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121 results for: Japanese American Incarceration

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Image of Closed businesses on  S. Main St. after forced removal of Japanese Americans, Seattle, June 1942
Photograph

Closed businesses on S. Main St. after forced removal of Japanese Americans, Seattle, June 1942

The exclusion of Seattle's Japanese families by the federal government during World War II changed the city in numerous ways. Among the more obvious signs were the shuttered and boarded up Japanese businesses along Main, Jackson and upper King Streets. Many of the families who managed or worked in the stores and shops never returned to the city after they…
ID Number:PI28075
Date:1942
Image of Japanese American incarcerees preparing to leave the Puyallup Assembly Center for concentration camps, Puyallup, 1942
Photograph

Japanese American incarcerees preparing to leave the Puyallup Assembly Center for concentration camps, Puyallup, 1942

By August 1942, the United States Army was ready for the large scale removal of Japanese and Japanese Americans from Seattle, King County and the rest of western Washington state. The Puyallup Assembly Center, euphemistically named "Camp Harmony," was a processing facility at the Puyallup Fairgrounds and accommodated 8,000 people at a time. In the rush to process so many…
ID Number:PI28078
Date:1942
Image of Japanese Americans leaving the Puyallup Assembly Center for incarceation, ca. August 9, 1942.
Photograph

Japanese Americans leaving the Puyallup Assembly Center for incarceation, ca. August 9, 1942.

By August 1942, the United States Army was ready for the large scale removal of Japanese and Japanese Americans from Seattle, King County and the rest of western Washington State. The Puyallup Assembly Center, euphemistically named "Camp Harmony," was a processing facility at the Puyallup Fairgrounds and accommodated 8,000 people at a time. In the rush to process so many…
ID Number:PI28080
Date:1942
Image of Japanese Americans boarding train for Minidoka War Relocation Center, Puyallup, 1942
Photograph

Japanese Americans boarding train for Minidoka War Relocation Center, Puyallup, 1942

In this image Japanese American residents of the Seattle area are boarding the train at North Puyallup for their transfer to a concentration camp in Minidoka, Idaho. The Puyallup Assembly Center, better known by the euphemism Camp Harmony, was situated at the Western Washington fairgrounds in the heart of Puyallup. The assembly center was a temporary facility into which Japanese…
ID Number:PI28081
Date:1942
Image of Uni group assisting returning Japanese Americans, 1945
Photograph

Uni group assisting returning Japanese Americans, 1945

On December 18, 1944, the United States Government announced that Japanese Americans in incarceration camps could return to their homes after January 1, 1945. In Seattle, and elsewhere on the West Coast, this was a controversial issue. When the first returnees arrived in Seattle in January, some found a cold welcome and vandalized property. The Seattle Civic Unity Committee, the…
ID Number:PI28082
Date:1945
Image of Racist graffiti in front of Japanese American home, Seattle, May 11, 1945
Photograph

Racist graffiti in front of Japanese American home, Seattle, May 11, 1945

On December 18, 1944, the United States government announced that Japanese Americans in incarceration camps could return to their homes after January 1, 1945. In Seattle, and elsewhere on the West Coast, this was a controversial issue. When the first returnees arrived in Seattle in January, some found a cold welcome and vandalized property. Groups like the Remember the Pearl…
ID Number:PI28083
Date:1945
Image of Graffiti on Japanese American home, Seattle, 1945
Photograph

Graffiti on Japanese American home, Seattle, 1945

On December 18, 1944, the United States government announced that Japanese Americans in incarceration camps could return to their homes after January 1, 1945. In Seattle, and elsewhere on the West Coast, this was a controversial issue. When the first returnees arrived in Seattle in January, some found a cold welcome and vandalized property. Groups like the Remember the Pearl…
ID Number:PI28084
Date:1945
Image of Room with property confiscated from Japanese Americans, Seattle, November 1945
Photograph

Room with property confiscated from Japanese Americans, Seattle, November 1945

On February 19, 1942, shortly after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor and United States entry into WWII, President Franklin Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, calling for the exclusion of all civilians of Japanese descent from "designated military areas." In March 1942 Japanese Americans living on Bainbridge Island were the first in the country to be taken from their homes by…
ID Number:PI28086
Date:1945
Image of Japanese Americans at Pier 42 for return to Hawaii, Seattle, November 7, 1945
Photograph

Japanese Americans at Pier 42 for return to Hawaii, Seattle, November 7, 1945

Unlike Japanese Americans on the mainland, Japanese Americans living in Hawaii during World War II were not incarcerated en masse. The approximately 150,000 Japanese Americans were the largest single ethnic group in Hawaii and constituted more than one third of the territory’s population. Hawaii’s economy and society relied on the work done by Japanese Americans, and business and military leaders…
ID Number:PI28089
Date:1945
Image of Eight Japanese American children returning from incarceration camps, November 8, 1945
Photograph

Eight Japanese American children returning from incarceration camps, November 8, 1945

In this image eight Japanese American children pose as they prepare to leave Seattle for their native Hawaii after having been released from incarceration camps.On February 19, 1942, shortly after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor and United States entry into WWII, President Franklin Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, calling for the exclusion of all civilians of Japanese descent from "designated…
ID Number:PI28090
Date:1945
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MOHAI stands on the historic and contemporary lands and shores of the Duwamish, Suquamish, Muckleshoot, and other Coast Salish Nations. We acknowledge the forced displacement of Native Communities from this land while honoring the endurance of the Duwamish people who still live here.
Address: 860 Terry Ave N, Seattle WA, 98109
Phone: 206 324 1126
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