Kawakami House

This monument is the photoscan version. It is located at the entrance of Japantown, San Jose and in front of the Art Object Gallery.

The brick wall on the side of the building at the northwest corner of North Sixth and Jackson was the
neighborhood bulletin board. This was one of the most important locations in early Japantown. For
decades before World War II, people would gather to read postings of sports scores (especially of the
San Jose Asahi baseball team), local events, meetings, and news (including the Great Kanto Earthquake
of 1923). The use of the public bulletin board ended with the forced removal of the Japanese in 1942.

Although the Great Depression had a devastating effect on the American economy, the Buddhist church
congregation managed to pull together the resources to construct a new temple, completed in 1937.

During the 1970s and 1980s, Ken Ying Low
the restaurant was the oldest business to close. It was the last direct link to San Jose Chinatown. For the earliest Japanese, Ken Ying Low was the Chinese restaurant for dining and banquets. Now, it is gone forever.

In late 1944, the interned Japanese were informed that they could return to theWest Coast. It was of
dubious coincidence that the City of San Jose decided to have the fire department make building
inspections and condemn “substandard” structures as unlivable. It was of even greater “coincidence”
that the first neighborhood to be inspected was Japantown. Many old wooden buildings that served
as boarding houses before theWar were condemned, making them unavailable as housing for the
returning Japanese. Headlines like “Order Passed Before Return of Japs Told” and “Jap Houses
Condemned” told the story of what the City of San Jose was up to.

On May 4, 1887, a fire broke out in Market Street Chinatown. For some strange reason, when the
firefighters arrived at the blaze, the water tanks had been drained and Chinatown burned to the
ground. Despite the lack of water, the firefighters managed to prevent the fire from spreading to
areas outside Chinatown in downtown San Jose.

In 1910, the Kuwabara Hospital was built to accommodate the community where most could not speak
English and were reluctant to visit American doctors. By law, none of the Japanese doctors at the hospital
could legally practice medicine in this country. So they served under the auspices of Dr. Beattie, an
American doctor. Today, the hospital is the Issei Memorial Building.

Looking northeast towards San Fernando Street and Market Street, surveying damage from a deliberately 
the set fire which destroyed the largest Chinatown south of San Francisco on May 4, 1887.

Looking south along Market Street. The photograph was taken from the top of Hensley House on Market Street 
and Santa Clara Street. The windmill is at the corner of Market and El Dorado. In the center, are the black 
towers of Saint Joseph's Church, which burned in 1875.

The 11,000-pound granite rock was brought over from Inujima Island and given to San Jose as a gift from its sister city, Okayama, Japan. The stone serves as a permanent tribute to the courage and perseverance of the Issei pioneers who settled in San Jose’s Japantown.

This is a photoscan of the monument. It is located at the entrance of the Japantown, San Jose, CA.

This monument is located in front of the Issei Memorial Building, Japantown, San Jose, CA.

This monument is located in front of the Issei Memorial Building, Japantown, San Jose, CA.

This monument is located in front of the Issei Memorial Building, Japantown, San Jose, CA.

This monument is located in front of the Issei Memorial Building, Japantown, San Jose, CA.

When the war was over, many of them returned home destitute and demoralized. They converted buildings in San Jose’s Japantown into makeshift barracks while they figured out what to do next. KTEH broadcast a compelling documentary about that period in history, called "Return to the Valley." Jimi Yamaichi is one of the people featured.

The barracks room is an accurate recreation of a family’s living quarters at the Tule Lake camp.  JAMsj curator  Jimi Yamaichi, who was also a construction foreman at the Tule Lake camp, created this replica based on architectural specifications and from his own vivid memories.  Yamaichi even remembered to add a gap between the floorboards which is significant since many former internees recalled that their barracks also had the same annoying imperfection.

Most of the items seen in the barracks room are genuine artifacts from the camps, including the wood/coal burning stove, a window, door, handmade furniture, and several decorative and utilitarian items.  Yamaichi’s attention to detail has had a profound effect on many former internees as many of their senses become engaged with many long forgotten memories.

Picture of Mr. and Mrs. Kawakami and their three children.

Looking west of F Street with Heart Mountian looming in the background, 1942. Photographer: Tom Parker. The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley.  

Trial of 63 draft resistor, Mitz is 11th from the left. front row. US District Court, Cheyenne, Wyoming, May 10, 1944. Courtesy of California State University Sacramento, Japanese American Archival Collection. 

