1379 items
1379 items
Narrator Art Okuno
Nisei male. Born September 15, 1921, in San Francisco, California. Grew up in San Francisco, and was attending the University of California at Berkeley when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Removed with family to the Pomona Assembly Center, California, and the Heart Mountain concentration camp, Wyoming. While in Heart Mountain, served as scoutmaster …
Narrator Kazue Yamamoto
Nisei female. Born January 14, 1927, in Wapato, Washington, where family operated a truck farm. Following the bombing of Pearl Harbor, removed to North Portland Assembly Center and Heart Mountain concentration camp, Wyoming. Family left camp in 1945 for Spokane, Washington. Worked as a domestic on Spokane's South Hill before becoming a licensed beautician. Married husband …
Narrator Frank Hiratsuka
Nisei male. Born July 16, 1926, in Alviso, California. Lived in various places in California as a child. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, family moved to Reedley, California, in an attempt to avoid incarceration, but were removed when the exclusion zone extended to Reedley. Sent to the Poston concentration camp, Arizona. …
Narrator Kenji Suematsu
Nisei male. Born April 29, 1934, in Brawley, California. Following the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Father was arrested by the FBI and mother had a nervous breakdown. Kenji and his sister were sent to stay at the Shonien orphanage in Los Angeles. During mass removal, taken to Manzanar with other orphans and placed in the Manzanar …
Narrator Yutaka Inokuchi
Nisei male. Born August 25, 1924, in Waipahu, Hawaii. Grew up on the Waipahu sugar plantation where parents worked. Was attending Mid-Pacific Institute in Honolulu when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Father was picked up by the FBI and eventually interned in the Honouliuli POW camp. Mr. Inokuchi got a job in the …
Narrator Miyoko Kaneta
Nisei female. Born December 16, 1926, in El Centro, California. Grew up in various places in California, where parents owned a barbershop. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, removed with her family to the Poston concentration camp, Arizona. After leaving camp, resettled in Hazelton, Idaho, and Oakland, California, before moving to Seattle, Washington. After the war, …
Narrator James Sakamoto
Nisei male. Born April 18, 1924, in Mayfield, California. Spent prewar childhood years in Alviso, California. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941, moved with family to Stockton, California, in an attempt to avoid mass removal. Despite this, was removed to the Stockton Assembly Center, California, and the Rohwer concentration camp, Arkansas. Resettled in Colorado …
Narrator Eddie M. Inaba
Nisei male. Born May 9, 1917, in Walnut Grove, California. Parents worked at Canal Ranch, an agricultural community, where they grew produce for Libby, McNeill & Libby. Parents also owned and ran a bar in Walnut Grove. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, removed to the Merced Assembly Center, California, and Granada (Amache) concentration camp, Colorado. …
Narrator Jean Shiraki Gize
Nisei female. Born June 16, 1938, in Alameda, California. Was age three when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Removed with family to the Tanforan Assembly Center, California, and the Topaz concentration camp, Utah. While in camp, father volunteered for the 442nd Regimental Combat Team. Mother answered an ad in the camp newspaper and …
Narrator Kiyo Maruyama
Nisei male. Born August 28, 1920, in Los Angeles, California. Grew up in the Glendale area, where father ran a gardening business. Was in college at UC Berkeley when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor. During World War II, removed to the Manzanar concentration camp, California. Left camp to work in Chicago. Drafted into the army and served …
Narrator John Kats Marumoto
Nisei male. Born June 24, 1927, in Terminal Island, California. Grew up on Terminal Island, where father was a fisherman. Lived in Japan for a short time in 1941. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, moved to Compton after the Japanese Americans were excluded from Terminal Island. Removed to the Manzanar concentration camp, California. After leaving …
Narrator Joe Takehara
Nisei male. Born April 2, 1932, in San Diego, California. Prior to World War II, father worked as a fisherman and mother worked in a fish cannery. Father passed away at an early age, leaving mother to raise eight children. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, temporarily moved to Sunnydale, California, before being sent to the …
Narrator Sam Mihara
Nisei male. Born February 1, 1933, in San Francisco, California. Grew up in San Francisco's Japantown, where father edited a bilingual newspaper. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, removed to the Pomona Assembly Center, California, and the Heart Mountain concentration camp, Wyoming. After leaving camp, lived for a time in Salt Lake City, Utah, before returning …
