History & Culture

Amache Community Council, 1943.

National Archives

The smallest incarceration site by population—the Granada Relocation Center, as it was designated by the War Relocation Authority—was in Colorado, only 15 miles west of the Kansas border and less than 2 miles from the town of Granada. Although all WRA records refer to the incarceration camp as the Granada Relocation Center, early on, incarcerees began referring to the camp as Amache, after the camp’s postal designation. Built to accommodate up to 8,000 people, Amache housed 7,318 incarcerees at its peak in 1943, making it the 10th largest city in Colorado at that time. During its three years of operation, 10,331 incarcerees passed through Amache. Its population often fluctuated due to work, education, and military leave programs, as well as indefinite leaves as part of the resettlement program.