George S. Iwanaga Papers

Finding aid prepared by Lisa L. Crane, MLIS
Special Collections, Honnold/Mudd Library
800 North Dartmouth Ave
Claremont 91711
Email: spcoll@cuc.claremont.edu
URL: http://libraries.claremont.edu/sc/default.html


Descriptive Summary

Title: George S. Iwanaga Papers
Dates: 1942-1950
Collection number: H.Mss.1071
Creator: Iwanaga, George S. (Shinichi)
Extent: 3 linear feet (1 oversized flat box + 1 small document box)
Repository: Claremont Colleges. Library. Special Collections, Honnold/Mudd Library. Claremont, CA 91711.
Abstract: A collection of 33 original photographs from the Japanese internment camp at Heart Mountain, Wyoming. The black and white images depict the people of the camp, their living quarters, and daily life. The Heart Mountain War Relocation Center opened in June 1942 and closed on November 10, 1945. It was one of ten concentration camps used for the internment of Japanese Americans evicted from the West Coast Exclusion Zone during World War II. The photographs were taken by George S. (Shinichi) Iwanaga (1921–2012), a 21-year-old Los Angeles resident of Japanese descent. Born in Fresno, he never visited Japan and had completed two years of college. He lived for two years at Heart Mountain before being released in August 1944.
Physical location: Please consult repository.
Language of materials: Languages represented in the collection: English.

Administrative Information

Access

This collection is open for research.

Publication Rights

All requests for permission to reproduce or to publish must be submitted in writing to Special Collections.

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], George S. Iwanaga Papers (H.Mss.1071). Special Collections, Honnold/Mudd Library, Claremont University Consortium.

Provenance/Source of Acquisition

Purchase, 2015.

Accruals

No additions to the collection are anticipated.

Processing Information

The collection was minimally processed: individual photographs and poster boards were placed in mylar sleeves and acid free folders. The two reports were disbound and pages containing photos and/or highly acidic paper were placed into mylar sleeves. Collection is described at the item level.

Biography / Administrative History

The Heart Mountain War Relocation Center opened in June 1942 and held a total of 13,997 Japanese Americans over the next three years, with a peak population of 10,767, before it closed on November 10, 1945. It was one of ten concentration camps used for the internment of Japanese Americans evicted from the West Coast Exclusion Zone during World War II. The camp contained 650 military-­style barracks and surrounding guard towers.
The photographs were shot by George Shinichi Iwanaga (1921–2012), a 21-year-old Los Angeles resident of Japanese descent. Born in Fresno, he never visited Japan and had completed two years of college. He lived for two years at Heart Mountain before being released in August 1944. At Heart Mountain, Iwanaga took a job as an assistant in the Public Works Department.
The photographs included in this collection were part of an exhibit, perhaps for a school project, put together by his son Paul, a photographer who graduated from UCLA in 1977. A similar set of Iwanaga's photographs was used for an exhibit at UCLA in 2002.
After leaving Heart Mountain, Iwanaga pursued higher education. In 1946 he graduated from the Institute of Technology, University of Minnesota. He went on to the University of Washington to pursue a master of science in civil engineering. In 1950, Iwanaga married Mitsu Nemoto, also a Los Angeles resident who was held at the Rohwer internment camp in Arkansas. They lived many years in Pasadena and had four children: Doug, Paul, Barbara and Jon.
A photo of Heart Mountain by Iwanaga is contained in the collections of the Wing Luke Museum of the Asian Pacific American Experience in Seattle, as well as at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania.
Source: Brad and Jennnifer Johnson, owners, The Book Shop, Covina, California.

Scope and Contents of Collection

A collection of 33 original photographs from the Japanese internment camp at Heart Mountain, Wyoming. The black and white images depict the people of the camp, their living quarters, and daily life.
Most of the black and white photographs of varying sizes are lightly mounted with double-stick tape on 28 x 22 inch white board with pencil captions below. The printing date of the photographs is not noted. Among the scenes is a three-panel panoramic of the Heart Mountain camp, a group of skilled workers in front of the carpenters shop, and views of internees bidding farewell to visitors through a barbed wire fence. A photo captioned "mess hall workers" is missing from one board and another of "St. Francis" is loose.
Also included in the papers is a program from Iwanaga's 2002 UCLA exhibit which contains a bit of biographical information; two letters sent from materials vendors to Iwanaga at Heart Mountain when he worked in the Public Works Department; a report on color photography he completed in 1945 for and English class at the University of Minnesota; and a 1947 thesis he co-wrote in pursuit of his master's degree at the University of Washington.

Organization and Arrangement

The collection has been arragned into the following series:
  • Series 1: Manuscripts
  • Series 2: Photographs
Within each series, materials are organized alphabetically by title.

Indexing Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library’s online public access catalog.

