1642 items
Narrator Yoneo Yamamoto
Nisei male. Born March 26, 1923, in Los Angeles, California. Grew up in the Boyle Heights area where father ran a pharmacy. During World War II, removed to the Manzanar concentration camp, California. After leaving camp, lived for a time in Cleveland, Ohio, before returning to Los Angeles and establishing a successful career in public health.
Narrator Jack Y. Kubota
Nisei male. May 4, 1929, in Pasadena, California. Grew up El Centro, California, where father was a truck farmer. During World War II, removed with family to the Poston (Colorado River) concentration camp, Arizona. After leaving camp, lived for a time in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and joined the navy. Graduated from college in San Diego and …
Narrator Homer Yasui
Nisei male. Born December 28, 1924, in Hood River, Oregon. Grew up in Hood River, where father and uncles ran a store. During World War II, removed to the Pinedale Assembly Center, California, and the Tule Lake concentration camp, California. After leaving camp, attended college in Denver and Philadelphia. Eventually became a physician and returned to …
Narrator Paul Saito
Nisei male. Born January 21, 1923, in Portland, Oregon. Grew up in Carver and Ontario, Oregon, where parents ran a farm. Remained in Ontario during World War II. Drafted into the military in 1945 and served in the Counterintelligence Corps in Japan during the U.S. occupation. Returned to Oregon after military service and continued to farm.
Narrator Toshio Inahara
Nisei male. Born January 9, 1921, in Seattle, Washington. Grew up in Tacoma, Washington, where father ran a Japanese confectionery. In the early 1930s, moved with family to Oregon. During World War II, family took advantage of the "voluntary evacuation" period and moved to Ontario, Oregon. Attended medical school and established a prominent career as a …
Narrator Hy Shishino
Nisei male. Born June 25, 1924, in Los Angeles, California. Grew up in the Los Angeles area where parents owned a flower shop. During World War II removed to the Santa Anita Assembly Center, California, and the Gila River concentration camp, Arizona. Left camp and worked in Minneapolis, Minnesota, for several years before returning to Los …
Narrator Nancy Shimotsu
Nisei female. Born July 23, 1922, in Dominguez Hills, California. Grew up in Dominguez Hills, where parents ran a farm. During World War II, removed to the Tulare Assembly Center, California, and the Gila River concentration camp, Arizona. After leaving camp, lived for several years in Chicago, Illinois, before returned to California. Became a dietition after …
Narrator Sumi Ikata
Nisei female. Born March 3, 1918, in Portland, Oregon. Grew up in Independence, Oregon, where parents ran a farm. Married and was pregnant with first child before World War II. During the war, was removed to the Portland Assembly Center, Oregon, and the Minidoka concentration camp, Idaho. After leaving camp, returned to the Gresham, Oregon, area.
Narrator George Tsugawa
Nisei male. Born June 20, 1921, in Everett, Washington. Grew up primarily in Hillsboro, Oregon, where family ran a produce business and farm. During World War II, removed with family to the Portland Assembly Center, Oregon, and the Minidoka concentration camp, Idaho. After leaving camp, returned to Oregon and eventually moved to Woodland, Washington, establishing a …
Narrator Minoru J. Shibata
Nisei male. Born 1928 in San Francisco, California. Spent most of childhood on Terminal Island, California, where father was a fisherman. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, father was arrested by the FBI and the rest of the family moved to Ogden, Utah, to farm. Served in the Army Air Corps in Japan during the U.S. …
Narrator George Oda
Nisei male. Born December 24, 1923, in Burbank, California. Grew up in the North Hollywood area of Los Angeles, California, where parents ran a farm. During World War II, removed to the Manzanar concentration camp, California. Left camp and worked for a time in Denver, Colorado, before eventually returning to the Los Angeles area to farm.
Narrator George Maeda
Nisei male. Born July 27, 1932, in Chatsworth, California. Grew up in the San Fernando Valley, California, where parents ran a farm. During World War II, removed to the Manzanar concentration camp, California. After leaving camp, returned to the San Fernando Valley, was drafted into the military during the Korean War, and eventually became an engineer.
