Inventory of the George Nakano Family Papers SPC.2017.014
Jennifer Hill
California State University Dominguez Hills, Gerth Archives and Special Collections
2019-09-04
University Library South -5039 (Fifth Floor)
1000 E. Victoria St.
Carson, CA 90747
Business Number: 310-243-3895
archives@csudh.edu
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
.
Preferred Citation
Conditions Governing Use
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.
Conditions Governing Access
There are no access restrictions on this collection.
Related Materials
George Nakano
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.
Scope and Contents
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.
Arrangement
This collection is arranged into four series. Series One also has two subseries.
Series:
- 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
Processing Information
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
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
Series One: Japanese American incarceration and the Nakano family
circa 1942-2014
Language of Material: English, Japanese.
Scope and Contents
This series contains mostly materials related to Japanese American incarceration during World War Two. The first series has
mainly George Nakano's school materials, such as answer sheets, textbooks, drawings, and notebooks. It also contains directories
created at Tule Lake incarceration camp, and two directories from before the war. The second series contains books, documents,
reunion booklets and digitized scrapbooks about Japanese American incarceration after World War II.
Arrangement
This series is arranged into two subseries, During World War Two and After World War Two.
Subseries One: Pre-World War II and During World War II
circa 1938-1946
Language of Material: Japanese, English.
Scope and Contents
This subseries contains mostly materials from the Nakano family which were collected during their incarceration at the Jerome
and Tule Lake camps. There are his elementary school materials collected and created by George Nakano when he was attending
a Japanese school in the Tule Lake camp, which reflect wartime Japanese education. There are also two directories from before
the Nakano family was incarcerated.
box 3
"The Yearbook and Directory"
1938-1940
Language of Material: Japanese.
Scope and Contents
Includes two yearsbooks, 1938-1939 and 1939-1940.
box 1
Answer sheets and crayon drawings
circa 1942-1946
Language of Material: In Japanese.
box 1
Stenographic notebook with math problems
1945-1946
Language of Material: Japanese
box 1
Heart Mountain Buddhist Sunday School book
circa 1942-1945
Language of Material: In Japanese.
Scope and Contents
Contains the Heart Mountain Buddhist Sunday School book, "佛教聖典 = Buddhist texts."
box 1
Children's ethics and math textbook
circa 1943-1946
Language of Material: In Japanese.
box 1
Middle school history and geography textbook
circa 1943-1946
Language of Material: In Japanese.
box 1
Japanese language textbooks
circa 1943-1946
Language of Material: In Japanese.
box 1
Japanese architecture textbook
circa 1943-1946
Language of Material: In Japanese.
box 1
廣島市仁保町出身者名簿 = Directory of the Tule Lake incarcerees who are from Niho, Hiroshima
1942-1946
Language of Material: In Japanese.
Scope and Contents
Material is a directory of the Tule Lake camp incarcerees who are originally from Niho, Hiroshima, Japan. It lists their Japanese
addresses and barracks addresses in the Tule Lake camp.
box 1
在鶴嶺湖廣島懸人名簿 = Directory of the Tule Lake incarcrees who are from Hiroshima
June 10, 1945
Language of Material: Japanese.
Scope and Contents
Material is a directory of the Tule Lake incarcrees who are from Hiroshima, Japan. It lists their Japanese addresses, U.S.
addresses prior to the mass removal, and barracks addresses in the Tule Lake camp.
box 2
Jerome Relocation Center 7557 color badge
October 27, 1942
Language of Material: English.
box 2
Shigeto Nakano's foreman attendance notebooks from the Jerome incarceration camp
October 27, 1942-September 25, 1943
Language of Material: English.
box 2
Crayon drawing of a barrack with Castle Rock Mountain in the background by Shigeko (Nakano) Yamane
1945
Language of Material: English.
Scope and Contents
Material is a crayon drawing of a Tule Lake incarceration camp barrack with Castle Rock Mountain in the background. Drawing
by Shigeko Yamane (Nakano), George Nakano's sister.
box 7
Wood cutting board from Shigeto Nakano from Jerome, Arkansas
1943
Language of Material: English.
Cane made by Shigeto Nakano
circa October 27-September 25, 1943
General
Includes typescript note from George Nakano with additional information about the cane.
Subseries Two: After World War Two
Spring 1979-2014
Language of Material: English.
Scope and Contents
This subseries contains material related to Japanese Americans and Japanese American incarceration following World War II.
It includes camp and high school reunion books, documents about Japanese American incarceration, digitized scrapbooks, and
other books about Japanese Americans published after World War II.
box 4
Inside View Japanese American Evacuee Center compiled by Colburn Cox Stuart (Special Edition)
Spring 1979
Language of Material: English.
box 4
The Lim Report - A research report of Japanese Americans in American Concentration Camps during World War II by Deborah K.Lim
1990
Language of Material: English.
box 4
Butte High School Reunion Class of 1945 mini-yearbook
October 7, 1989
Language of Material: English.
box 4
The First Rohwer Reunion July 20 and 21, 1990
July 20, 1990
Language of Material: English.
case 3, drawer 9, folder 1
Jerome Reunion III September 6, 7, 8, 1996 poster
September 6, 1996
Language of Material: English.
box 4
Poston I 1942-1992 50 Year Camp Reunion - Colorado River Relocation Center Unit No. 1 Poston, Arizona
October 9, 1992
Language of Material: English.
box 4
Poston I Reunion IV "Omoide No Tabi-Memories of a Journey" to the Colorado River Relocation Center 55 years ago
October 24, 1997
Language of Material: English.