Kerosene heaters kept the house warm. The heaters could be moved around with the handle on top. Kerosene was also used to heat the kitchen stove.

This is a 3D photoscan of the original from the JAMsj. 

This is the story that has become art American saga,"Go For Broke :A Pictorial History of the Japanese American 1001 Infantry Battalion and the 442nd Regimental Combat Team,"
  It is amazing record of a regiment of "Enemy Aliens' (4C. Selective Service classification) who came from concentration camps, from suspicion and disrupt, to fight fro the United States in WW2 and emerges as the "most  decorated unit in U.S. military history".

LUGGAGE:

Incarcerees were only allowed to bring
what they could carry. Most people
carried two large suitcases filled with
clothes, appliances, and personal
keepsakes.

EXECUTIVE ORDER 9066

In February of 1942, President Franklin D
Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066,
which authorized the removal of anyone
deemed a national security threat from
the west coast to relocation centers
inland. This was not just a result of the
Japanese attack on the American naval
base at Pearl Harbor but also the
culmination of years of xenophobia and pressure from farming unions to slow the
growth of Japanese American influence
and affluence on the west coast.

REMOVAL ORDER

After Executive Order 9066 was enacted,
removal orders were posted up all across
the west coast. These removal orders
informed people of Japanese ancestry
that they were being required to sell or
abandon all of their belongings and
report to an assembly site on short
notice.

The 442nd Infantry Regiment was
composed almost entirely of second
generation Japanese Americans, most of
whom still had family inkincarceration
camps. The regiment, in which 14,000
men would serve for, fought in the
European theater of World War Il with
their most famous mission being the
rescue of the Lost Battalion.

To make life feel more normal and bearable, many incarcerees took up or continued to practice their artistic crafts. This exhibit houses many authentic pieces of art from internment camps, including powerful landscapes and meticulously handcrafted wood sculptures.  

The Model T was produced by the Henry
Ford Motor Company from 1908-1927
and is widely considered the first
1922 affordable automobile. Given its
durability and dependability, local
farmers would often customize their cars
into small tractors or trucks.

Primarily set up for the "big farm", the Republic Motor Truck was an extremely useful vehicle to many farmers. Considered a true workhorse, this truck could be set up in a number of different configurations making it
widely popular. Known for its modularity it could be changed around to fit a particular farmer's needs. This truck was revered for its power, capacity,
strength and speed. Originally sold with hard solid rubber tires, many owners began to switch
to pneumatic tires (balloon tires) around 1917. Because the solid rubber tires where a detriment to the dirt roads at the time the government began
to charge a cheaper registration rate if the truck was equipped with pneumatic tires. These tires were easier on the roads but the downside was that the truck could not carry as much weight.

      -Courtesy of Sakauye Brothers*

Life in Japantown was a unique mix of
Japanese and American culture.
Although immigrants still mainly spoke
Japanese, ate Japanese food, and
practiced Buddhism, they made efforts to
assimilate to American culture, such as
by wearing western clothing, playing
American sports, and even joining
American organizations, such as the Boy Scouts.

The hospital stayed in business until 1934 when the first Japanese doctor got his degree from Stanford University and was allowed to practice at the San Jose hospital. From 1934 to the present the building was for a time the headquarters for the Nihonjinkai (Japanese Association) until its interior renovation in 1983 resulted in it being renamed the Issei Memorial Building. The picture depicts the Kumamoto Kenjinkai who contributed to the creation of the hospital. 

The Dobashi market was opened in 1912 by Kinosuke Dobashi who originally named it the Kinokuniya Shoten. The store would eventually adopt the name of its owners and in 1935 the original building was torn down and replaced with the current building. The Dobashi family ran the market for almost a hundred years when it closed down in 2006. The building currently is home of the Tsugaru Restaurant (recently closed after 47 years of business). 

From left to right: Perry, Larry, Phillip, Chizuko, Andy Krupinski, Kay, Toni, Kevin Takaki, Tomiye, and Harry Dobashi. 

One of the oldest restaurants in Japantown, San Jose, California. After being opened in 1972 and serving excellent food to their loyal customer. It recently closed its door in 2019 after 47 years of business. 

The second son of Kinosuke Dobashi who ran the Dobashi Market, James proved to be a very strong man as it was believed he could carry up to five sacks of rice at a time. During the 1930s James was a state champion and won many championships. 

When the war was over, many of them returned home destitute and demoralized. They converted buildings in San Jose’s Japantown into makeshift barracks while they figured out what to do next. KTEH broadcast a compelling documentary about that period in history, called "Return to the Valley." Jimi Yamaichi is one of the people featured.

