“Born in an internment camp for Japanese Americans, she fears Muslims face a similar fate today,” Philadelphia Inquirer, February 5, 2017

“What to see in L.A. galleries: World War II farm labor camp photography and more,” Los Angeles Times, December 23, 2016

“JANM Exhibition to Showcase Photos from WWII Farm Labor Camps,” Rafu Shimpo, September 21, 2016

“Q&A with Morgen Young, Curator of Uprooted Exhibition on WWII Nikkei Farm Laborers,” Discover Nikkei, September 9, 2016

“Japanese-American Workers Exhibit,” Oregon Public Broadcasting, February 25, 2016

“New Traveling Exhibit ‘Uprooted’ Will Tell the Story of JA Farm Labor Workers,” Pacific Citizen, April 18-May 1, 2014

“Snapshot in Time: Traveling Photography Exhibit to Debut in Ontario,” Argus Observer, August 31, 2014

“Exhibit Tells Family’s Story,” Argus Observer, September 2, 2014

“Exhibit Features Images from Idaho’s WWII Labor Camps,” Idaho Statesman, September 11, 2014

“Japanese Americans Recount Their Experiences at WWII Farm Camp in Nyssa,” Idaho Statesman, September 15, 2014

“‘Uprooted’ Photo exhibit draws crowd on opening night in Ontario,” Argus Observer, September 18, 2014

“Harvesting History at the Opening Ceremony of ‘Uprooted,’” Pacific Citizen, October 27, 2014

In the following clip, Alice Sumida recalls her impressions of the Uchiyama family, while they worked together in sugar beet fields. Sitting beside her is Mathias Uchiyama.

Rich Iwasaki photographed the program and generously shared his images with us. Uprooted is currently on display at Oregon Nikkei Legacy Center until June 19.

Morgen Young spoke about the history of the Nyssa camp. © 2016 Rich Iwasaki.

More than 200 people attended the program. © 2016 Rich Iwasaki.

Several Nisei shared their memories of “the camp without a fence.” © 2016 Rich Iwasaki.

Taka Iwasaki, Nori Kido, and Aya Iwasaki at the Adrian camp, circa 1943. Image courtesy of Aya Fujii.

Uprooted was recently featured on Oregon Public Broadcasting’s Talk Out Loud. Our curator, Morgen Young, was joined by Aya Fujii and Taka Mizote. The sisters shared their memories of the farm labor camps in Nyssa and Adrian, Oregon.

Listen to the interview below or on OPB’s website.

From left to right: Vicki Nakamura (cousin), Ed Fujii (uncle), Henry Mishima (Gresham neighbor), Russell Yamada (author), and Tom Fujii (uncle) at the Four Rivers Cultural Center in Ontario, Oregon on September 13, 2014. Image courtesy of Russell Yamada.

It has been almost a year now since I attended the opening of the “Uprooted” exhibit in Ontario, Oregon, and what I learned there has provoked my curiosity and stuck in my mind ever since. At first, I asked myself why is this at all important to me? After all, I was born a year after the Adrian camp closed and I have lived 68 years just fine with hardly any knowledge of that period. Occasionally, my mom, Kimiko (Fujii) Yamada would give us brief glimpses of her experience, but in no way was it a complete story. Now, with my mom and most other Nisei gone, I am glad to finally learn more about this unique time in our family and U. S. history. I would love to sit down one day and tell this story to my two grandsons.

Ben Yonemura and Josie Williams Yonemura. Image courtesy of Karen Yonemura Ramirez.

“My mother was Caucasian, born in Spokane, WA. My father was full-blooded Japanese, born in Sumner, WA. They met each other when they were teens in Washington. My mother’s father cut and sold wood to people living in the Sumner area. My father’s family was one of his customers.”

Ben and Josie Yonemura in 1942. Image courtesy of Karen Yonemura Ramirez.

“My parents got married in Vancouver, WA in 1939. My mother was pregnant with me when evacuation occurred and they were placed in the fairgrounds in Puyallup. My mother said they lived in the animal stalls with only sheets hung on clothesline wires to separate the families. She said it rained and it was so damp that grass began to grow between the wood slats in the stalls.”

