Finding aid to the William J. Mountin material relating to forced removal and
incarceration of Japanese Americans, 1940-1942, MS 3196
Finding aid encoded by Al Bersch in 2021, using description from existing catalog
records.
California Historical Society
January 2022
678 Mission Street
San Francisco, CA 94105
reference@calhist.org
Contributing Institution:
California Historical Society
Title: William J. Mountin material relating to forced removal and incarceration of
Japanese Americans
Creator:
Mountin, William J.
Creator:
United States. Army. Western Defense Command and Fourth
Army
Creator:
United States. War Relocation Authority
Creator:
United States. Wartime Civil Control Administration
Identifier/Call Number: MS 3196
Physical Description:
0.5 linear feet
1 box
Date (inclusive): 1940-1942
Abstract: William J(ohn) Mountin (b. 14 Nov.
1901) was employed by the Statistical Branch of the Wartime Civil Control Administration
(WCCA), under the Assistant Chief of Staff for Civil Affairs, Western Defense Command and
Fourth Army. Established in March of 1942 by order of General John DeWitt, the WCCA oversaw
the forced removal of roughly 120,000 Japanese Americans from the West Coast, and
administered detention camps called "temporary assembly centers." In the late summer and
fall of 1942, the WCCA transferred incarcerees to longer-term camps run by the War
Relocation Authority (WRA). The WCCA was dissolved on March 15, 1943. Mountin collected and
maintained the materials included in this collection through the course of his work at the
WCCA. The material consists of memos, reports, bulletins, forms, reports, maps, Civilian
Exclusion Orders, broadsides, ephemera and publications related to the forced removal and
incarceration of Japanese Americans.
Language of Material:
English .
Conditions Governing Access
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of William J. Mountin, 1973.
Existence and Location of Copies
Items from the collection have been digitized and are available online through the
California Historical Society Digital Library. These items, as well as duplicates of many of
the maps, memos, bulletins, broadsides, and official WCCA documents also present in the John
M. Flaherty Collection of Japanese Internment Records, MSS.2006.05.02, at San Jose State
University Special Collections and Archive are also available through the CSU Japanese
American Digitization Project at https://csujad.com.
Arrangement
Contents of notebook have been foldered separately, in their original order.
Biographical sketch
William J(ohn) Mountin (b. 14 Nov. 1901) was employed by the Statistical Branch of the
Wartime Civil Control Administration, under the Assistant Chief of Staff for Civil Affairs,
Western Defense Command and Fourth Army.
General
Formerly described as Executive Order 9066 records, 1942-1945, and as William J. Mountin
material relating to Japanese-American evacuation.
General
Material from this collection was digitized as part of the CSU Japanese American
Digitization project. https://csujad.com/
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], date; William J. Mountin material relating to forced removal and
incarceration of Japanese Americans, MS 3196; California Historical Society.
Scope and Contents
Consists of various materials collected and maintained by William J. Mountin, gathered in
the course of his work in the Statistical Branch of the Wartime Civilian Control
Administration (WCCA). Includes War Relocation Authority (WRA) and WCCA correspondence and
memos concerning the administration of the office in San Francisco; copies of statistical
reports and bulletins, including those compiled by the U.S. Census Bureau; sample forms,
reports, maps, bulletins, and Civilian Exclusion Orders and Instruction broadsides;
ephemeral publications of various official organizations concerned with the administration
of the U.S. Army Western Defense Command office, including directories and organizational
charts; and clippings. Also included is a handbook, or notebook, assembled from copies of
executive orders and supporting materials. The handbook is one of five or six copies that
existed for use by WCCA supervising officers.
Conditions Governing Use
Because of the assembled nature of this collection, copyright status varies across the
collection. Copyright is assumed to be held by the original creator of individual items in
the collection. Unpublished works are expected to pass into the public domain 120 years
after their creation; works published before 1923 have entered the public domain. The
California Historical Society (CHS) is not authorized to grant permission to publish or
reproduce materials from this collection. For more information, please contact
rights@calhist.org.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Japanese Americans -- California
Japanese Americans -- United States -- History
Japanese Americans -- Evacuation and relocation, 1942-1945
World War, 1939-1945--Evacuation of civilians
Statisticians -- California
World War II -- Mass removal ('Evacuation')
World War II -- Temporary Assembly Centers
World War II -- Incarceration camps
Broadsides
Maps
Statistics
United States. Army. Western Defense Command and Fourth
Army
United States. Wartime Civil Control Administration
Box 1, Folder 2
WCCA documents and maps
1940-1942
Box 1, Folders 6-7
Bulletins and other statistics
1942
Box 1, Folder 8
Organizational chart and personnel information
1942
Box 1, Folder 9
Memos and administrative orders
1942
Box 1, Folder 12
Santa Anita Pacemaker
1942
