Description
Many of the almost 50 letters are in Japanese
and many, but not all, of those have been translated. There are letters from
other Relocation Camps in Topaz, Utah; Granada, Colorado (Amache); and Newell,
California (Tule Lake). Other locations include: Fort Riley, Kansas and Brigham
City, Utah.
Background
Frank M. Nakata appears to have lived in Windsor, California (near Santa
Rosa) in 1940 and was briefly in the Pomona Assembly Center before being moved
to Heart Mountain Relocation Center near Ralston, Wyoming. He likely returned
to San Francisco in 1945. Many of the letters in this collection come from his
nephew Wataru Oye (1912-2001). According to his biography
(http://www.wataruoye.com/Bio.html), Oye was in San Francisco when World War II
started. He was drafted, and trained at Camp Phillips, Kansas. Oye later fought
with the 442nd Regimental Combat Team in Europe. He was discharged in late 1945
and studied art at Bethany College in Lindsborg, Kansas. All of Oye's letters
in this collection come from his times in Kansas. Other identifiable letter
writers include: Sadako Arima, Mitsuko Kawashima, Eiko Arima, Eili Uchida,
George and Kishiko Hoshide, and Yoshiko Kanashiro. Frequently, letter writers
to Nakata would ask about a Mr. Sakaguchi.
Restrictions
Permission for publication is given on behalf of Special Collections as
the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply
permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the
researcher.
Availability
Collection open for research.