<Begin Segment 15>

TI: So you go to, from, you get off the ship in Seattle, any first impressions? You probably were able to see the skyline of Seattle, which was probably much larger than anything you've seen before in terms of a city or a town.

RO: I never really even noticed, to tell you the truth, but I just remember first seeing that Puyallup camp. Having these communal toilets, that was really something. Then you have the barrack quarters that, the walls were only about six feet high, and so there was a big gap to the ceiling, and you could hear from one end of the building to the other.

TI: And do you remember, at Puyallup, what section you were in? I think it went A, B, C, D.

RO: A, Area A.

TI: And describe Area A for me. What area was that? Was that...

RO: That was the parking area, I believe.

TI: So more barracks that you had.

RO: We were on the very end. The Alaskans were on the very end.

TI: And when the Alaskans arrived, how many other people were in camp when you got there at Puyallup?

RO: You mean like Seattleites or such?

TI: Yeah.

RO: I don't think there was any.

TI: Okay, so you were like the, the...

RO: I'm sure we were the first. Positive.

TI: And so those first few days when you're the only ones there, what was that like?

RO: Well, it was different because you have these communal toilets, and it's just something you never experienced before. Then the barracks were this potbelly stove, a few bunks. But we ate alright. Food wasn't too bad.

TI: So describe how things changed when all the people from Seattle and other parts of the area, Puget Sound, start coming to Puyallup. How did things change?

RO: Well, it's a thing where I can, I made good friends, really good friends.

TI: Anyone that you recognize from the cannery days that you saw?

RO: You mean in Puyallup?

TI: Yeah, in Puyallup.

RO: No, but I remember the names very well that were up in the cannery.

<End Segment 15> - Copyright © 2011 Densho. All Rights Reserved.