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MR: This is an interview with James Tsujimura, a Nisei man, seventy-two years old, at his home in Portland, Oregon, on July 24, 2003. The interviewer is Margaret Barton Ross of the Oregon Nikkei Legacy Center's Oral History Project 2003. Good morning.

JT: Good morning.

MR: Thank you for having me in your home. Let's start out talking about the circumstances of your birth, when and where you were born.

JT: I was born in Westport, Oregon, between Portland and Astoria, located there, and on February 10, 1931.

MR: How many people were in your family?

JT: I had five sisters. One is still living in Japan, and I've seen her only on two occasions. She's married, has a family; and of course, she's living there permanently.

MR: And your parents, what did your father do?

JT: As far as I can remember, he started working on a farm in Auburn, Washington, moved to Westport, Oregon, where he worked in a sawmill, and that's where I was born and most of my sisters were born.

MR: Did your mother work?

JT: Yes, as a housewife at that time. When they moved to Portland, my memory goes back to a laundry on 17th and Northwest Burnside, and she also worked there, of course.

MR: I'm curious about what it was like in Westport. Was there a Japanese community there?

JT: Yes, very small one, but that's about all I can remember too.

MR: Just one other question then about Westport. What did you do for traditional food there, do you know?

JT: No. I was so young at that time that I don't, I can't remember.

MR: Okay. And why did you leave?

JT: Well, I just suspect that my dad wanted to do something else, so my mother too, so, and they wanted to move to a larger town, so they decided on Portland.

MR: Okay. When did you go to Portland?

JT: I have no idea. I was too young.

MR: Okay. After you got to Portland, did you start school?

JT: Yes. I went to Couch School up until the fifth grade. My sisters attended that, Couch School and one other, but I just can't remember them.

<End Segment 1> - Copyright © 2003 Oregon Nikkei Endowment and Densho. All Rights Reserved.