Minidoka National Historic Site ⓘ

Minidoka was one of ten War Relocation Authority (WRA) camps used to carry out the government's system of exclusion and detention of persons of Japanese descent, mandated by Executive Order 9066. Executive Order 9066, which eliminated the constitutional protections of due process and violated the Bill of Rights, was issued February 19, 1942 following Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Two-thirds of the 120,000 persons of Japanese descent incarcerated in American concentration camps were American citizens, an act that culminated decades of anti-Japanese violence, discrimination and propaganda.

Minidoka opened August 10, 1942, detaining persons of Japanese descent removed from Washington, Oregon and Alaska. With a peak population of 9,397, Minidoka was a regular size camp. It operated like a city with all of the pieces and parts necessary for the inhabitants to exist. Minidoka closed its gates on October 28, 1945.

Fire Stations Interpretive Trail Center Field Families, Food, and Dining Bainbridge Island, WA Hood River Valley Kooskia Internment Camp, ID

Over 13,000 Japanese Americans lived at Minidoka War Relocation Center from 1942-1945. They were forced to leave their homes with little notice and could only bring what they could carry in two suitcases or other containers. While at Minidoka, the incarcerees turned their drab quarters into "home." How did they furnish their living spaces? What did they do for amusement and recreation? How did they provide for their families? The growing museum collection at Minidoka National Historic Site helps to answer some of those questions.

As of 2012, the collection contains 25 history objects, 432 archeological objects, and 323 archival documents. Among the history objects are a Buddhist prayer book, an electric lamp made from cactus wood, pot belly stoves, folding screens, dressers, and trunks.

Many of the objects were made by the incarcerees utilizing the materials available - lumber scraps, sagebrush and cactus wood, and wooden crates; other objects were purchased through the Montgomery Ward or Sears catalogues. The women and children of the camp made many of their own dolls, household furnishings, clothing, and toys using material at hand.

Archeological artifacts recovered from the main gate and the camp dump (which became part of the memorial site in 2008) provide a glimpse into camp life. The materials include structural debris such as hardware, nails, roofing tacks, and window glass. Glass container fragments make up the bulk of the archeological materials.

Historic fabric is an important part of a museum collection. This includes original doors and windows, hardware, paint, wallpaper, and tarpaper samples, plaster, and architectural elements such as moldings, lintels, fireplace mantels, and scrollwork. Historic fabric provides insight into how a building was constructed and remodeled through time. Recently, the park received several historic doors that have now been used to replace damaged doors on the barrack building.

The archival material consist primarily of resource management records created by park staff in the planning and development of the site. These materials include, correspondence- letters to and from the internees and their family/friends outside of the camp, documents, photographs, and architectural drawings.

Minidoka National Historic Site welcomes donations of artifacts and archival materials that can add to the knowledge of the site and the people who called it "home" for three years.

The park has developed a Scope of Collection Statement that serves as a guide to the collection. The three thematic categories for the collection include:

Minidoka War Relocation Center - objects and archives relating to the establishment, construction, operations, and closing of the camp are possible objects for acquisition. Authentic furnishings brought to or created at Minidoka will be considered for inclusion into the collection when they become available.

Bainbridge Island/Eagledale Ferry Dock - Currently the park has no collections relating to this theme.

Farm-In-A-Day - Objects with a direct link to this event such as signs announcing the event or tools used to construct the buildings may be of interest.

When an item is brought to the park for consideration, the curator issues a Receipt for Property. If the item meets the park's Scope of Collection criteria, a formal Deed of Gift is sent to the donor for signature. Once the Deed of Gift is signed, the object becomes a permanent part of the collection.

Artifacts and archives are currently housed in a new museum storage facility at Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument. A small number of artifacts are on exhibit in the Minidoka Room at the Hagerman Fossil Beds NM visitor center. Artifacts and archival materials from the collection will be an important part of the interpretive planning for various structures at the site: Mess Hall, Barrack Building, Warehouse (designated as the park's visitor center), and Root Cellar.

