Assembly Centers

Return to Japanese Internment in WWII = Assembly Centers = Run by Wartime Civil Control Administration (WCCA) http://www.insidesocal.com/rose/RBLOG-CARRY3.JPG

photo courtesy of insidesocal.com

Purpose
These camps were created in order to expedite the removal of the Japanese from the west coast into the Relocation Centers which were not completed at the time the call for evacuation was made. Although the forced evacuations could have been delayed until the Relocation Centers were completed, the military felt the Japanese Americans living in the restricted area of the west coast were too deadly a threat to delay their removal; thus these temporary camps were created until they could be transported to the more permanent camps.

Burton, J., M. Farrell, F. Lord, and R. Lord. "National Park Service: Confinement and Ethnicity (Chapter 16)." U.S. National Park Service - Experience Your America. 1 Sept. 2000. Web. 25 Oct. 2010. .

Site Selection
There were seventeen camps created within the extremely short period of twenty-eight days in which accommodations were below the bare minimum. Sites were chosen based on the requirements of a large open space for housing, easy access to water and power, as well as ease of confinement. In most cases fairgrounds were chosen as the ideal site, but racetracks, migrant worker camps, and a livestock exposition hall were also used.

Burton, J., M. Farrell, F. Lord, and R. Lord. "National Park Service: Confinement and Ethnicity (Chapter 16)." U.S. National Park Service - Experience Your America. 1 Sept. 2000. Web. 25 Oct. 2010. .

Population

 * Fresno, California: 5,344 (max of 5,120 at a time)
 * Marysville, California: 2,465 (max of 2,451 at a time)
 * Mayer, Arizona: 243
 * Merced, California: 4,669 (max of 4,508)
 * Pinedale, California: 4,823 (max of 4,792)
 * Pomona, California: 5,514 (max of 5,434)
 * Portland, Oregon: 4,290
 * Puyallup, Washington: 7,628 (max of 7,390)
 * Sacramento, California 4,770 (max of 4,739)
 * Salinas, California: 3,608 (max of 3,594)
 * Santa Anita, California: 19,348 (max of 18,719)
 * Stockton, California: 4,390 (max of 4271)
 * Tanforan, California: 8,033 (7,816)
 * Tulare, California: 5,061 (max of 4,978)
 * Turlock, California: 3,699 (max of 3,662)
 * (Poston, Arizona and Manzanar, California are included with the relocation centers)

Burton, J., M. Farrell, F. Lord, and R. Lord. "National Park Service: Confinement and Ethnicity (Chapter 16)." U.S. National Park Service - Experience Your America. 1 Sept. 2000. Web. 25 Oct. 2010. .

Conditions
All of the assembly centers were surrounded by barbed wire fences with an armed military police patrolling throughout and around them. Although each center differed slightly, generally there were barracks, mess halls, and separate communal bathrooms along with separate accommodations for the military policing the evacuees. In many cases, the living quarters were converted stables, or in the case of the Portland Assembly Center a livestock pavilion was subdivided into apartments, a kitchen, and dining hall all under one roof and would house 3,800 evacuees. Along with the cramped quarters, the shelters themselves were poorly constructed, many of which were built with walls made of horizontal boards covered in 30lb. felt or one-ply roofing paper; and roofs were comprised of rafters supporting boards covered by a single layer of roofing. Despite the fact that the order for their evacuation to these centers was made on April 9, 1942, it wasn’t until May 26, 1942 that they began transferring people to the more permanent Relocation Centers; although some would never leave the assembly centers, as in the case of Poston in Arizona and Manzanar in eastern California, which would eventually be relabeled relocation centers.

Burton, J., M. Farrell, F. Lord, and R. Lord. "National Park Service: Confinement and Ethnicity (Chapter 16)." U.S. National Park Service - Experience Your America. 1 Sept. 2000. Web. 25 Oct. 2010. .