Subject Terms

Heart Mountain Relocation Center (Wyo.)
Japanese Americans
Japanese Americans -- Archives
Japanese Americans -- Evacuation and relocation, 1942-1945
World War, 1939-1945 -- Japanese Americans

Genre and Form of Materials

Manuscripts
Photographs


 

Series 1: Manuscripts

Box 1, Folder 1

Correspondence to George S. Iwanaga 1942

Note

2 letters. One on "The International Nickel Company, Inc." letterhead, dated 1942 November 9. One on "Steel and Tubes Division, Republic Steel Corporation" letterhead, dated 1942 November 18. Letters were from materials vendors and were sent to Iwanaga while working as an assistant in the Public Works Department at Heart Mountain.
Box 1, Folder 2

Program, "Through their Eyes" 2002

Note

Presented by the UCLA Nikkei Student Union, "Through their Eyes," is an exposition about the wartime internment of Japanese Americans duriing World War II. Program includes a bit of biographical information in which Iwanaga relates the story of receiving a camera from his mother as a graduation gift in 1939 and using it to document "our experiences during these confinement years."
Box 1, Folder 3

"Report on Color Photography" 1945

Note

Written by George S. Iwanaga for an English class at the Institute of Technology, University of Minnesota. Includes grade of "A" and note from professor, "Excellently developed, clearly explained, and beautifully illustrated." 37 pages.
Box 1, Folder 4

Resume, Paul Iwanaga

Note

Single leaf, two-sided. 2 copies.
Box 1, Folder 5

Thesis, "The Separation of Aerodynamic and Structural Damping in Suspension Bridges" 1947

Note

Co-written by George Shinichi Iwanaga, Donald G. Stensrud and John Melville Wilson and submitted for the degree of Master of Science in Civil Engineering, University of Washington. 42 pages.
 

Series 2: Photographs

Box 1, Folder 6

"A crowd seeing friends leaving from camp"

Note

Black and white photograph, 10 x 7 inches, mounted on cardstock, caption adhered to back.
Box 1, Folder 7

American flag on pole

Note

Black and white photograph, 7.25 x 10 inches.
Box 1, Folder 8

Block 14 softball teams

Note

Black and white photographs, 8 x 10 inches, captions adhered to back. One photo of the "girls" softball team and one photo of the "boys" softball team. Coach Shig Hioki is depicted in both. 2 photographs.
Box 1, Folder 9

"By George Iwanaga"

Note

Black and white photograph, 10 x 8 inches, mounted on card stock, caption adhered to back. Photo depicts honor roll, "In honor of the men from Heart Mountain serving in the armed forces of the United States of America in the World War II."
Box 1, Folder 10

"Cemetery with flowers"

Note

Black and white photograph, 8 x 10 inches, mounted to card stock, caption adhered to back.
Box 1, Folder 11

"Frank Iwanaga parting from a friend for work and school"

Note

Black and white photograph, 8 x 10 inches, mounted on card stock, caption adhered to back.
Box 1, Folder 12

"From Los Angeles, CA, Joe and Alice Yamada's son"

Note

Black and white photograph, 8 x 10 inches, mounted on card stock, caption adhered to back.
Box 1, Folder 13

"From San Jose, CA, Mrs. Hioki and Toshiko going out for lunch"

Note

Black and white photograph, 8 x 10 inches, caption adhered to back.
Box 1, Folder 14

Guard tower

Note

Black and white photograph, 8 x 10 inches.
Box 1, Folder 15

"Heart Mountain as seen from camp"

Note

Black and white photograph, 10 x 8 inches, mounted on card stock, caption adhered to back.
Box 1, Folder 16

"'Home,' Sumi Suehiro, 442 Battalion"

Note

Black and white photograph, 8 x 10 inches, caption adhered to back.
Box 1, Folder 17

"Mess hall workers - last diners"

Note

Black and white photograph, 8 x 10 inches, caption adhered to back.
Box 1, Folder 18

Mother and daughter

Note

Black and white photograph, 8 x 10 inches. Depicted are a woman and a girl wearing traditional Japanese clothing.
Box 1, Folder 19

Outside employment and resettlement opportunities

Note

Black and white photograph, 8 x 10 inches, mounted on card stock. Depicted is a building with sign.
Box 1, Folder 20

"Shooting the breeze, anytime, anywhere"

Note

Black and white photograph, 10 x 8 inches, mounted on cardstock, caption adhered to back.
Box 1, Folder 21

Softball game

Note

Black and white photograph, 10 x 8 inches.
Box 1, Folder 22

"The Armed Forces honor roll, with panel"

Note

Black and white photograph, 8 x 10 inches, caption adhered to back.
Box 2, Folder 1

Camp photos, Heart Mountain, Wyoming

Note

6 black and white photographs and title mounted to 28 x 22 inch poster board, captions hand-written in pencil below each photo. Depicted are scenes of the exterior of the camp. At top of poster board are 3 photographs pieced together into a panaramic image.
Box 2, Folder 2

Camp photos (folder 1)

Note

9 black and white photographs mounted on 28 x 22 inch poster board, captions hand-written in pencil below each photo. Depicted is daily life at the camp. One photo, "Mess hall workers" is missing.
Box 2, Folder 3

Camp photos (folder 2)

Note

8 black and white photographs mounted to 28 x 22 inch poster board, captions hand-written in pencil below each photo. Depicted are individual and group portraits of internees.
Box 2, Folder 4

Camp photos (folder 3)

Note

10 black and white photographs mounted to 28 x 22 inch poster board, captions hand-written in pencil below each photo. Depicted are people and buildings at Heart Mountain internment camp.