For further information or if you have items that you would consider donating to the park, contact the park's Chief Integrated Resources Management at 208-527-1350 or e-mail us . Photographs of the intended items will help to expedite the decision process.

Minidoka War Relocation Center's two fire stations were built in 1942. Each fire station included three bays for the fire trucks, dormitory space with an office, a bathroom with a shower stall and two toilets. There was a bunk room, an equipment room with built in lockers, and two other rooms (one which was likely the fire chief's bedroom).

Two retired firemen from the LA Fire Department were brought in to start up and run Minidoka's fire department but the stations were staffed entirely by incarcerees. Fire crews worked shifts of 24 hours on and 48 off so that there was a continual turnaround of personnel. Training the crews was among the first priorities as no one had any firefighting experience due to the many restrictive regulations that prevented Japanese Americans from entering the field prior to the war. The incarceree firemen spent much of their time in checking equipment and training in firefighting techniques as practice fire drills gave the necessary experience to handle any emergency.

Thankfully there were very few fires during the camp's occupation, though the danger was very real with over 600 wooden buildings covered in tar paper situated relatively close together. The greatest danger came from residents causing an overload on the electric power lines by using too many multiple clusters with extra lights and cooking elements. Fuses were frequently blown and fire hazards were very real.

Minidoka's worst fire broke out in the boiler room in Block 23's laundry near the high school. This was where the water was heated for use in the high school block. The cause of the fire is unknown but was thought to have been due to an overheated boiler. The fire departments' prompt response quickly brought the fire under control, but not until it had completely destroyed the boiler room and all its equipment. The repair work took several days and cost over $2,000.

When they were not training the fire crews played a variety of games to help pass the time. Favorite games included: checkers, chess, Shogi (a Japanese variant of chess), a board game called 'Go', Mah jong, and card games like solitaire, whist and rummy, and dice rolling. There was also a victory garden at the fire station that provided the crew with fresh vegetables.

The fire crews were used to help in a variety of medical emergencies such as the retrieval of a drowning victim from the Northside Canal. The crews were also called out to help fight range fires. This gave the men an opportunity to do something different, help local agencies, see a little of the area, and make some extra spending cash.

After the center closed Fire Station #1 was used for a time as a home by the Herrmann family before their farm house was built, and then it was used as a garage and storage building.

As the only remaining fire station, the building is used to help interpret the story of Minidoka.

Minidoka National Historic Site is continuing the process of development. Visitors to the historic site can now explore the story of the incarceration of Japanese Americans at Minidoka War Relocation Center during World War II by walking the 1.6 mile interpretive trail. Twenty three outdoor exhibit panels tell the story of the people, the historic structures, and the cultural landscape preserved at the site.

Historic images, quotations by former incarcerees, audio units, and diagrams help visitors understand the complex story of the forced removal and relocation of almost 13,000 people from western Washington, Oregon, and Alaska to Idaho.

Interpretive exhibit panels tell varied stories: the fear and prejudice facing people of Japanese ancestry before and after Pearl Harbor; the relocation of Japanese Americans from their homes to assembly centers and finally to Minidoka; the uncertainty among those incarcerated as to their future; the creation of the seventh largest city in Idaho; everyday life in the camp; loyalty and sacrifice; and the transformation of sagebrush desert into productive agricultural land.

Construction of the interpretive trail began in the spring of 2011. Local contractors graded the trail, laid the surface, and installed the benches. As portions of the trail were constructed park staff and volunteers installed the interpretive panels. Ten benches were installed along the trail to give visitors a chance to rest and reflect upon the history of the site. The trail was completed in 2012. The trail utilizes portions of the historic pathways which winds through sections of the administrative and residential area. Three trailhead signs provide visitors with a map and information about sections of the camp. Directional signs point walkers to specific buildings and landscapes.

