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nj ah s Projects and Programs ^ ^ Spring 1998 (^/ft && rrC0V& uPdate on Fopt Mason # The Presidio • Japantown by Clifford I. Uyeda The year 1992 was a memorable year to NJAHS. We were elated that we were chosen as one of the seven organizations from some 150 applicants that was accepted to become a "resident organization at Pier One" of the Fort Mason Center. A Capital Fund Drive for tenant improvement at Pier One was launched. The fund is now up to $187,000. Six years later we are still waiting. In the meantime, we are investigating the possibility of renovating and improving Building 640, the site of the secret Army Language School which opened on November 1,1941 to train Nisei linguists. The Presidio and the adjacent Crissy Field areas are undergoing extensive renovations and development to transform both into an urban park. Japanese American history has developed with the San Francisco Bay and the Presidio of San Francisco as its background for about a century. San Francisco was the major port of entry of the early Issei immigrants to continental United States. The so-called "Ellis Island of the West," the Angel Island in the middle of San Francisco Bay is in full view from the Presidio. The early Issei immigrants and the "picture brides" were screened at Angel Island. The all-Nisei volunteers from Hawaii which was to become the 100th Infantry Battalion came to the San Francisco Bay in June 1942 on its way to Camp McCoy, Wisconsin. The Nisei linguists training at the Presidio were promised commission upon graduation, but none of the Nisei were commissioned as officers until the war was practically over. All Caucasian students were commissioned immediately upon graduation. We are continuing to explore options as to our final site. We are investigating the "adaptive reuse" of Bldg. 640, which was once occupied by the MIS Language School, for future programming and interpretation. The significance of the NJAHS/National Park Service partnership which was celebrated at a ceremony in front of Bldg. 640 was to jointly develop and to exhibit the story of Japanese Americans to the public. We are aware that extensive work is necessary before Bldg. 640 can become a fully functional home for NJAHS. Once developed, the building will become a regular scheduled stop for the Presidio bus tour. In the meantime, the NJAHS has been offered a very attractive site in the Kintetsu Building in San Francisco's Japantown. The move was made in mid-March, 1998. In the same building is the Union Bank of California (which began as the pre-war Yokohama Species Bank, which became the Bank of Tokyo, then California First Bank, and finally the present-day Union Bank of California). The outlook for the future of NJAHS is very bright. Situated in the heart of one of the most visited cities in the world, and rich in history, especially Asian history, we believe our Uyeda (cont'd on p. 19) • • • • # • I l • • 9 • • ( The Road to Cooperstown ¥ %& Tm , fed m, vm fe, wg 4^ „ Ih^HiL a First row: Yukio Tatsumi; Alice Hinaga Taketa; Henry Honda; Kazuo Ikeda; Yoshio Tsukamoto; Bill Tsukamoto; Masao Iriyama; Takeo "Babe" Utsumi. Back row: Shig Tokumoto; Harry "Tar" Shirachi; Masayoshi Tomooka; Pete Mitsui; William "Wild Bill" Kagawa; Masao "Lefty" Nishijima; Minol Ota; Nona Ida, granddaughter ofjiggs Yamada. Photo by Kasuyoshi Aral On Feb. 17, Japanese American ballplayers were honored at the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY. Selections from Diamonds in the Rough: Japanese Americans in Baseball, an exhibit co-produced by the NJAHS and the 18 National Japanese American Historical Society Nisei Baseball Research Project, runs at Cooperstown until April 22, 1998. The ballplayers, many in their 80's, beamed with pride as they received special commendation certificates. For some, it brought bittersweet memories. Henry Honda, who played for the San Jose Asahis, tearfully recounted that he was drafted by the Cleveland Indians, then was interned for two years in a detention camp, only to serve in the U.S. Army. "Baseball was a way to prove ourselves," he stated. Also on hand were staff from NJAHS, NBRP, and the Japanese Cultural Community Center of Northern California, who jointly organized the tour.