“She went to Minidoka with my father. When they got to the camp they were shown a pile of wood and were told they had to make their own furniture. They took bed sheets and sewed them together and stuffed them with straw to make mattresses. There was a rumor that any children born in camp would not have U.S. citizenship and the rumor caused fear. So she, not being Japanese, was able to get out of camp and she returned to her family in Washington. I was born in the old general hospital in Puyallup. When I was three months old, she and I went by train to Idaho. We got off the train in Shoshone and we were escorted by a U.S. Army soldier who drove us out to the camp in a jeep.”

Karen Yonemura at Mindoka, circa 1943. Image courtesy of Karen Yonemura Ramirez.

“My mother said that it was freezing cold in the winter, hot in the summer, and they had many dust storms. She said that the barracks had no insulation and the rats would get in and run around on the electrical wires. They had to go to the mess hall to eat their meals. They took their plates (they called them ‘dog dishes’) to the mess hall to get their food. She said she couldn’t stand the odor in the mess hall because they were served a lot of mutton and it had a very strong smell, so she would just get serving of rice and take it back to the barrack to eat.”

“While in camp, my father got a job picking up the garbage and driving it out to the dump. It was impossible for my mom to get canned milk for formula. My dad had a friend who was a cook in the mess hall and that friend would wrap cans of Carnation milk in paper bags and put it on top of the trash in one of the cans. When my dad got to the dump he would take the bag out of the can and take it back to the barrack so mom could make formula for me. They had to do what was necessary to survive.”

Karen Yonemura at the Twin Falls farm labor camp, circa 1945. Image courtesy of Karen Yonemura Ramirez.

“We lived at the labor camp in Twin Falls after being released [from Minidoka]. My dad got a job on the Herman Kaster farm, which was about three-quarters of a mile from the labor camp. We lived at the labor camp, in a cottage, for a couple of years.”

Karen Yonemura and her friend Hideo [last name unknown] at the Twin Falls farm labor camp, circa 1946-1947. Image courtesy of Karen Yonemura Ramirez.

Masami and Hideo [last name unknown] and Josie and Karen Yonemura at the Twin Falls farm labor camp, circa 1946-1947. Image courtesy of Karen Yonemura Ramirez.

“The Kasters had a small house that we moved to and lived in for seventeen years. They treated us like family. The farm was 160 acres and my dad did most of the work while we lived there and raised sugar beets, wheat, alfalfa, pinto beans, and potatoes. There were several large feedlots and he fed several hundred steers during the winter.  In the springtime the cattle was shipped out for slaughter.”

“Life was a bit difficult living in the Twin Falls area after the war. There was a lot of prejudice in that area at the time. My brother and I went to a parochial school and still experienced a lot of racial slurs and mistreatment there. On thing in particular that I remember is that a kid called me a ‘dirty Jap’ when I was in the second grade. I came from a very loving and happy home and had no idea that I was ‘different.’ I didn’t know what the kid meant by ‘dirty Jap.’ I went into the bathroom at school and looked in the mirror at my face, then at my hands and clothes to see if I looked dirty. When I got home that day, I asked my parents what that meant. They explained it to me and then I understood. I don’t hold any hard feelings or bitterness in my heart today because this happened, but I feel that it has made me a stronger, better person because of the experience. My parents never were bitter about what happened to them either. My dad would always say, ‘Well, it happened. It is in the past and now we must move forward.’ So that is what we did and I will always remember those words from him.”

“I think my parents’ story is very unique. They weathered through the hard times and prejudice and stayed married to each other for over forty-five years, until my mother passed away. We had a very happy home life and I had great parents. They never gave up hope or complained. They lost everything they had, started over again, and just moved forward.”

Mathias Uchiyama in Malheur County, Oregon, 1942. Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, FSA-OWI Collection, LC-USF34-073712-E.

Upon finding out that some of my family’s history was to be revealed in this exhibit, I was very intrigued. We had previously only gathered very small snippets about this experience from my father who was a small child at the time. The Uchiyama family’s experience differed from other Japanese-Americans who were in internment camps and it was always hard to explain to others why it was so and what had actually happened. This exhibit provided so much clarity.  

