Densho Digital Archive - Henry Nishi Interview II (denshovh-nhenry

<Begin Segment 4>

RP: So how long did it take your dad to, to really get established there at that site?

HN: I think it took about three, maybe... I remember back in 1931, '32, on the weekends and when I'd go to the nursery with Dad -- we lived in Hollywood -- and 'course, I went, on the weekends, Saturdays especially, I'd go with Dad to the nursery. And I remember back '31, '32, I was in junior high and I remember the nursery was pretty well-established. So, in the three or four years it must have taken to, to develop the nursery.

RP: And did he put you to work on those weekends?

HN: Watering.

RP: You were the water boy?

HN: Yeah.

RP: Uh-huh. A lot to water.

HN: Lots of water, yeah. And we had to water because of the well.

RP: Did you have a system or did you just go with a hose from can to can and...

HN: Yeah.

RP: That was it.

HN: Yeah. We didn't have drip irrigation in those days.

RP: Too bad. Uh-huh. Did your father pay you a little money for, for what you did or was it just considered part of the family...

HN: Oh, I'm sure we got allowances.

RP: What do you remember other members of your family doing at the nursery? Your sisters...

HN: We didn't live there, but we still lived in Hollywood. And eventually towards, just prior to, to evacuation, which was back, nineteen, I think 1940, Dad bought a lot in West L.A. and built a home. Like I said, we had moved in. The home was completed in November of, I guess, 1940, yeah, 1940. And then in December, of course, he was, he was taken right after when the war started, December...

RP: Seventh.

HN: 1940.

RP: Forty or '41, wasn't it?

HN: Was it '41? '41, yeah.

RP: So you moved into the house just about a month before he was taken.

HN: Yeah, yeah. So we, we left a brand new home there. And the nice thing that happened was that the mail, the mail carrier that was delivering mail to our home, he asked if he could rent the home while we were gone. And of course we took up, we took the offer. Dad wasn't around of course, but my mom and, and we decided that, yeah. Which was very fortunate because they, when we came back -- well, I was in the army then but -- it was like when we had left it. It was brand new. And then also had another friend. He was an attorney, a Caucasian person. Said he would take care of paying, paying the payments on the house and whatever... just took care of everything. So we were very fortunate. We trusted people and there were good people that had no problem whatsoever. So we were able to come back when, when we... like I said, I wasn't here but when they notified these people, the Fosters, that's their name, that they were coming back, they promptly looked for another home. And when they came back, it was, they were just able to move into practically a brand new home.

RP: The attorney...

HN: Yeah.

RP: He, had he worked with your dad before? Or was this just somebody...

HN: No, he was, it was just a recommendation from somebody. He, we had no, we had no... but, just by referral. And yeah, he...

RP: He made the payments?

HN: He had... he took care of all the, all whatever money we had and he used that money whatever expenses that, that was, that were needed to pay the taxes, pay the mortgage payments, utilities. And, and actually there was, whatever friends we had, Caucasian people, they were very good to us. There was a lot of unfortunate people that people took advantage, I mean... which was, you know, kind of, you would expect. But we, we were fortunate. It was just, just a very lucky, fortunate situation.