A Sumo wrestling match held in the empty lot on 6th Street and Jackson across the street from the Japanese Bath house. In the early days of Japantown Sumo wrestling matches were a popular form of entertainment and were generally held on special holidays. The ring for the sumo matches was built up after the Asahi Baseball team moved to a new stadium in 1926. The Sumo ring was lost during the internment and the sport of sumo wrestling faded in popularity in the postwar period as the last state championship was held in 1952. 

Sports have always played an integral role in the Japanese American community. Sumo, kendo, judo, Asahi baseball and Zebras basketball were all very popular pre-war sports. During Internment, the Asahi baseball team also took the name Zebras, continuing through the 1950s, while Zebras basketball continues to this day.

During World War II when the community was incarcerated, baseball provided much needed recreation and a sense of normalcy in the desolate camps. The San Jose Zebra team, which was formed in the camps, continued to play during the resettlement period (post 1945). The Zebras played as a team until 1963.

The San Jose Asahi Team was formed in 1913 and was one of the longest lasting Japanese American baseball teams, although the team did change its name multiple times until its breakup in 1961. This photograph is of the B team playing a tournament in San Jose while the A team was in Japan playing a stream of games in which they won over thirty games. Pictured here in addition to the Asahi team are two teams from Palo Alto, Salinas, and Oakland. 

The San Jose Hongwanji Buddhist Church was built in 1937 at 640 North Fifth Street to replace the original which was a two story wooden building. The original church was established in 1902. Reverend Honen Takahashi hired Gentaro and Shinzaburo Nishiura to construct the new church which was designed by George Shimamoto. The church was modeled after the Nishi Honganji Temples in Kyoto. During the internment the Church was used to house the possessions of numerous families and was the victim of a fire in 1942 which destroyed the basement. Today the church offers Sunday Services, language classes, scouting programs, and other services. 

After the closure of the theatre, the owners of the building removed the stairway and the sloping floor and began to rent out the hall for large banquets and other events. Since about 1975, it has been leased by the Japanese martial arts school San Jose Aikido, and is currently used as a permanent rehearsal space by San Jose Taiko.

Built in 1916 the Japanese Hall replaced the previous hall located on 5th and Taylor Streets that burned down the previous year. The hall was built thanks to Fukuichi Okida and other community leaders who put up the funds for it and was constructed by brothers Gentaro and Shinzaburo Nishura. During its run the theater would have live performances and later would show movies both American and Japanese. The theater eventually would be called the Okida Hall as Fukuichi and his son Harry Okida owned the surrounding properties. In this image a group of children from the Japanese language school are in costume to perform a play at the theater. 

All of the vehicles and most of the farming equipment in the exhibit was donated by JAMsj cofounder, Eiichi Sakauye. The Sakauye family primarily farmed off the Trimble Road area in San Jose (in what was then a part of Alviso). The family still owns a small plot of farmland off of Montague Expressway and Trimble Road, nestled between several high technology companies.

The original Chidori Band at their premiere concert at Okida Hall in 1954. Japantown in the Peak Years
wasn’t just about business. New cultural venues such as the Chidori Band made their debut. The band
formed through the efforts of community leaders, who saw a need to provide live entertainment for the
Issei. With the exception of shows like KLOK radio’s “Sakura Melodies,” there was little or no
entertainment for Japanese-speaking people in the Santa Clara Valley. Kay Tani was singing at a
company party when Kanjiro Shiraki asked if he would be interested in forming a band to perform
Japanese songs.

Originally located on the north part of Sixth Street Kohei Kogura started his business in 1928 and moved his store to its current location at 231 Jackson Street in 1934. The Kogura Department Store was one of the few stores that survived the internment during World War II and has been a staple of Japantown to this day and is currently run by Carolyn Kogura. In the picture from left to right is Kohei Kogura, Tadao Kogura, Hatsuyo Yamatoda Kogura, Bernice Nakagawa Akizuki, Kazuko Kumamoto Kogura, Hanaka Okamura Yamatoda, Chiye Takeda Kogura, James Kogura, Shigeru Yamatoda, Akiko Yoshioka Kogura, Tsutomo Akizuki, Edward Akizuki, Matsuko Yamatoda, Ohato Iwamuro Yamatoda, and Jane Yamanaka Yamatoda. 

Japanese American Museum of San Jose and the stories it withholds