on basketball. And so it was not hard for me to ask them to help me get the team organized in their area, California area.

TI: And so as you were organizing this, what kind of reaction or support did you get from the military? Since they were running the camp, you must have had to get permission from them to create baseball fields and things like that, get equipment.

HH: No, the military had nothing to do with the camp itself. It was left for the group to take care of the needs of, because it was a temporary place.

TI: So the military just didn't really care, you guys just went out there, found an appropriate place for a baseball field, and just made that the baseball field.

HH: Yes, well, it was kind of like a sandlot, the area that we were able to get it cleared up and start the league.

TI: So how about equipment and uniforms and things like that?

HH: Well, they furnished it, the administration.

TI: The administration did. So you made a request that you needed baseballs, bats, mitts, things like that, and they got it for you.

HH: Yes. But we didn't organize a basketball, because it was such a short time, because by the time Fourth of July, we had a big celebration for Fourth of July in the camp.

TI: Tell me about that. So on the Fourth of July, Independence Day, you guys had a big celebration?

HH: Yes, well, the whole camp.

TI: It seems a little ironic. [Laughs]

HH: Yes, the whole camp, and in a big area, assembly area.

TI: So did the administration give you guys special treats and things for the Fourth of July?

HH: I don't remember getting anything, special treats or anything, but the menu at the time was all cooked for us in the mess hall. Each block had a mess hall, and so I don't know if they made a special, maybe hotdog, maybe. [Laughs]

<End Segment 42> - Copyright © 2006 Densho. All Rights Reserved.