Hiroshi Fukuwa Manzanar Diary

Collection

Identifier: SPC-2019-034

Staff Only

Digital reproductions of items from: Hiroshi Fukuwa Manzanar Diary

Scope and Contents

Hiroshi Fukuwa Manzanar Diary (1942-1945) contains 36.3 MB (8 PDF files) of born-analog objects (digital reproductions) which were created from the entire collection during digitization process in 2017. It comprises a diary written by Hiroshi Fukuwa, Kibei Nisei of Los Angeles, California, along with newsletters, clippings, and handwritten notes. His diary details his experiences during World War II, starting from the day when he left Los Angeles for the Manzanar incarceration camp in California and including his transfer to the Gila River camp in Arizona and segregation in the Tule Lake camp in California, but he stopped writing before the war ended. The diary describes trips to the camps, construction of facilities, living conditions, work and salaries, events, and incidents and accidents, reflecting a Kibei Nisei perspective.

Dates

1942-1945

Creator

Fukuwa, Hiroshi, 1914-2013 (Author, Person)

Language of Materials

The collection is predominantly in Japanese.

Conditions Governing Access

There are no access restrictions on this collection.

Conditions Governing Use

All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Director of the Gerth Archives and Special Collections. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the Gerth Archives and 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.

Biographical / Historical

Hiroshi Ted Fukuwa (1914 March 6-2013 August 11) is Kibei Nisei, who was born in the United States, educated in Japan, and returned to Los Angeles, California prior to World War II. His family members, including his sister and mother, remained in Japan while he and his two brothers resided in the United States. One of his brothers joined in the U.S. military and the other operated stores with him in Little Tokyo, Los Angeles.

He was one of the first group of incarcerees who voluntarily moved to the Manzanar incarceration camp in California during the war. The members of the group mainly consisted of single male Japanese and Japanese Americans, mostly Issei and Kibei Nisei men. He moved into the Manzanar camp on March 23, 1942 and was transferred to the Gila River incarceration camp in Arizona to join his brother's family in April 1943. Answering “no” to questions 27 and 28 of the "loyalty questionnaire," he was segregated into the Tule Lake camp in California, and was about to return to Japan, renouncing his U.S. citizenship. After the war ended, however, he did not return to Japan but came back to Los Angeles.

Extent

36.3 Megabytes (8 PDF files)

Additional Description

Abstract

This collection consists of a diary written by Hiroshi Fukuwa, Kibei Nisei of Los Angeles, California, along with newsletters, clippings, and handwritten notes created/collected in the incarceration camps during World War II. The diary details his incarceration experiences in the Manzanar camp in California, the Gila River camp in Arizona, and the Tule Lake camp in California. All materials in this collection are born-analog objects (digital reproductions).

Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

The access derivatives (access files) are 36.3 MB (8 PDF files) and 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

In 2017, Dianne Fukuwa loaned this collection to the Gerth Archives and Special Collection to be digitized. The digital reproductions created in the digitization process were then donated to the Gerth Archives for the CSU Japanese American Project.

Existence and Location of Originals

Physical materials (physical carriers) remain with the donor.

Availability of Digital Reproductions

The entire collection has been digitized and digital reproduction access derivatives (access files) are available at the CSU Japanese American Project site: Hiroshi Fukuwa Manzanar Diary Digital Collection

CSU Japanese 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

Translation

English translation, summary, and synopsis for Japanese materials are available at the CSU Japanese American Digitization Project site: Hiroshi Fukuwa Manzanar Diary Digital Collection

Processing Information

The collection was processed and English translation was provided by Yoko Okunishi.

Digital Reproductions

The Gerth Archives and Special Collections created born-analog objects (digital reproductions) 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. For more information on digitization process, please see: CSU Japanese American Digitization Project: technical reference guide.

The entire collection has been digitized. The set of the digital reproduction access derivatives (access files) is 36.3 MB (8 PDF files) and stored on the Public Use Drive.

The set of digital reproduction preservation files is 8.56 GB (166 TIFF files) and stored on the Gerth Archives and Special Collections' department drive for preservation purposes. These files are also available for duplication requests by contacting the department.

The set of digital reproductions access derivatives (access files) created for the digital management system is 36.3 MB (9 PDF files) and stored on the Gerth Archives and Special Collections' department external drive for staff use.