Densho Digital Archive - George Hiromoto Interview (denshovh-hgeorge

<Begin Segment 7>

DG: Shall we go to December 1941? So what are your memories of Pearl Harbor? Getting to the war now.

GH: [Laughs] My memory of Pearl Harbor?

DG: Yeah.

GH: Well, I'll tell you, I was out in the field working, and I heard on the radio that Japan has attacked Pearl Harbor. We thought, "Oh, no, there's gonna be a war." Sure enough, December, there was a war started. And after that, right away, the government says all Japanese don't go around, we were... let's see, what do you call that?

DG: Curfew?

GH: Curfew, but we were all informed not to go anywhere, not over five miles. And so, oh, yeah, it was a funny one. This friend of ours, she got married and she had to move her marriage stuff, room stuff, furniture and things like that, she wanted us to move it to San Jose. And I had a truck so I said, well, okay, I'll go San Jose, but at that time, luckily, I went to get the permit to go over 5 miles. We were already permitted to just go five miles. And so I went after the permit. So when I was driving towards San Jose, at the Antioch Bridge, I don't know if you know that, remember the old Antioch Bridge, and the wrong way. When I got there, why, MP stopped us and says, "Hey, where are you going?" Says, "We're going to take these things," but I said, "but I got a permit." "Oh, okay." I'd sure like to see that sergeant when I was in the service. [Laughs]

DG: So you were in the field and you heard the radio?

GH: Yeah.

DG: Where was the radio coming from?

GH: Well, we had a portable radio. During that time, we could carry portable radio. So right away, the news came out and said that Japan attacked Pearl Harbor.

DG: Were there many Issei who were picked up by the FBI from this area?

GH: I think so. I think there were, anyone who were attached to these, the Japanese Association, yeah, and I think, I don't know if a school got picked up or not, but anyway, Association, Japanese Association people that was in charge, I think they were all picked up.

Off camera: I think [inaudible] was about the only one.

GH: Yeah, in Clarksburg.

DG: How were the students at Rio Vista High to you after December 7th?

GH: Well, I was out of school already. '41 I was out already. But during that time, didn't bother.

DG: Oh, right, you were twenty. Did your siblings talk about how it was at school?

GH: No. How they were treated? Through the school, didn't seem like there was any trouble. You know, locals, they're not gonna have trouble. It's just big places like Sacramento or San Francisco where the politicians get involved in it and they start talking about what's good, what's right. So as far as I'm concerned, with the regular Caucasians, I get along real nice. In fact, here in Clarksburg, the farmers are all Caucasian, and we got along real nice.

DG: I wonder whether in this more rural area, everybody knew each other, whereas in larger Japantown, the people within the Japantown didn't know that many people.

GH: Yeah, they weren't associating with Caucasian group, like San Francisco. But Sacramento, it wasn't that bad, I don't think. But after they had to evacuate, I know they were kind of mad, they said they got to move, sell that house or give it away. Oh, some of them really was hurt.

DG: As it became clear you were going to have to leave, be forced to leave, how did your family take care of...

GH: Business? Well, like bank, they said to leave it, so we give 'em the address after we go to wherever we go. I did that. But, of course, like school, Japanese school, they all have to quit the school.

DG: What about all your equipment?

GH: Oh, we had it and then a lot of people were taken away. You know, some people come from other places and take the equipment away.

DG: They buy it from you?

GH: I don't know. I haven't seen it bought, I didn't see the money. Car, too.

DG: So you lost all, your family lost all...

GH: My father lost property.

Off camera: At this time, how much property, did your father own much property?

GH: No, at that time we didn't own the property.

Off camera: It was still leased.

GH: We bought all these property now, after the war.

DG: But your family lost all its farm equipment.

GH: Yeah, we lost all the equipment.

JS: Were there, was there any type of like farmers association or kind of business...

GH: Associate.

DG: Of Nikkei?

JS: No, just with the regular farmers, or did you have it with Japanese farmers?

GH: Yeah, there was Japanese American farmer, you know, association you're talking about? Yeah, there used to be association.

DG: Before the war?

GH: Before the war, yeah.

DG: Was your father a leader in that?

GH: No, I don't think he was a leader, but he was involved in it, anyway.