Collection Guide
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Nakano (George) Family Papers
SPC.2017.014
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Table of contents
Contributing Institution:
California State University Dominguez Hills, Gerth Archives and Special Collections
Title: George Nakano Family Papers
Creator:
Nakano , George
Identifier/Call Number: SPC.2017.014
Physical Description:
7 boxes
, 1 oversized folder
Physical Description:
3.17 Linear Feet
Physical Description:
350.9 Megabytes
289 jpeg files, 179 PDF files
Date (inclusive): 1942-2010
Abstract: This collection contains books, booklets, proposals, printed newspaper articles, ephemera, and digitzed scrapbooks related
to George Nakano, former Assemblymember and Torrance City Council member. Subjects include the Jerome and Tule Lake incarceration
camps, the Nakano family, and George Nakano's political career. This collection contains digitized materials.
Language of Material:
English
, Japanese
.
For information about citing archival material, see the
Citations for Archival Material guide, or consult the appropriate style manual.
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.
This collection is part of the California State University Japanese American Digitization Project. For related materials please
consult:
CSU Japanese American Digitization Project.
George Nakano is a former Assemblymember and Torrance City Councilman. He grew up in Los Angeles before his family was sent
to the Jerome and Tule Lake incarceration camps as a result of Executive Order 9066. At the end of the war, the Nakano family
settled in East Los Angeles. After graduating high school, Nakano served in the California Air National Guard for six years
before attending El Camino College and transferring to California State University, Los Angeles. He earned a Bachelors of
Science degree in mathematics and began teaching at a k-12 school. In 1977, Nakano graduated with a Masters in Education and
began working as an educational administrator at the Inglewood Unified School district. While working as the educational administrator,
Nakano also served as a member of the Torrance City Council from 1984-1998. Nakano retired from the district in 1991 and was
elected to the California State Legislature in 1998. He served in the California State Legislature in District 53 as the California
State Assemblyman from 1998-2004.
The George Nakano Family Papers (1942-2014) contains 3.17 linear feet and 350.9 mb of books, booklets, proposals, facsimile
newspaper articles, pamphlets, ephemera, and digitized scrapbooks related to George Nakano's life. George Nakano and his family
were incarcerated at the Jerome and Tule Lake incarceration camps when he was six years old. Some of the material, including
textbooks and drawings along with a cutting board, pin, and cane, are related to the Nakano family's incarceration during
World War II. Noted are his elementary school materials collected and created by George Nakano when he was attending a Japanese
school in the Tule Lake camp. Even though the school was located in the Tule Lake camp in Newell, California, it was established
as one of Japanese National People's Schools to provide U.S. born children with Japanese education emphasizing loyalty to
Japan. The curriculum was militaristic and nationalistic, and reflection and influence by wartime Japanese education are observed
among language quizzes, compositions, and ethics textbooks. One of the materials contains the school's regulations, purposes,
and policies on the back of the sheet. Other material, such as the scrolls, documents, and certificates are related to the
Nakano family history.
Other documents, newspaper articles, and proposals are related to George Nakano's political career as Torrance City Council
member (1984-1998) and California State Assemblymember (1998-2004). Topics related to his career include the California Civil
Liberties Public Education Program, the California Master Plan for Education, and other assembly bills and reports.
This collection is arranged into four series. Series One also has two subseries.
- Series One:
- Japanese American incarceration and the Nakano family
- Series Two:
- Nakano family history
- Series Three:
- George Nakano's career
- Series Four:
- Other scrapbooks and materials
The first four accessions (November 2017-August 2019) were processed by Jennifer Hill in 2019. The fifth accession along with
the digitized scrapbooks were processed in May 2020. The sixth accession was processed in January 2023.
Processing Information for Digital Material
The Gerth Archives and Special Collections created digital reproductions from the original material for long-term preservation
and access. These preservation files (14.69 Gb, 491 tif files) were scanned to and stored on the Gerth Archives and Special
Collections Deparment Drive. For more information on the best practices and standards for the digitization process, please
see:
CSU Japanese American Digitization Project technical reference guide.
Existence and Location of Originals
Donor retained some scrapbooks. All other material in the collection was donated.
Availability of Digitized Materials
Some of the collection has been digitized and is available at the CSU Japanese American Project site:
George Nakano Family Papers.
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
The access files are PDF and JPG files stored on the Public Use Drive. Access to the files is available on-site in the Gerth
Archives and Special Collections reading room. Please request copies at the reference desk.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The George Nakano Family Papers has six separate accessions from November 2017 - January 2023. George Nakano also loaned
several scrapbooks to the Gerth Archives and Special Collections between 2017-2019 to be digitized for the CSUJAD project.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Japanese Americans -- Forced removal and internment, 1942-1945
Japanese American families
Local government -- California
California -- Politics and government
Japanese Americans -- California
Japanese Americans
Nakano , George
- Collection Overview
-
Collection Details
- Preferred Citation
- Conditions Governing Use
- Conditions Governing Access
- Related Materials
- George Nakano
- Scope and Contents
- Arrangement
- Processing Information
- Processing Information for Digital Material
- Existence and Location of Originals
- Availability of Digitized Materials
- Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
- Immediate Source of Acquisition