Inventory of Kuwahara Family Papers SPC.2018.040

Kathryn Brunet; Yoko Okunishi
California State University Dominguez Hills, Gerth Archives and Special Collections
2018-10-25
University Library South -5039 (Fifth Floor)
1000 E. Victoria St.
Carson, CA 90747
archives@csudh.edu


Contributing Institution: California State University Dominguez Hills, Gerth Archives and Special Collections
Title: Kuwahara Family Papers
Creator: Kuwahara, Tatsuya, 1925-
Creator: Kuwahara, June Ikuko, 1930-
Creator: Kawabe, Kenji, 1886-1973
source: Kuwahara, Terry
Identifier/Call Number: SPC.2018.040
Physical Description: 1 box (1 flat box including 2 disks (DVDs))
Physical Description: 1.25 Linear Feet (1 box)
Date (inclusive): 1943-2011
Abstract: This collection documents the Kuwahara family's time at the Poston incarceration camp in Arizona during World War II. Materials include: newsletters from the schools and community in Poston's camp, photographs of the people incarcerated at the camp and the desert landscape, watercolor paintings of the camp facilities, and programs and booklets from the reunions of the Poston camp families. Some of the items in this collection have been digitized and available online.
Material Specific Details: English translation, synopses, and brief descriptions for Japanese language materials are available at the CSU Japanese American Digitization Project site: Kuwahara Family Papers Digital Collection 
Language of Material: English , Japanese .

Conditions Governing Access

There are no access restrictions on this collection.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Terry Kuwahara donated the collection to the Gerth Archives and Special Collections on Sept 22, 2018 when the Library hosted a Scanning Day event at the Gardena Valley Japanese Cultural Institute.

Availability of Digital Reproductions

Some of the items in this collection have been digitized and available at the CSU Japanese American Digitization Project site: Kuwahara Family Papers Digital Collection 

Biographical / Historical

Ikuko June Kuwahara (1930-) was born in Los Angeles County to Kenji and Seiko Kawabe. Tatsuya Kuwahara (1925-) was born in Los Angeles County to Den'emon and Takeno Kuwahara.
The Kawabe and Kuwahara families were forcibly removed from their homes and incarcerated in 1942 to the Poston incarceration camp in Arizona. The Kawabe family was incarcerated at the camp until 1945. Tatsuya was imprisoned at the camp until 1944. Tatsuya and June were married in Los Angeles in 1953.

Poston War Relocation Center History

The Colorado River Relocation Center, also known as the Poston War Relocation Center, was the largest Japanese American incarceration camp in the United States, located in Poston, Arizona. Made up of three sites, it was operational from 1942-1945, and at its height imprisoned over 17,000 people. A memorial monument was built on the site in 1992.

Preferred Citation

For information about citing archival material, see the Citations for Archival Material  guide, or consult the appropriate style manual.

Processing Information

The collection was processed by Kathryn Brunet in 2018; the finding aid was updated by Yoko Okunishi in 2019.
Text files were 4.01 GB (34 files) and extracted from DVDs and normalized to a PDF format.
English translation, synopses, and brief descriptions for Japanese language materials are prepared by Yoko Okunishi.

Digital Reproductions

The Gerth Archives and Special Collections also created born-analog objects (digitized materials) from original items for long-term preservation and electronic access, adhering to best practice and standards to ensure the authenticity, integrity, and security of material. Redaction was applied to protect personal identifiable information and large files were compressed for greater efficiency online. For more information on digitization process, please see CSU Japanese American Digitization Project technical reference guide .
The most of the items in this collection have been digitized. The set of digital reproduction preservation files along with normalized text files is stored on the Gerth Archives and Special Collections' department drive for both preservation purposes and duplicate requests.
The set of digital reproduction access derivatives (access files) created for the digital management system is stored on the Gerth Archives and Special Collections' department external drive for staff use.

Scope and Contents

The Kuwahara Family Papers contains documentation of the Kuwahara family depicting the daily life and people incarcerated in the Poston camp in Arizona during World War II. Materials include: junior high school, high school, and camp community newsletters in both Japanese and English; a short travel journal written by Kenji Kawabe detailing his time while visiting the Granada camp in Colorado, Salt Lake, and the Topaz camp in Utah; photographs of class groups, farm workers, and the desert landscape; watercolor paintings of the Poston camp facilities; and programs and booklets of the family and community reunions of the Poston incarceration camp in print and electronic formats.

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.

CSU Japanese American Digitization Project

This collection is part of the California State University Japanese American Digitization Project. Other collections about the history of Japanese Americans are found in the digital repository: CSU Japanese American Digitization Project 

Subjects and Indexing Terms

Japanese Americans -- Evacuation and relocation, 1944-1945 -- Archives
Japanese Americans -- History -- 20th century
Kuwahara, Terry
Poston Incarceration Camp

box 1, folder 1

Breed Street news flashes 1942

Physical Description: 1 items
Language of Material: English.

Scope and Contents

Material is an issue of " Breed Street news flashes," a Breed Street Elementary School newsletter, featuring their students who were being removed because of the exclusion order.
box 1, folder 2

Whutsit, vol. 1, no. 1 1943 March 20

Physical Description: 1 items
Language of Material: English.

