The Manzanar National Historic Site
Each year, on the last Saturday of April, a delegation of Japanese-American and others make a pilgrimage to the eastern base of the Sierra Nevada in California's Owens Valley to Manzanar, where a small ceremony is held to commemorate the closing of the war relocation camps. Manzanar War Relocation Center was one of ten camps at which Japanese American citizens and Japanese aliens were interned during World War II. On March 3, 1992, Manzanar National Historic Site was established as a unit of the National Park Service to preserve the camp remains.
Background
Manzanar's history predates its occupation as a detention facility. Before the white man came to Owens Valley, the area was home to many Paiute and Shoshone Indians. Between 1910 and 1935 an agricultural village here known as "Manzanar" (from the Spanish word for "apple") was a thriving pear and apple growing center. In February of 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, ordering that all Japanese Americans be evacuated from the West Coast. As a result, Japanese Americans from all of California, Arizona, Oregon and Washington sold what they could not carry and boarded trains to 16 assembly centers. There they would live in temporary housing for much of the spring and summer of 1942 until permanent camps were built. From 1942-1945, approximately 110,000 Japanese Americans were evacuated from their homes and businesses to internment camps scattered throughout the interior of the United States. Manzanar was used as an internment camp for over 10,000 Japanese Americans from Southern California.
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Manzanar Today
The park visit center includes an extensive gallery of
photos, documents and information on display.
Little remains of the camp other than two sentry posts, the camp auditorium, and the camp cemetery. Because of its historic value in telling the history of WWII, local, state and federal agencies continue to work on a long-range protection and visitor use plan. The Eastern California Museum, located five miles north of Manzanar in Independence, includes a significant collection of photos, drawings, paintings, and artifacts associated with Manzanar. The museum is open 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. daily; closed Tuesdays. For further information call (760) 878-0258. Additional information on these internment camps can be obtained by visiting the Japanese American National Museum, 369 East First Street, Los Angeles, California, 90012 (213) 625-0414.
Other useful resources:
Eastern Sierra Web Page - includes general information on the Eastern Sierra region, including places to visit, the environment, dining and lodging, and more.
Farewell To Manzanar - a true story of a spirited Japanese American family's attempt to survive the indignities of forced detention , by Jeanne W. Houston & James D. Houston.
Japanese-American Relocation Digital Archives - JARDA is a digital "thematic collection" documenting the experience of Japanese Americans in World War II internment camps.
Nearby Parks:
Death Valley National Park - largest national park in the contiguous United States, featuring spectacular desert scenery, desert wildlife, vast stretches of wilderness, and sites of cultural and historical significance.
Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks - home of the giant sequoia and the highest mountain in the contiguous United States, Mount Whitney.