The Yamashita Family Papers include correspondence, writings, photographs, photograph albums, genealogical research, and other family documents and belongings spanning over a century and including three generations of the Yamashita family. The collection covers the initial immigration of Kishiro and Tomi Yamashita from Japan to California to raise a family, through the generation of their grandchildren in the mid to late 20th century. Part of the Issei generation, Kishiro and Tomi had seven children, all of whom were born in Oakland between 1901 and 1921. Materials from these seven children—Kimi, Susumu, Chizu, John, Iyo, Kay, and Tom—make up the bulk of the collection showcasing the experiences of the Nisei generation growing up in California, including the exclusion and incarceration legislation that impacted the family during World War II. Materials from the children of the Nisei generation (the Sansei generation) are also included.

The Yamashitas are a Japanese American family who were mainly based in California during the 20th century. The first generation of the Yamashitas who immigrated to the United States (called the Issei generation) were Kishiro (1873-1931) and Tomi (née Murakami, 1882-1972), who arrived in the San Francisco Bay Area from Japan around the turn of the 20th century. Kishiro and Tomi had seven children after settling in the United States, who comprise the Nisei generation: Kimi (born 1902), Susumu "Sus" (1905), Chizuru Dorothy "Chizu" (1908), Hiroshi John (1912), Iyo (1915), Kiye "Kay" (1918), and Isao Thomas "Tom" (1921). The children of the Nisei members, called the Sansei generation, were born throughout the 1920s to the 1950s. During World War II, members of the Yamashita family were forced to leave their homes after President Franklin Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066. They were incarcerated first at the Tanforan Assembly Center in San Bruno, California, before being moved to the Central Utah Relocation Center, more commonly known as Topaz. After the war, some Yamashita family members returned to the California Bay Area, and others moved to New Jersey, Chicago, Los Angeles, Hong Kong, Ohio, Philadelphia, and New York.

68.1 Linear Feet 55 boxes, 1 map-case drawer

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Collection open for research. Audiovisual media is unavailable until reformatted. Digital files are available in the UCSC Special Collections and Archives reading room. Contact Special Collections and Archives in advance to request access to audiovisual media and digital files.