Scope and Contents

Material is an issue of " Whusit," a newsletter published by Poston I Junior High School. Includes pages 1-2 only.
box 1, folder 3, 10

Desert daze, vol. 1, no. 2; vol. 3 1943 May 27; 1945 March 28-29

Physical Description: 2 items
Language of Material: English.

Scope and Contents

Contain two issues of " Desert daze," a newsletter published by Poston I Junior High School on May 27 1943 and March 28-29, 1945.
box 1, folder 12

Kampus krier, vol. 3, no. 26 1945 May 4

Physical Description: 1 items
Language of Material: English.

Scope and Contents

Material is an issue of " Kampus krier," a newsletter published by Poston I High School.
box 1, folder 4-5, 7

Poston chronicle = ポストン新報; Granada pioneer = グラナダパイオニア 1943 August 25-December 2

Physical Description: 4 items
Language of Material: Japanese.

Scope and Contents

Includes Japanese sections from three issues of " Poston chronicle = ポストン新報," vol. 2, no. 94-95 [?] (1943 December 2, 4) and vol. 3, no. 29 (1944 March 9) published in the Poston camp in Arizona; and an issue of Granada pioneer, vol. 1, no. 94 = グラナダパイオニア, 第49号 (1943 August 25), published in the Granada camp in Colorado.
box 1, folder 6

Cooperator = 組合ニュース, 新年號 1944 January 8

Physical Description: 1 items
Language of Material: Japanese.

Scope and Contents

Material is an issue of Tule Lake camp Co-op newsletter, " Cooperator = 組合ニュース, 新年號." Includes pages 5-6 only.
box 1, folder 8

Posuton Shuyojo ポストン収容所 = Poston incarceration camp 1944 May 9-June 2

Physical Description: 1 items
Language of Material: Japanese.

Scope and Contents

Material is a travel journal written by Kenji Kawabe of his time away from the Poston camp in Arizona from May 9 through June 2, 1944. He visited the Granada camp in Colorado, and Salt Lake and the Topaz camp in Utah, meeting his friends and going sightseeing and shopping.
box 1, folder 9

Photograph of a high school auditorium in the Poston camp 1944

Physical Description: 1 Photographic Prints
box 1, folder 11

Photograph of a bird carving class in the Poston camp April 1945

Physical Description: 1 Photographic Prints
box 1, folder 14

Photograph of chicken farm workers in the Poston camp June 1945

Physical Description: 1 Photographic Prints
Language of Material: Caption in Japanese.
box 1, folder 13, 24

Photographs of Poston camp facilities and desert landscape 1945; undated

Physical Description: 8 Photographic Prints
Language of Material: Captions in English and Japanese.

Scope and Contents

Contains eight photographs of the facilities and desert landscape in the Poston camp in Arizona.
box 1, folder 22

Watercolor paintings of Poston camp facilities undated

Physical Description: 3 Sheets
Language of Material: English.

Scope and Contents

Contains three watercolor paintings depicting the facilities in the Poston camp in Arizona.
box 1, folder 23

A Happier New Year from Poston circa 1942-1945

Physical Description: 1 items
Language of Material: English.

Scope and Contents

Material is a New Year's card created in the Poston camp in Arizona.
box 1, folder 15

Ten visits: brief accounts of our visits to all ten Japanese American relocation centers of World War II by Frank and Joanne Iratani September, 1992

Physical Description: 1 volume(17 pages, 26 pages of plates, color illustrations, maps)
Language of Material: English.

Scope and Contents

Material is a booklet written by Frank and Joaane Iritani, containing a brief account of their visits to all ten incarceration camps.
box 1, folder 16

Official program from Poston memorial monument dedication October 6, 1992

Physical Description: 1 volume(25 pages, illustrations)
Language of Material: English.

Scope and Contents

Contains a booklet accompanied with a letter.
box 1, folder 17

Poston I 1942-1992 50 year camp reunion 1992

Physical Description: 1 volume(112 pages)
Language of Material: English.

Scope and Contents

Material is a booklet published for Poston I 50 year camp reunion.
box 1, folder 18

Poston I 1942-1997 55 year camp reunion 1997

Physical Description: 1 volume
Language of Material: English.

Scope and Contents

Material is a booklet published for Poston I 55 year camp reunion.
box 1, folder 19

Poston I class reunion 1998 banquet program 1998

Physical Description: 1 Sheets
Language of Material: English.

Scope and Contents

Material is a banquet program for Poston I class reunion.
box 1, folder 20

Class of 45 Poston High School reunion program December 1, 2001

Physical Description: 1 volume
Language of Material: English.

Scope and Contents

Material is a program booklet for Poston High School class of 45 reunion.
box 1, folder 21

Reunion DVDs and flyer 1992-2011

Physical Description: 4.01 Gigabytes(34 digital files)
Physical Description: 3 items(2 DVDs and 1 flyer)
Language of Material: English.

Scope and Contents

Contains two DVDs and a flyer from Poston reunion 2011. DVDs include image files and a pdf file of a booklet, "Poston I 1942-1992 50 year camp reunion;" two unpublished documents, "Poston Relocation Center, Arizona" written by Katherine Baishiki and Cindy Kumagawa and "Soldiers and the camps (Poston, AZ)" compiled by James McIlwain; and moving image files from Poston reunion 2011.