item Public Use Drive, folder George Nakano Family Papers, folder nak_089
Jerome and Rowher scrapbook
circa 1996-2004
Physical Description: 59.8 mb
30 pdfs, 20 jpeg files
box 4
Japanese American Korean War Veterans 50th Anniversary of the Korean War Memory Souvenir Book
April 29, 2000
Language of Material: English.
box 4
54th Annual Nisei VFW Reunion Sacramento Nisei Post Number 8985 booklet
February 13, 2004
Language of Material: English.
item Public Use Drive, folder George Nakano Family Papers, folder nak_085
Tule Lake Pilgrimage 2004 scrapbook
circa 1990-2004
Physical Description: 43.8 mb
10 pdfs, 79 tif files
box 4
Tule Lake Pilgrimage books 2009, 2010
July 2, 2009; July 2, 2010
Language of Material: English.
item Public Use Drive, folder George Nakano Family Papers, folder nak_087
Tule Lake Pilgrimage scrapbook
2009, 2014
Physical Description: 32.1 mb
7 pdf files, 11 jpeg tiles.
box 4
"Japanese Community Pioneer Center" book
undated
Language of Material: Japanese.
box 4
"Biographies of Issei Pioneers" published by Japanese Community Pioneer Center
October 25, 1975
Language of Material: Japanese.
General
Includes 2 copies.
Series Two: Nakano family history
circa 1915-1999; undated
Language of Material: English.
Scope and Contents
This series contains information about the Nakano Family.
box 3
Nakano Family History
undated
Language of Material: In English and Japanese.
box 3
George Nakano and El Camino College
undated
box 7
Nakano family original scroll
undated
Language of Material: In Japanese.
box 2
Appreciation certificate awarded to Sadagoro Nakano at the twentieth anniversary of the Honganji Elementary School
1929
Language of Material: Japanese.
box 2
Honganji Elementary School certificates awarded to Shigeto Nakano for the completion of kindergarten and elementary school
March 31, 1912; March 30, 1931
Language of Material: Japanese.
box 2
Nakano Family Tree and History scrapbook
circa 1915-1999; undated
Series Three: George Nakano's career
January 4, 1984-August 2003
Language of Material: English.
Scope and Contents
This series contains printed newspaper articles, pamphlets, and government documents related to George Nakano and his career
in politics. Nakano was the Torrance City Councilman for 14 years before serving as the California State Assemblyman from
1998-2004.
box 5
George Nakano Torrance City Council 1984-1998 news articles binder
January 4,1984-March 30, 1998
Material Specific Details: Material seperated from binder for preservation purposes. Each folder is a tab from the binder with original tab label written
on folder.
Language of Material: English.
Scope and Contents
Pamphlets and facsimile newspaper articles related to Georoge Nakano's career in politics.
box 5
Assemblymember George Nakano Cites Irony of 1922 California Board of Control Document and Now
March 2001
Language of Material: English.
Scope and Contents
Nakano article taken from the Japanese American Historical Society of Southern California Newsletter of March 2001. Includes
facsimile of California and the Oriental by State Board of Control of California (1922).
box 5
California Civil Liberties Public Education Program (CCLPEP) Information Packet and Grant Application Fiscal Year 2001-2002
October 26, 2001
Language of Material: English.
Scope and Contents
Includes A History of Japanese Americans in California; Discriminatroy Practices.
box 5
Drivers Distractions and Inattention Data Summary Assembly Bill 770 Chapter 710 - Report to the Governor and Legislature
November 2002
Language of Material: English.
box 5
Joint Committee to Develop a Master Plan for Education The California Master Plan for Education 1170-S
2002
Language of Material: English.
box 6
Report to the Legislature Regulation of Large Passenger Vessels in California Cruise Ship Environmental Task Force
August 2003
Language of Material: English.
box 6
Printed newspaper articles
May 3, 2004; June 20, 2004; July 21, 2016
box 6
City of Torrance Cable Communications Torrance Time Machine: Nisei Soldier, Commemoration of the Japanese American Veterans
of the 100th Infantry Battalion, the 442nd Regimental Combat Team and the Military Intelligence Service, and Speaker's Office
Member Services, Assemblymember George Nakano (API Heritage Month)
June 1988; June 24, 2002; May 10, 2004
Scope and Contents
Includes 4 DVDs, two copies of Speaker's Office of Member Serices Assemblymember George Nakano (API Heritage Month).
Series Four: Other scrapbooks and materials
circa 1966-2016; undated
Language of Material: English.
Scope and Contents
This series contains digitized scrapbooks related to George Nakano's life and career as well as other materials. Subjects
include September 11, kendo, Japanese American veterans, and the George Nakano Theatre.
box 2
Remembering September 11, 2001 scrapbook
circa 1995-2002
item Public Use Drive, folder George Nakano Family Papers, folder nak_086
Kendo Jukon Awards scrapbook
circa 1966-2009
Physical Description: 3.41 Gigabytes
172 items, 36 pdf files, 136 tif files.
Physical Description: 87.1 mb
36 pdf files, 137 jpeg files
item Public Use Drive, folder George Nakano Family Papers, folder nak_088
Recognition of Japanese American veterans scrapbook
circa 2001-2003
Physical Description: 85.2 mb,
76 pdf files, 30 jpeg files
box 2
People with courage Ralph Dills and John Shelly scrapbook
circa 2001-2016
Physical Description: 607 Megabytes
18 items, 12 pdfs, 6 tiff files
item Public Use Drive, folder George Nakano Family Papers, folder nak_90_03
George Nakano Theatre scrapbook
circa 2005-2007
Physical Description:
62 items, 56 pdfs, 6 jpeg files
case 3, drawer 9, folder 1
Reproduction map of Tokyo
undated
Language of Material: Japanese.
