Densho Digital Archive - Yaeko Nakano - Kenichi Nakano - Hiroshi Nakano - Stanley Nakano Interview (denshovh-nyaeko

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KN: Some of the stories that I remember that are sort of humorous or non-humorous is, when we left, I remember the train ride, the story about the train ride to go to Nebraska. We didn't have a place to go. Or maybe we could go back to Tacoma and live with our grandparents; but my father's brother, he didn't -- he chose not to be in camp. He went and worked on one of these farms in Nebraska. So he said we could come out and live with him. So -- did I get the measles or the mumps?

YN: Yes, on the way back here.

KN: Yeah. Anyway, we went out to Nebraska, and how long did we last?

YN: Three days.

KN: Three days. My mom said, "We are not living here," and we got back on the train. [Laughs]

YN: There was a reason why we didn't, we weren't going to live there.

KN: Well, it's probably -- what?

YN: It's because the fact that he [Gestures toward Kenichi] had hernia. And I inquired everybody that I saw, "Where is the nearest hospital, where is a doctor?" And they says, "None. No place." And I talked to your dad at that time and I said, "He needs a doctor, he needs to get that hernia repaired." I says, "We can't do it here." and that's why he also changed his mind.

KN: Another reason why I got mad. [Laughs] Actually, there is a third one, too; that's my bad feet. I couldn't get -- bad feet and I couldn't get corrective shoes. So I always grew up with a pigeon toe and playing sports and stuff, I would always kick myself; I was black and blue all over. But I was really good in sports, but I always used to say, "God, if I had good shoes, I could have been really good in sports." I think that made me mad, too. I always think it's great that, "We could have been raised in Nebraska? Oh, God." [Laughs] I'm so glad we came back.

TL: Mrs. Nakano, you've also talked about what that living situation that you folks discovered. I mean, the camp was -- it sounds like it was worse.

YN: It was worse than Tule Lake, the conditions. As you know, Nebraska is flat country, and we were by the Platte River. And this camp was just migrant workers. We had a cabin, no running water, pot belly stove in the center. In the center was the water and the washing facilities, and your bath -- not even a bath, a shower -- and toilets, and there was standing water in there. [Interruption] And that place was absolutely filthy. So as you know, in camp, at least, the Japanese were very particular about being clean, and our bathroom facilities were clean. And when we saw that, and the fact that I couldn't get a doctor anywhere, I told my husband, I says, "You know, this is no place to bring up a child." I said, "If you insist on staying, well, I'll stay." But I says, "For him we should go back." He agreed with me and that's why we went back.

And then you were saying, on the way back, on the train. Now remember, we had no money and we only had a ticket to go there. We had no money to go back. And so we had to borrow money for our train ticket. And on the way back there was somebody with measles on the train. And then, so he got the measles when we got back. [Gestures toward Kenichi] Now, my folks, we had no house, either, and so they were living in the Japanese school. And then when we came back, I was living on the stage with the curtains where I used to perform when I was going to Japanese school, and there was a piano there so for me it was just wonderful. [Laughs] But it was... when we got back, he came down with measles, and then shortly after that every child that was in the Japanese school in all the different families, one by one they all came down with measles. That's what you remember.

KN: Right.

TL: So Hiroshi and Stan, have you heard these Nebraska stories and how you might have ended up there?

HN: Oh, yeah. We've heard all the Nebraska stories and stuff. And over time we've met our uncle and that kind of stuff. So it's kind of interesting a little bit, 'cause actually Dad's (brother) is probably more vocal than Dad was. And so a lot of what I know about what happened to Dad I'd hear through my uncle. My uncle is this big cigar smoker kind of guy, and fairly gruff, and he'd say, "Oh yeah, your dad" is this and that and, he did this and that and everything else. So it was kinda, it was good to be able to meet him and understand a little bit more about Nebraska. [Laughs] For as short-lived as it was.