The "Center Field" Project restored one of the 14 baseball fields located throughout the camp, created a cultural landscape and a field that visitors can actually play on.

Steps taken to achieve goal: · Four acres that comprised Center Field were removed from an agricultural permit. · The field was plowed and rolled. · Two sets of bleachers and player benches were built. · One score board and a backstop were built. · Bases, a home plate, and base lines laid down so the field could be used.

Baseball and softball were important activities to the over 13,000 people who lived at Minidoka War Relocation Center from August 1942 – November 1945. They were particularly important components of the incarceration experience for Japanese communities during World War II. In Samuel O. Regalado's book, Nikkei Baseball , he states: To the evacuee, sport was not an "innocuous aspect of life"; it was an essential component to their mental and emotional survival in the camps. In the camp newspapers, only stories about their brethren at war rivaled athletics in terms of attention.

Within weeks of arrival in the camps, the Japanese Americans began organizing sporting events. The Friday September 18, 1942 issue of the Minidoka Irrigator reported, "Girls' softball rivalry will flare up this Sunday at 9:30 a.m. when teams representing Portland and Seattle tangle on the lot between Blocks 28 and 30."

Many camp residents – youth, adults, male and female - played baseball or softball on one of the many fields throughout the camp. The September 11, 1943 issue of the Minidoka Irrigator highlighted the importance of baseball to the camp:

" Yup! Old man baseball reigns supreme among our dads and have helped make life in this camp more pleasant for him. Without the game, he'd be lost and idleness would reign supreme instead of baseball. They also did a swell job in providing some exciting games for us and their sportsmanship and spirit were tops. Hats off to our 'old men.'"

In reading camp newspaper articles it is clear that baseball served as a glue to bring people together and provided bridges to communities outside the barbed-wire fence. After the war, many former incarcerees have continued to exclaim, "Baseball saved us."

"Food is furnished by the Government for all evacuee residents. The meals are planned at an average cost of not more than 45 cents per person per day (the actual cost, as this is written, has averaged almost 48 cents), are prepared by evacuee cooks, and are served generally cafeteria style in mess halls that accommodate between 250 and 300 persons. At all centers, Government-owned or Government-leased farmlands are being operated by evacuee agricultural crews to produce a considerable share of the vegetables needed in the mess halls. At nearly all centers, the farm program also includes the production of poultry, eggs, and pork; and at a few the evacuees are raising beef and dairy products. Every evacuee is subject to the same food rationing restrictions as all other residents of the United States."

Minidoka Relocation Center consisted of 36 blocks each containing 12 barracks and one recreation center arranged around a mess hall and a lavatory-laundry building. The meal system was institutional with meals being served in mess halls at designated times complete with long lines and crowded tables.

The sheer size of the task of feeding 9,400+ residents was daunting. The choice of food on the menu was a source of nearly constant complaints. The American born Nisei were accustomed to a more standard American diet while most Issei preferred native Japanese dishes. The quality of the food served was poor, with milk and fresh meat constantly in short supply. C ontrary to persistent rumors, incarcerees were subjected to the same food rationing restrictions as all other Americans. Inexpensive foods such as wieners, dried fish, pancakes, macaroni and pickled vegetables were served often. Vegetables, which had been an important part of the Japanese Americans' diet on the West Coast, were replaced in camp with starches. The incarcerees' diets improved only after they began growing some of their own fresh produce.

The quality of the food also varied as some mess halls were run by experienced cooks; others were not and their fare was not so good. Posted signs reminded people that food quantities were limited. Often hungry teenagers ate meals at more than one mess hall in order to be sure they got enough to eat. Other signs explained that milk was limited to children and the ill. The best that can be said of the meal system was that no one starved.

The Issei had developed large, close-knit families with the fathers being regarded as having great authority. Issei families placed strong emphasis on involvement in family relationships and for children to be disciplined and trained in such a way that they will most likely bring honor to the family by their being successful. But the Issei's authority was greatly weakened as the previously tight knit family structure was eroded by this type of group living with children and teenagers escaping parental authority by eating with friends rather than family.

