In 1932, Tsueko Kihara and her five children left their home in Seattle for an extended visit to Japan. Her husband, Ichimatsu Kihara, remained in Seattle working as a fish wholesaler. When Japan invaded China in 1937, the Kiharas were unable to leave the country and were stuck in Japan during the entire Pacific War. On August 6th, 1945, the Kiharas were in Hiroshima when the United States dropped a nuclear bomb on the city. The youngest Kihara sister, Nobu, died in the bombing. After several visits to the US consul in Japan, the Kiharas received permission to return to the US in 1947. They were the first family repatriated from Japan to Seattle.

This image shows the reunited Kihara family in their home on Main Street in Seattle in 1947. From left: Masuye, Tayeko, Tsueko, Ichimatsu (sitting in chair), Itsuko, and Eugene. They are pictured shortly after the family’s return from Japan.

Caption information source: Seattle Post-Intelligencer, “Seattle Nisei, Home from Hiroshima, Describe Terrors of Atomic Bombing,” By Joe Miller, June 8, 1947, p. 109.