Densho Digital Archive
Preserving California's Japantowns Collection
Title: Louie Watanabe Interview
Narrator: Louie Watanabe
Interviewers: Tom Ikeda (primary); Jill Shiraki (secondary)
Location: Sacramento, California
Date: December 8, 2009
Densho ID: denshovh-wlouie-01-0031

<Begin Segment 31>

TI: So what were your first impressions of Granada? When you got to the camp, what did you see? What do you remember?

LW: Well, out in the desert. They were still building the barracks, then we run into the dust storm, you know. Never had that kind of experience. That's the first snow I saw when we got there, you know, in the wintertime it snowed, I never saw snow before. Walnut Grove, never snows.

TI: So the desert, so it's hotter in the summer and colder...

LW: Yeah, real hot in the summer with the dust going, blowing, because it's always windy. Then wintertime it's cold, so you got to have those, what do you call those cast iron stoves with the coal. We got to burn that.

TI: And describe the room that your family went to. What was that like?

LW: Only thing we had was the bed, can't, there's no room to put tables or chairs, because there's seven in that one room. You know, like the regular bedrooms right now, there's seven people, so there's no way. If you want to do a study or homework, you got to go to the library, because that's the only place it's nice and quiet.

TI: So how did your family arrange the room for seven of you?

LW: Well, they just got a bed there and, I guess, daytime, they got to fold it up and put it on the side. You know, like Japan do, bring the bed out. Because there's no privacy at all, because... so we spent most of the time in the mess hall or the laundry room. That's about the only place in the wintertime because nice and warm. Summertime, you could stay outside.

TI: Well, I'm guessing, too, your family, you had four boys that were teenage and young adult, and so there must have been lots of...

LW: Yeah, it's kind of rough. But the married couple, they gave 'em one small room right next to it. But still, no privacy at all, so if you have brothers, sisters, it's kind of rough. Where my sister was too young yet, so you could get by. The place was open, so you could hear from neighbors what's going... you could hear whatever they're talking about. You know, it's wide open, the barracks.

TI: Now, in your barracks and block, were there other Walnut Grove people there? Did they keep you together? Or were you with other...

LW: Well, when we got there, it was mixed. I mean, part of Walnut Grover people were there, but maybe next building or next block or something like that.

TI: So in your block, where did the other people come from? Do you remember others...

LW: Mostly from Woodland and Portland, and... let's see, where was that? Can't remember now. But it was pretty separate.

<End Segment 31> - Copyright (c) 2009 Densho and Preserving California's Japantowns. All Rights Reserved.