Cover Page

Abstract

Acknowledgments

Project Summary

Confinement and Ethnicity: An Overview of World War II Japanese American Relocation Sites by J. Burton, M. Farrell, F. Lord, and R. Lord

Abstract

This report provides an overview of the tangible remains currently left at the sites of the Japanese American internment during World War II. The main focus is on the War Relocation Authority's relocation centers, but Department of Justice and U.S. Army facilities where Japanese Americans were interned are also considered. The goal of the study has been to provide information for the National Landmark Theme Study called for in the Manzanar National Historic Site enabling legislation. Archival research, field visits, and interviews with former internees provide preliminary documentation about the architectural remnants, the archeological features, and the artifacts remaining at the sites. The degree of preservation varies tremendously. At some locations, modern development has obscured many traces of the World War II-era buildings and features. At a few sites, relocation center buildings still stand, and some are still in use. Overall the physical remains at all the sites are evocative of this very significant, if shameful, episode in U.S. history, and all appear to merit National Register of Historic Places or National Historic Landmark status.

Acknowledgments

As would be expected with a project taking nearly six years to complete, the authors are indebted to many. Three of the authors (Mary, Dick, and Flo) volunteered hundreds of hours of their time. Funding for the senior author was provided by Manzanar National Historic Site. The support, encouragement, and patience of park superintendent Ross Hopkins is gratefully acknowledged. George Teague supervised the project. AutoCAD maps were drafted by Ron Beckwith. Uncredited photographs in the report were taken by the authors. Translations were furnished by Shoko Fujita-Ehrlich and a volunteer. Mary Blackburn, Roger Daniels, Susumu Toyoda, and Sue Wells pointed out some egregious errors in earlier printings. The authors would also like to thank the following persons and institutions for their help:

Joe Allman Jane Beckwith Birt Bedeau Tink Borum James Bryant Daniel Burton Irene Cohen John Collins Phyllisa Eisentraut John Ellington Terry Hendricks Gerald Gates Jane Goldstein Rosalie Gould Elizabeth Greathouse Farrell Hatch Gary Hathaway Dale Heckendorn Taro Hirama John Hopper Mas Inoshita Kent Just Erik Kreusch Jim Kubota Signa Larralde Frank Makamura Nathan Mayo Jim McDonald Lynne McDonald Jim McKie Angela Nava Joe Norikane Tom Pittman Garth Portillo Nicole Ramos Mary Robertson Roger Roper Ann King Smith Kenji Taguma James West

Archaeological Research Services Arizona Chapter of the Japanese American Citizens League Arizona Daily Star Bancroft Library Coronado National Forest Crystal City Town Hall Eastern California Museum Franklin D. Roosevelt Library Great Basin Museum Heart Mountain Memorial Foundation Kenedy Chamber of Commerce Klamath National Wildlife Refuge Lordsburg Information Center Los Angeles County Fairplex Los Angeles Times Mack Alford Correctional Center Manzanar Advisory Commission Mayer Public Library Museum of Northern Arizona North Dakota State Historical Society Prescott National Forest Prescott Public Library Puyallup Fair Santa Anita Racetrack Seattle Times Sharlott Hall Museum Topaz Museum Foundation Trans-Sierran Archaeological Research UCLA Special Collections Tule Lake National Wildlife Refuge Twin Falls Chamber of Commerce United States National Archives University of Arizona Special Collections Yuba County Library

Project Summary

WACC Project Number: MANZ 1944 B.
Type of Project: Overview/survey.
Project Team: Jeff Burton, Mary Farrell, Dick and Flo Lord.
Field Work Dates: Intermittently 1994-1999.
Person Days in Field: ~80.
Project Location: Western United States.
Project Scope: Field review of 35 sites associated with Japanese American internment during WW II.
National Register Status: Seven of the visited sites are listed on the National Register (Granada 5/18/94; Heart Mtn. 12/19/85; Manzanar 7/39/79; Minidoka 7/10/79; Rohwer 7/30/74; Topaz 1/2/74; and Moab 5/2/94).
Collections Accession Information: MANZ Acc. No. 00014, WACC Acc. No. 01252, WACC Photograph Acc. No. 94:17.

This report is number 74 in a continuing series, Publications in Anthropology, published by the Western Archaeological and Conservation Center, 1415 North Sixth Avenue, Tucson, Arizona 85705.

Reprinted with minor corrections July 2000

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Last Modified: Mon, Apr 9 2001 07:08:48 am PDT
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