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Tacoma's Japantown

Up until World War II, Tacoma had a growing Japanese population. Through much hard work, determination, and in spite of racial prejudice, many of these families were just beginning to enjoy the fruits of their labor when, in 1942, the government announced that all Japanese-Americans were to be rounded up and sent away to camps - for the security of the nation.

During the fall of 1942, approximately 1,600 members of Tacoma's Japanese community were placed on trains, allowed to bring only one suitcase.

While away at the camps, many of the homes and busiensses owned by Japanese-Americans were vandalized and stolen. Upon being released from camp, many had nothing to return to and so choose to live in places with greater opportunity.

Resources for further exploration:
HISTORY OF THE JAPANESE OF TACOMA - translated from the Japanese by James Watanabe, 1986.
This translation of a 1917 chronicle contains detailed information on the activities of the Tacoma Japanese Association, histories of various Japanese organizations in the Tacoma area from the barbers union to the haiku clubs, and background information on most of the Japanese families in the greater Tacoma area.

A list of Japanese-Americans living in the Tacoma area that were sent to the camps compiled from the National Archives and Records Administration

Japanese American National Museum - Online Collections

San Francisco Museum - Internment of San Francisco Japanese

Organization of American Historians - Incarcerating Japanese Americans

Densho - The Japanese American Legacy Project

Japanese American Citizens League

Japanese American Incarceration Newspapers at the University of Oregon (on microfilm)

JUSTICE DELAYED 43 YEARS - Congressional Record 1985

The Untold Story of U.S. Repression During 'The Good War'

Tacoma Then and Now