Object Description
Title | A Little Known Case For Redress Railroad and Mine Workers |
Description | The Seasonal Magazine, Nikkei Heritage, publishes another volume of their magazine. |
Subjects | Industry and employment--Railroad |
Type | image |
Genre | Periodicals |
Language | eng |
Collection | Hirasuna Family Papers |
Collection Description | 20 items |
Project Name | California State University Japanese American Digitization Project |
Rights | Rights not yet transferred |
Description
Local ID | csufr_hfp_0701 |
Project ID | csufr_hfp_0701 |
Title | Page 18 |
Creator | National Japanese American Historical Society |
Date Created | 1998 - 00 - 00 |
Subjects | Industry and employment--Railroad |
Type | image |
Genre | Periodicals |
Language | eng |
Collection | Hirasuna Family Papers |
Collection Description | 8.54 x 10.88in |
Rights | Rights not yet transferred |
Transcript | nj ah s Projects and Programs ^ ^ Spring 1998 (^/ft && rrC0V& uPdate on Fopt Mason # The Presidio • Japantown by Clifford I. Uyeda The year 1992 was a memorable year to NJAHS. We were elated that we were chosen as one of the seven organizations from some 150 applicants that was accepted to become a "resident organization at Pier One" of the Fort Mason Center. A Capital Fund Drive for tenant improvement at Pier One was launched. The fund is now up to $187,000. Six years later we are still waiting. In the meantime, we are investigating the possibility of renovating and improving Building 640, the site of the secret Army Language School which opened on November 1,1941 to train Nisei linguists. The Presidio and the adjacent Crissy Field areas are undergoing extensive renovations and development to transform both into an urban park. Japanese American history has developed with the San Francisco Bay and the Presidio of San Francisco as its background for about a century. San Francisco was the major port of entry of the early Issei immigrants to continental United States. The so-called "Ellis Island of the West," the Angel Island in the middle of San Francisco Bay is in full view from the Presidio. The early Issei immigrants and the "picture brides" were screened at Angel Island. The all-Nisei volunteers from Hawaii which was to become the 100th Infantry Battalion came to the San Francisco Bay in June 1942 on its way to Camp McCoy, Wisconsin. The Nisei linguists training at the Presidio were promised commission upon graduation, but none of the Nisei were commissioned as officers until the war was practically over. All Caucasian students were commissioned immediately upon graduation. We are continuing to explore options as to our final site. We are investigating the "adaptive reuse" of Bldg. 640, which was once occupied by the MIS Language School, for future programming and interpretation. The significance of the NJAHS/National Park Service partnership which was celebrated at a ceremony in front of Bldg. 640 was to jointly develop and to exhibit the story of Japanese Americans to the public. We are aware that extensive work is necessary before Bldg. 640 can become a fully functional home for NJAHS. Once developed, the building will become a regular scheduled stop for the Presidio bus tour. In the meantime, the NJAHS has been offered a very attractive site in the Kintetsu Building in San Francisco's Japantown. The move was made in mid-March, 1998. In the same building is the Union Bank of California (which began as the pre-war Yokohama Species Bank, which became the Bank of Tokyo, then California First Bank, and finally the present-day Union Bank of California). The outlook for the future of NJAHS is very bright. Situated in the heart of one of the most visited cities in the world, and rich in history, especially Asian history, we believe our Uyeda (cont'd on p. 19) • • • • # • I l • • 9 • • ( The Road to Cooperstown ¥ %& Tm , fed m, vm fe, wg 4^ „ Ih^HiL a First row: Yukio Tatsumi; Alice Hinaga Taketa; Henry Honda; Kazuo Ikeda; Yoshio Tsukamoto; Bill Tsukamoto; Masao Iriyama; Takeo "Babe" Utsumi. Back row: Shig Tokumoto; Harry "Tar" Shirachi; Masayoshi Tomooka; Pete Mitsui; William "Wild Bill" Kagawa; Masao "Lefty" Nishijima; Minol Ota; Nona Ida, granddaughter ofjiggs Yamada. Photo by Kasuyoshi Aral On Feb. 17, Japanese American ballplayers were honored at the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY. Selections from Diamonds in the Rough: Japanese Americans in Baseball, an exhibit co-produced by the NJAHS and the 18 National Japanese American Historical Society Nisei Baseball Research Project, runs at Cooperstown until April 22, 1998. The ballplayers, many in their 80's, beamed with pride as they received special commendation certificates. For some, it brought bittersweet memories. Henry Honda, who played for the San Jose Asahis, tearfully recounted that he was drafted by the Cleveland Indians, then was interned for two years in a detention camp, only to serve in the U.S. Army. "Baseball was a way to prove ourselves," he stated. Also on hand were staff from NJAHS, NBRP, and the Japanese Cultural Community Center of Northern California, who jointly organized the tour. |