This collection contains one box of documents belonging to Tsugitada Kanamori. Materials in this collection mostly pertain to Kanamori’s efforts regarding cancelling his renunciation and reinstating his American citizenship.

Tsugitada Kanamori (1922-unknown) was born in Port Hueneme, California to Jinsuke and Michi Kanamori. In 1942, Tsugitada registered for the draft and was classified 4-C (enemy alien). He was living in Compton, California when he was evacuated to Poston Incarceration Camp in Parker, Arizona, before being sent to Tule Lake Incarceration Center in early 1944. While at Tule Lake, Kanamori married Kazuko Miyamoto in March 1944. In December 1944, Tsugitada and his wife applied for repatriation, influenced by his parents and in-laws who were fearful of being separated from each other and who also believed that because they were not natural born United States citizens that they, along with their children, would all be deported to Japan eventually- regardless of citizenship status. Tsugitada also thought that repatriation would be his best option due to the pressure he felt from within Tule Lake from Pro-Japanese groups, confusion regarding the loyalty questionnaire, and also due to his fear that being sent to another camp might cause his family to be met with more hostility. After being deported to Japan, Tsugitada worked in Yokohama, Japan, operating and maintaining ordnance vehicles and engineering equipment, and soon thereafter he began the process of getting his United States citizenship reinstated with the help from his attorney, Wayne M. Collins. On May 19, 1958, Tsugitada received notification that his renunciation had been cancelled, and his U.S. citizenship was reinstated.On February 19, 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066 which gave the military the authority to exclude any citizen who posed a threat to national security. As a result, approximately 120,000 Japanese-Americans living on the West Coast were removed and incarcerated in concentration camps. The Tule Lake Incarceration Center was the largest of the ten concentration camps with approximately 18,000 prisoners, and was located close to the California-Oregon border near the town of Newell, California and 10 miles south of the town of Tulelake. On February 8, 1943, the War Department and War Relocation Authority (WRA) distributed a questionnaire in order to assess the loyalty of those housed in concentration camps. The questionnaire was difficult and complex, which led to uncertainty and confusion. Failure to complete the questionnaire, as well as questions answered in an unsatisfactory manner caused a great number of incarcerees to be deemed “disloyal” and sent to Tule Lake Segregation Center- the designated location “disloyal” incarcerees.

1 box .20 linear ft.

All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Director of Archives and Special Collections. Permission for publication is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical materials and not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.

There are no access restrictions on this collection.