Topaz
The Topaz Relocation Center, located near Delta, Utah, was called “The Jewel of the Desert,” yet historian Leonard Arrington admitted it was not a very attractive place. Its inhospitable alkali-laden…
Tule Lake
The Tule Lake Relocation Center in the Klamath Falls Basin of Northern California was not much of an improvement over the temporary assembly centers. The dust storms were so bad…
Manzanar
The Manzanar Relocation Center was the first to receive occupants, yet it was not welcoming by any measure. As Yuri Tateishi wrote, You felt like a prisoner. . . .…
Blossoms in the Desert
In the previous post, we considered the natural human response of Nikkei internees unjustly incarcerated. Christians, on the other hand, found solace in their faith and some even expressed how…
Into the Wilderness
By the fall of 1942, Japanese American internees were transported by train from the various assembly centers to ten different relocation centers in the country’s interior. Most of these multi-day…
Relocation: Blossoms in the Wilderness
Preparing for Relocation Ministry in the assembly centers was often challenging due to squalid conditions and the uncertain future. The Christian church, however, established a sense of normalcy for evacuees…
Santa Anita & Mayer Assembly Centers
Santa Anita in Arcadia, California, was the most-populated assembly center, holding 18,937 people by official figures. The first evacuees began arriving on April 3, Good Friday, and continued coming throughout…
Tulare & Pomona Assembly Centers
Tulare Between May 12-14, 1942, non-Japanese Christians from Pasadena ministered to evacuees departing for the Tulare Assembly Center housed on the county fairgrounds: Friends, cooperating with other church workers, were…
Pinedale & Fresno Assembly Centers
Pinedale The Pinedale Assembly Center, located just outside Fresno, California, was called “hell’s acre” by the internees because it was unbearably hot—up to 120 degrees in the shade (if there…
Tanforan & Salinas Assembly Centers
Tanforan The Tanforan Assembly Center in San Bruno, California, was a former race track built for horses, and the horse stalls were the living quarters for the people. Horse stalls…