<Begin Segment 23>

TI: And then as, as camp got established a little more, your dad, what did he do?

NH: Oh, my dad was, worked on the farm. There was a farm outside of Topaz, and men who wanted to work on the farm went to the main gate, got on the truck, and went out to wherever. There was an agricultural thing where I think they made potatoes or sugar, sugar beets. Then there was a pig farm, and I guess there must have been a chicken farm. But during early spring, they would recruit all the guys from high school would get on the bus and go out to the farm. I didn't go, but they would go out there with hoes and irrigate, or what do you call that?

TI: Just kind of water?

NH: Not irrigate, what is it when you dig?

TI: Oh, hoe?

NH: Hoe, yeah, hoe the rows and rows of vegetables, yeah. Whatever it is that the farmers did. They were, they were recruited to do that, and pull weeds. Yeah, pull weeds, I think that's what it was, pull weeds. And for us it was very good because we were able to get water, and I don't know, I guess they got well water from somewhere, and were able to water all of those vegetables out there, we got fresh vegetables.

TI: And then so your dad was out working the farm, how about your mother? What would she...

NH: Oh no, she stayed home. There was no jobs for her. Topaz had a PX, it was run more or less like the army post exchange, and they had all kinds of stuff. Nothing to eat, though, no food, but T-shirts, underwear, clothing, a little bit of clothing, some toys, but not too much, shoes.

TI: And how about your younger siblings? How, what were some of the things they did during camp?

NH: Oh, well, we all just left the house and went to see our friends. And my sister went to see her friends, and my brother went to see his friends. And he and his friends are still friends, that are still alive.

TI: Okay, good.

<End Segment 23> - Copyright ©2008 Densho and the Topaz Museum. All Rights Reserved.