Mess halls were used in other ways as well. They were regularly used for gatherings such as banquets, meetings, dances, and special programs. Block residents would decorate their hall for the different holidays while competing with others for the bragging rights of best decorated hall.

After Minidoka War Relocation Center closed in October 1945 there was a surplus of barracks. The government gave many buildings to communities in the area and others were sold to farmers and nearby families. A mess hall building was used to create the Jerome Canning Kitchen in 1947. Over the years many people used the canning kitchen to prepare food for their families. When canning equipment became more affordable to buy for home use, and commercially processed food was more available in the 1970's and 80's the canning kitchen was closed. This historical building was offered to Minidoka NHS. In August 2011 the mess hall was moved in three sections from the Jerome fairgrounds, at night, to Block 22 where it was reassembled, stabilized, and cleaned. It is open for public viewing during ranger led tours and special events.

One of the first things that you see as you enter Minidoka National Historic Site is a large three panel structure topped with a Bald Eagle cutout with bright yellow and dark brown wings and a white head: the Minidoka Honor Roll.

The Honor Roll was built to honor the young men and women from the camp who served in the military. The center panel originally consisted of 418 names. Minidoka had the highest percentage of incarcerees from the ten camps to serve in the military; this necessitated the adding of two side panels in order to list the names of additional people as people volunteered or were drafted.

The Honor Roll was designed and painted by Kenjiro Nomura and Kamekichi Tokita, creative artists who were business partners in Seattle, Washington prior to World War II and their incarceration at Minidoka. Chief Gardener Fujitaro Kubota led a landscaping project that created the ornamental garden which provided a stunning backdrop to the Honor Roll and served as a place of beauty and repose.

The work of creating the Honor Roll was done in Warehouse 20, the Minidoka sign shop. The center panel was completed and erected in the autumn of 1943. The crest of the Honor Roll was a carved and painted eagle with a wing span of nearly 5 feet. The fate of the original Honor Roll is unknown. Historic photographs provide the only clues to its appearance. Little historical information exists regarding its physical dimensions or coloration.

Minidoka NHS staff was able to determine the dimensions of the Honor Roll by scaling the existing historic photographs. However, not all the details of the Honor Roll could be determined from the historic photos. None of the historic photos were clear enough for staff to ascertain all the names on the right side of the structure. Visitors are asked to notify the park if they know of a missing name on the Honor Roll. Contact information is available on the park website.

When President Franklin Delano Roosevelt activated the 442 nd Regimental Combat Team on February 1, 1943 he stated, "Americanism is a matter of the mind and heart. Americanism is not, and never was, a matter of race or ancestry." That quote is on the right corner of the center panel of the Honor Roll. On the left side is a quote by Secretary of the War Henry Stimson, "It is the inherent right of every faithful citizen, regardless of ancestry, to bear arms in the Nation's battle."

The Honor Roll is not only an interpretive element at the site but it is a memorial to the over 950 people, from Minidoka, who served in the military. The presence of the Honor Roll provides an opportunity to discuss important concepts such as injustice, patriotism, wartime incarceration, and conscientious resistance. Honor Rolls such as the one created at Minidoka were found at other War Relocation Centers.

In 2010, the Friends of Minidoka received a grant from the Japanese American Confinement Sites Grant Program to assist with construction costs. The reestablishment of the Honor Roll was a collaborative effort made possible by the Friends of Minidoka, National Park Service, and the Nisei Veterans.

The Honor Roll was installed in June 2011 and dedicated on July 3, 2011 as part of the Annual Pilgrimage to Minidoka National Historic Site. The new Honor Roll, which greets visitors as they enter the park on Hunt Road, is a visible sign of Minidoka War Relocation Center coming to life again as Minidoka National Historic Site.