Layout
http://www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/anthropology74/images/figure16.30.jpg

photo courtesy of University of Washington Libraries

It was located about 25 miles south of Seattle and built on the Western Washington State Fair lands which included stables, a racetrack, outbuildings, and a rollercoaster. Due to the high population, barracks were constructed to fill every available space; such as in the parking lots, beneath the grandstand, and within the circle of the racetrack. It was then divided into four areas (A, B, C, D) with living quarters, mess halls, and other facilities.
 * A – population of 2,000
 * B – population 1,200
 * C – population 800
 * D – population 3,000 and included the racetrack, administrative offices, and bachelor’s barracks

"Camp Harmony Exhibit - Layout." University of Washington Libraries. 9 Dec. 1997. Web. 25 Oct. 2010. .

Housing
http://www.lib.washington.edu/exhibits/harmony/Photo/mohi12.gif

photo courtesy of University of Washington Libraries

This consisted of barracks divided into “apartments” of one 18 x 20 foot room for each family. There was no running water but toilets and showers were not a long walk in addition to the messhalls, a canteen and a laundry room. The “apartments” were furnished with an army cot for each person in which the earlier evacuees were provided mattresses and the later arrivals were given straw-filled ticks. Heat was from a stove and a bare bulb counted for lighting along with a single window. There was very little privacy as the walls dividing the apartments did not reach the ceilings so noise traveled throughout the entire building. In addition there were no dividers between toilets or showers. In the spring, the inmates used wood and tools they found to construct furniture such as tables and chairs as found fabric to make curtains and bedding that helped make the barracks feel more like homes.

"Camp Harmony Exhibit - Housing." University of Washington Libraries. 9 Dec. 1997. Web. 25 Oct. 2010. .

Food
Accommodations were not available to cook within their "apartments", but meals were provided in the mess halls three times a day. The times were extremely regimented with breakfast being served from 6:00 to 7:00 a.m., lunch from 11:30 to 12:30 p.m., and dinner from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m.

A typical meal is reported as being milk, bread, spaghetti, potatoes, and salad; there were no second helpings except for milk and bread. Traditional Japanese dishes were not provided, although the food later improved by making available fresh fruits and vegetables. If they had a sweet tooth, they could go to the fence and purchase treats from local retailers on the other side and eventually from canteens that were opened inside the camp.

However, in the beginning the camp was ill-equipped for the amount of people and the food was incredibly insufficient; one resident was quoted as saying

'The food and sanitation problems are the worst. We have had absolutely no fresh meat, vegetables or butter since we came here. Mealtime queues extend for blocks; standing in a rainswept line, feet in the mud, waiting for the scant portions of canned wieners and boiled potatoes, hash for breakfast or canned wieners and beans for dinner. Milk only for the kids. Coffee or tea dosed with saltpeter and stale bread are the adults' staples.  '

"Camp Harmony Exhibit - Food." University of Washington Libraries. 9 Dec. 1997. Web. 27 Oct. 2010. .

Work
http://www.lib.washington.edu/exhibits/harmony/Photo/mohi4-sm.gif

photo courtesy of University of Washington Libraries

Work was not required but greatly encouraged and anyone over the age of 16 could work in the camp, which most did either out of a desire to prove their loyalty or out of boredom. They were paid based upon a forty-four hour work week once a month with the pay rates varying based on skill. In addition, each person received a clothing allowance and a coupon book whether they worked or not to purchase items in the canteen- $2.50 per adult per month, $1.00 per child.

Wage Break-down:

Unskilled.......................$8.00 per month

Skilled...........................$12.00 per month

Profession/technical......$16.00 per month

1.) Unskilled: common labor, to include dishwashing, tray service at mess halls, junior clerks, assistant playground directors, cook's helpers, and other similar occupations.

2.) Skilled: nurses, accountants, senior clerks, playground directors, motion picture operators, cooks, etc.

3.) Professional and technical: physicians, dentists, chemists, engineers, teachers, etc.

"Camp Harmony Exhibit - Work." University of Washington Libraries. 9 Dec. 1997. Web. 25 Oct. 2010. .

School
Schools were not in the original plan for the camps, but the because of the need for them they were created. Not only were they for the children of student age, but classes were offered to adults in first aid and English classes for Issei.

"Camp Harmony Exhibit - School." University of Washington Libraries. 9 Dec. 1997. Web. 25 Oct. 2010. .