Japanese American Incarceration Era Collection -- Remaking Home Behind Barbed Wire
Remaking Home Behind Barbed Wire
Faced with a disheartening environment, most detainees tried to remake the home they were forced to leave or at least make their barracks more familiar and comfortable. Some purchased objects and others resorted to making them.
Many incarcerated Japanese Americans worked in the relocation centers and incarceration camps fulfilling positions such as teachers, dentists, physicians, and cooks. With the money they earned from their jobs and with help from friends and associates outside of the incarceration camps, Japanese Americans were able to open and hold/maintain bank accounts. Although their income was significantly less than what they would have made if they were not incarcerated, it did allow detainees to afford more items to make their imprisonment more comfortable. Those incarcerated could purchase items from Sears Roebuck and Company catalogues that were kept at the Relocation Center post offices.
In addition to buying objects, incarcerated Japanese Americans built their own furniture, sewed their own clothes, and made home décor in hopes of fixing up their meager barracks. Several of the pieces of furniture displayed high quality workmanship and the handmade clothes often followed the fashion edicts of the day. Prisoners worked hard and made their adverse living situation as bearable as possible for their families. The objects in this section represent the resiliency, adaptability, and durability of the Japanese American detainees.
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Red Sweater Vest
- Description
- Many incarcerated people were not prepared for the camps because of the quick “evacuation” process. One major problem was lack of appropriate clothing for the camp environment and for growing children. As a result many people made clothing for their families. This could have been the case for this hand-knit red sweater vest.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- ID Number
- 1986.3096.05
- nonaccession number
- 1986.3096
- catalog number
- 1986.3096.05
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Radio
- Description
- This radio was purchased from a Sears, Roebuck, and Company catalogue. These catalogues were found in the internment camp post offices. Internees could order things that they were not able to bring with them from home as long as they could pay for it, and if it was not banned.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- ID Number
- 1986.3096.16
- nonaccession number
- 1986.3096
- catalog number
- 1986.3096.16
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Record player
- Description
- Like the radio, this record player was purchased from a Sears, Roebuck, and Company catalogue. Purchasing objects like these made life in the interment camp feel a little bit more like home. Internees could escape the harsh condition of the barracks by listening to their favorite music.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- ID Number
- 1986.3096.27
- nonaccession number
- 1986.3096
- catalog number
- 1986.3096.27
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Cotton Crocheted Belt
- Description
- This belt was made with string left over from the Works Project Administration (WPA). Before Rohwer Relocation Center was built, the WPA had to first drain the swamp that would become the campground location.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- ID Number
- 1986.3144.01
- nonaccession number
- 1986.3144
- catalog number
- 1986.3144.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Purse
- Description
- Many Japanese American internees typically made their own clothing in the camps. Sewing was a prized skill that created and strengthened community bonds. People who had this ability mended old clothing and created new pieces for fellow camp detainees. This purse was sewn using one piece of cloth and oil wicks.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1943-1945
- ID Number
- 1986.3144.03
- nonaccession number
- 1986.3144
- catalog number
- 1986.3144.03
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Raffia Coaster
- Description
- These coasters made from raffia cords would have added a personalized touch to the stark and shabby living conditions imprisoned Japanese Americans faced.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- ID Number
- 1986.3144.05
- nonaccession number
- 1986.3144
- catalog number
- 1986.3144.05
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Raffia zori (sandals)
- Description
- These raffia sandals were worn by a child in the barracks. They were made by weaving a few palm strands together.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1943-1945
- ID Number
- 1986.3144.06
- nonaccession number
- 1986.3144
- catalog number
- 1986.3144.06
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Wooden name plate used in Manzanar
- Description
- This name plate identified the residence of Michibiku Ozamoto. Her name is spelled out in both Japanese characters and English. The numbers 24-4-3 stand for Block 24, Barracks 4, Apartment 3. The sign was constructed from scrap wood found around Manzanar Relocation Center.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- ID Number
- 1986.3067.01
- nonaccession number
- 1986.3067
- catalog number
- 1986.3067.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Butsudan-Buddhist altar
- Description
- This Butsudan-Buddhist altar was made from scrap lumber in Jerome Relocation Center in Arkansas. Buddhism was among the religions that was practiced in the internment camps. However, it was not formally recognized in the camp or marked with a specific house of worship within the internment camp grounds. This altar would have been kept in the barracks and used privately.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- ID Number
- 1986.3068.01
- catalog number
- 1986.3068.01
- nonaccession number
- 1986.3068
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Christmas card
- Description
- Although most Japanese American families spent Christmas behind barbed wire, the internment camp communities tried to keep some semblance of normal life by creating Christmas decorations for their homes and for each other. This card was made in Topaz Relocation Center in Utah.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- ID Number
- 1986.3126.01
- nonaccession number
- 1986.3126
- catalog number
- 1986.3126.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Roofed Japanese Lantern
- Description
- The donor's father made this lamp while in Manzanar Relocation Center. Many internees made furniture and other interior decorations from the limited materials available to them at the camps. This particular object was constructed out of orange boxes, twigs from trees growing around Manzanar, burlap scraps from the camouflage net factory at the camp, and glass from a broken windowpane.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- ID Number
- 2005.0252.01
- accession number
- 2005.0252
- catalog number
- 2005.0252.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Graduation program, Rohwer High School
- Description
- Formal education was offered at the relocation camps. Each camp acted as an individual school district. Instructors were either non-Japanese professionals brought into the camps from the outside or qualified residents. Although camps offered education programs, they suffered from lack of appropriate supplies like textbooks and typewriters.
- Mrs. Mabel Rose Vogel was an art teacher in Rohwer camp, and retained many of her student's art projects. Many were donated to the Smithsonian for its exhibit, but a roomful remained in her apartment.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1943-1945
- ID Number
- 1986.3144.45
- nonaccession number
- 1986.3144
- catalog number
- 1986.3144.45
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