Narrator Jim Matsuoka
Nisei male. Born July 27, 1935, in Los Angeles, Califonia. Grew up in Los Angeles' Little Tokyo neighborhood prior to World War II. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, removed with family to the Manzanar concentration camp, California. After leaving camp, returned to Los Angeles and attended school. Became involved in gang activity in L.A. in …
Narrator Fred Tadashi Shingu
Nisei male. Born April 14, 1923, in Yuba City, California. Grew up in Elk Grove, California. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, moved with family to Florin, California, and was removed to the Marysville Assembly Center, California, and the Tule Lake concentration camp, California. While in Tule Lake, refused to sign the so-called "loyalty questionnaire," and …
Narrator Charles Oihe Hamasaki
Nisei male. Born October 7, 1922, in Japan, while parents were visiting family. Came to the U.S. at three months old, and grew up in Terminal Island, California. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, picked up along with Issei father and taken to Fort Lincoln (Bismarck), North Dakota. Transferred from Fort Lincoln to the Santa Anita …
Narrator Sumi Okamoto
Nisei female. Born January 7, 1920, in Seattle, Washington. Spent childhood in Spokane, Washington, where father worked for the Alaska Junk Company. Attended Irving Grade School and Lewis & Clark High School. Wedding took place on December 7, 1941, the day of Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor. Husband passed away in 1946, and Ms. Okamoto worked …
Narrator Sam Araki
Nisei male. Born July 12, 1931, in Saratoga, California. Grew up in Saratoga, where father worked as a gardener on a large estate. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, father moved the family inland to Reedley in an attempt to avoid mass removal. Eventually removed to Poston concentration camp, Arizona. After leaving camp, returned to California …
Narrator Junko Mizuta
Nisei female. Born 1925 in Portland, Oregon. Grew up in Portland, where parents ran a laundry business and managed an apartment house. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, father was arrested by the FBI, and the rest of the family was removed to the Portland Assembly Center, Oregon. While at the assembly center, Junko, a teenager, …
Narrator Fumino Tsuchiya-Knox
Sansei female. Born February 20, 1945, at the Manzanar concentration camp, California. Prior to the war, her father, an Issei, was a curator at the Harding Museum in Chicago. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, her parents decided to volunteer to go early to Manzanar to help set up the camp. After leaving Manzanar, the family …
Narrator Etsuko Ichikawa Osaki
Nisei female. Born February 19, 1931, in Fresno, California. Family moved to Seattle, Washington, where father became minister of the Seattle Buddhist Temple. During the war, removed to the Puyallup Assembly Center, Washington, and Minidoka concentration camp, Idaho. Transferred to the Crystal City internment camp, Texas, to be reunited with father, who was arrested by the …
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Fred Korematsu - Kathryn Korematsu Interview (ddr-densho-1000-181)
This interview centers on the experiences of Fred Korematsu, a Nisei born January 30, 1919, in Oakland, California. Mr. Korematsu was working as a welder in San Francisco when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. After Executive Order 9066 was issued in 1942, he decided to resist the evacuation orders, and was not removed …
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Tomiye Terasaki Interview (ddr-densho-1000-122)
Kibei female. Born October 5, 1910, in San Francisco, California. At age three, sent to live with grandfather and receive education in Fukuoka, Japan. After high school, temporarily moved to Tokyo and assisted family-owned business. In 1929, returned to U.S. to join parents in Sacramento. After arranged marriage to Mr. Tadao Sakita, moved to Los Angeles, …
Narrator James Omura
Nisei male. Born November 27, 1912, on Bainbridge Island, Washington. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, moved to Denver and took a job as English Editor of a Japanese American vernacular newspaper, the Rocky Shimpo. As editor, wrote about and supported the Fair Play Committee in Heart Mountain concentration camp. Was charged and tried for conspiracy …
Narrator Grant Hirabayashi
Kibei male. Born November 9, 1919, in Thomas, Washington. Went to Japan at age twelve, attended school, and returned to the U.S. as a high school student. Enlisted in the army just prior to the bombing of Pearl Harbor, and was eventually recruited for the Military Intelligence Service. Selected as one of fourteen Japanese Americans to …