In the spring of 1942, persons of Japanese descent living on the West Coast were forcibly removed by the US Army into "assembly centers" while permanent incarceration camps were built. The Puyallup Assembly Center, euphemistically named "Camp Harmony," was hastily constructed at the Washington State fairgrounds in Puyallup and temporarily housed over 7,000 residents of Seattle, Tacoma and Alaska. In order to feed so many, meals were regimented and traditional style Japanese food was substituted with canned vegetables and bread.

Here, a young girl hands a cook her plate to receive a helping of food while her mother stands near.

Handwritten on sleeve: PUYALLUP, Wash., Japanese colony, Camp Harmony.
Date photograph was filed at the Seattle Post-Intelligencer (date of photograph and file date may differ by a month or more): June 12, 1942.