A Place to Call Home
After the war, churches and other service organizations banded together to help with the work of resettlement. The exodus began as a trickle, but would become a torrent by the…
Resettlement: The Return from Exile
Almost immediately after opening the camps, the WRA considered plans for Nikkei resettlement. They knew it would be cheaper to pay them to leave than to continue providing them food,…
Jerome
The Jerome Relocation Center in southeastern Arkansas was a living environment that, at least initially, was soul-destroying, sickening—literally. As the Jerome camp director Paul Taylor conceded to his superiors in…
Rohwer
Hiro Mizushima’s first impression of the Rohwer Relocation Center in southeastern Arkansas was its sparseness: “The barrack itself was just tar paper on the outside. We had a pot belly…
Gila River
Among the ten Relocation Centers, Gila River in central Arizona was perhaps the most well-kept and therefore ideal for publicity.[1] Temperatures still reached 105 degrees or hotter in July. As…
Poston
The Poston Relocation Center was located in the isolated desert wilderness of Arizona. As temperatures often reached 115 degrees, residents would pour water on their canvas cots to keep cool…
Heart Mountain
Residents of the Heart Mountain Relocation Center, in northwestern Wyoming, first arrived on August 12, 1942. As they disembarked the train, weary men, women, and children trudged the quarter-mile walk…
Granada
The Granada “Amache” Relocation Center, in the isolated Colorado prairie, required three days travel by train for most evacuees to arrive. Director James G. Lindley, a devout Christian man, was…
Minidoka
The Minidoka Relocation Center was located on sagebrush land in south-central Idaho where the temperature ranged between 30 degrees below zero to 104 above. Min Yasui recalled his arrival: “We…
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…