Narrator Lily Kajiwara
Nisei female. Born July 26, 1924, in Portland, Oregon. Grew up in the Gresham/Troutdale area of Oregon, where parents had a farm. During World War II, removed to the Portland Assembly Center, Oregon, and the Minidoka concentration camp, Idaho. While in camp, worked as an assistant teacher. After camp, lived in New York before returning to …
Narrator Sumiko Yamauchi
Nisei female. Born January 11, 1927, in Los Angeles, California. Grew up in Los Angeles, where parents ran a florist shop. During World War II, sent to the Manzanar concentration camp, California. After leaving camp, lived and worked with family at Seabrook Farms, New Jersey, before leaving to attend school in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Eventually returned to …
Narrator Sadako Nimura Kashiwagi
Nisei female. Born June 27, 1933, in Sacramento, California. Grew up in Newcastle, California, where parents were tenant farmers. During World War II, removed to the Marysville Assembly Center, California, and then to the Tule Lake concentration camp, California. Remained in Tule Lake when it was converted to a segregation center. After leaving camp, returned to …
Narrator Ko Nishimura
Nisei male. Grew up the Pasadena, California, area, where parents worked in a family-owned nursery. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, family moved to Reedley, California, for a short time before being removed to the Manzanar concentration camp, California. At Manzanar, father worked for the government's guayule project. After leaving camp, returned to California and became …
Narrator Toshiko Hayashi
Nisei female. Born April 14, 1925, in Portland, Oregon. Grew up in Beaverton, Oregon, where parents farmed and sold produce at a nearby market. During World War II, family moved to Ontario, Oregon, to avoid mass removal, and worked for a white farmer. Toshiko attended Boise State University in Idaho and then moved to Seattle after …
Narrator Jo Takata
Sansei female. Born January 16, 1944, at the Topaz concentration camp, Utah. After leaving camp, the family returned to Alameda, California, where they had lived before World War II. Jo grew up in Alameda and became a high school teacher. Involved with the Buena Vista United Methodist Church and numerous other Japanese American community activities in …
Narrator Miki Maehara Rotman
Nisei female. Born 1942 on Maui, Hawaii, where both parents grew up. Father was killed in action in Europe while serving with the 442nd Regimental Combat Team during World War II. Grew up in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Worked as a drill press operator at a gear company and then became a drafter. Involved in numerous community activist …
Narrator Elmer Tazuma
Issei male. Born March 30, 1916, in Kure, Japan. Immigrated with parents to Seattle as a child, where parents ran several hotels and apartment buildings in the International District, as well as the Tazuma Ten Cent store. In his interview, discusses Japanese American hotel ownership from the early to mid-1900s and the role of the hotel …
Narrator Richard Murakami
Nisei male. Born June 18, 1914, in Nemah, Washington. His family owned and operated Eagle Oyster Packing Company in Nahcotta, Washington. Incarcerated at the Tule Lake concentration camp, California. Returned to Nemah following the war, where his family had to fight to get the company back. Eventually, sold the business to Coast Oyster Company and stayed …
Narrator Yooichi Wakamiya
Nisei male. Born July 10, 1933, in Hawthorne, California. Grew up in Hawthorne where parents ran a flower growing business. During World War II, removed with family to the Santa Anita Assembly Center, California, and the Rohwer concentration camp, Arkansas. After leaving camp, lived with family for a time in a trailer camp in Los Angeles, …
Narrator Muriel Chiyo Tanaka Onishi
Nisei female. Born March 6, 1921, in Hilo, Hawaii. Grew up in Hilo, where parents were Japanese language school teachers. In 1939, moved to Japan to obtain medical treatment, and attended school there. During World War II, was conscripted into the Japanese military and worked as an interpreter, translating U.S. radio transmissions for General Headquarters in …
Narrator Min Tonai
Nisei male. Born February 6, 1929, in San Pedro, California. Grew up on Terminal Island, California, where father ran several successful stores. During World War II, removed with family to the Santa Anita Assembly Center, California, and the Granada (Amache) concentration camp, Colorado. After leaving camp returned to California to attend school. Served in Korea and …
Narrator Mae Iseri Yamada
Nisei female. Born August 22, 1918, in Thomas, Washington. Grew up in Thomas, where parents ran a grocery store and farm. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, removed to the Pinedale Assembly Center and Tule Lake concentration camp, California. Married in camp, and went to work in Weiser, Idaho, and Ontario, Oregon. After the war, returned …