The Uchiyama family photographed left to right: Lea, Mathias, May, Gonzo, Sowa, Sam, and Minnie. Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, FSA-OWI Collection, LC-USF34-073566-D.

We were blessed beyond measure to find pictures of my father as a young child as well as aunts and uncles and our grandparents in the Library of Congress photos, some of which are included in this exhibit. We had no idea that they existed. In that theme, I think that many people have no idea that the internment and the labor camp experience ever happened and so I am grateful for the education that the Uprooted Exhibit provides.

The exhibit is sobering and yet the beauty of the black and white photography by Russell Lee shows the determined spirit and dignity of these Japanese-Americans even in the midst of hardship and loss of basic human rights.  The video that played in the background gave an informative perspective of these individuals who are now adults.  

Mathias Uchiyama poses with a portrait of his sister May. Image courtesy of Susan Nagai.

Upon arriving at the exhibit, my father happened to start talking to some individuals who had come to visit. It was a gift for both parties–for my father who was grateful that these people wanted to understand the struggle and for the other individuals who were able to see history come alive that day.  

Mathias Uchiyama points out his family members to museum visitors. Image courtesy of Susan Nagai.

Thank you to the organizers of the Uprooted Exhibit for faithfully telling this story in such a beautiful and artistic way.  

- Susan Uchiyama Nagai

The exhibit opened with a ribbon cutting, attended by historical society board members and volunteers, representatives from the Mini-Cassia Chamber of Commerce, Dr. Russ Tremayne, and curator Morgen Young.

Courtesy of the Mini-Cassia Chamber of Commerce.

Local television advertised exhibit events during the opening weekend.

With space at a premium, the museum chose to display mainly the photographs from the Rupert camp.

Roy Abo attended the exhibit events and gave us two handmade paper umbrellas.

We are thrilled that the exhibit has made its Idaho debut and that it can be seen by audiences in communities both big and small. From Rupert, the exhibit will make its way to Twin Falls in June and then to Coeur d’Alene in July.

“New Traveling Exhibit ‘Uprooted’ Will Tell the Story of JA Farm Labor Workers,” Pacific Citizen, April 18-May 1, 2014*

“Snapshot in Time: Traveling Photography Exhibit to Debut in Ontario,” Argus Observer, August 31, 2014

“Exhibit Tells Family’s Story,” Argus Observer, September 2, 2014

“Exhibit Features Images from Idaho’s WWII Labor Camps,” Idaho Statesman, September 11, 2014

“Japanese Americans Recount Their Experiences at WWII Farm Camp in Nyssa,” Idaho Statesman, September 15, 2014

“‘Uprooted’ Photo exhibit draws crowd on opening night in Ontario,” Argus Observer, September 18, 2014

“Harvesting History at the Opening Ceremony of ‘Uprooted,’” Pacific Citizen, October 27, 2014

James lived in the camp with his parents James Kenso and Toshiko Mildred. His father first worked in the camp in the fall of 1942, harvesting sugar beets. During the 1943 and 1944 sugar beet seasons, the entire family lived and worked at the Twin Falls camp, returning to Minidoka during the winter months. In 1945, the Tanakas moved to the labor camp and remained there until 1949. James now resides in the Los Angeles area. For the past several years, he has been studying the history of the War Relocation Authority’s seasonal leave program and has generously shared some of his research finds with us. In April 2014, he participated in an oral history interview for our project. You can read the transcript from his interview here.

The Twin Falls camp, located two miles south of town, operated year round. The Amalgamated Sugar Company began recruiting Nikkei workers in the spring of 1942 to help harvest the 6,500 acres of sugar beets in Twin Falls County. The company sent representatives to the temporary assembly center in Sacramento and on June 2, the first group of thirty five Japanese American laborers arrived at the camp. By the end of the month, two hundred more workers joined them. When Minidoka opened in August, it provided a steady stream of seasonal laborers. Additional workers were recruited from Heart Mountain, Manzanar, and Poston. Seasonal workers lived in barracks, while those individuals and families who resided at the camp all year lived in small cottages. The camp had a total capacity of 900, housing Japanese Americans, Mexican laborers through the bracero program, Jamaicans, and white migrant workers.

James’ first photograph shows him with his mother Toshiko and their dog Blackie. The building behind them was their two-bedroom house in the Twin Falls camp, one of forty-seven cottages on the property. The window on the left was his bedroom. The house had indoor plumbing, with the water heated by a coal burning stove. In addition to the bedrooms, the cottage also contained a small living room and a kitchen.

James Kazuo and Toshiko Mildred Tanaka. Courtesy of the Japanese American National Museum, 2001.179.7.

In comparison, each barrack building contained six one-room apartments. A single apartment typically housed four individuals and included a wood-burning stove for both heating and cooking. Unlike the cottages, the barracks did not have running water. Showers and bathrooms were located in separate structures in between the barracks. Because the camp lacked the means to heat the pipes, the barracks were closed during the winter months.

Interior of a barrack apartment. Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, FSA-OWI Collection, LC-USF34-073768-D.

James’ second photograph is of Howard Takahashi (1934-2000). He lived at the camp with his mother, Sumie Mary, and sister, Soeko Harriet. Better known as Munio Makuuchi, he became a noted poet and artist whose work drew upon his wartime experiences.

Howard Takahashi. Courtesy of the Japanese American National Museum, 2001.179.6.

James’ last photograph is of his father with flats of strawberries. The Tanaka family weeded and harvested various crops during their time living at the Twin Falls camp. James recalled arriving at the strawberry fields before dawn and harvesting the fruit until noon. James also shared memories of his family growing and selling green onions. “We were growing green onions. [We would] harvest them from the field, bring them home, place them in a galvanized tub with water, pull off the yellow leaves, bundle them with rubber bands, trim the tops and roots. My dad would take the green onion bundles directly to the Safeway market in Twin Falls and the onions would be placed directly on the produce counter ready to sell.”

James Kenso Tanaka and an unidentified farmer. Courtesy of the Japanese American National Museum, 2001.179.8.

Many buildings from the Twin Falls farm labor camp are still standing. The site is located on Labor Camp Road, just off Highway 74.

Aerial of the camp site in 2012. Source: Google Maps.

The Twin Falls farm labor camp in July 1942. Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, FSA-OWI Collection, LC-USF34-073771-D.

A surviving barrack style building at the camp site. Source: Google Maps.

A typical two-bedroom cottage at the camp site. Source: Google Maps.

Here is a photographic recap of the weekend’s activities:

Anne Enoki, Rose Sorensen, and Kay Yamaguchi stand in front of the image Russell Lee took of them at the Nyssa camp in 1942. Photo courtesy of David Nishitani.

Bob Kido, Hisako Yasuda, and Yae Kido at the opening reception. Siblings Bob and Hisako lived in the Nyssa camp in 1942. Photo courtesy of Four Rivers Cultural Center.

Oregon Cultural Heritage Commission president David Milholland discusses our Japanese translation of the exhibit’s text panels with Ontario residents Tomie and Sagie Nishihara. Photo courtesy of Four Rivers Cultural Center.

Janet Koda and Carol Takami-Tolman pose with their mother Mary Takami at the opening reception. Mary is featured in the middle photograph, the second woman on the right. Photo courtesy of David Nishitani.

Many old friends reunited at the opening reception. Here Paul Hirai sees Tom Fujii, June Morinaga, and Anne Enoki for the first time in decades.

On the morning of September 13, several Nisei and their families visited the former sites of the Nyssa and Adrian farm labor camps.

The former site of the Nyssa, Oregon farm labor camp.

“Uprooted” curator Morgen Young presented a history of the Nyssa farm labor camp to audience members on September 13. Photo courtesy of Four Rivers Cultural Center.

After Morgen’s talk, she was joined on stage by individuals who lived in farm labor camps. They answered questions from the audience, providing invaluable firsthand accounts of the camps. Pictured left to right: Janet Koda, Patricia Imada, Paul Hirai, Aya Fujii, Henry Mishima, Taka Mizote, Yasu Teramura, and Tom Fujii. Photo courtesy of Four Rivers Cultural Center.