Granada War Relocation Center
Encyclopedia
The Granada War Relocation Center (also Camp Amache) was a Japanese American internment
camp located in southeast Colorado
about a mile west of the small farming community of Granada
, south of US 50.
The camp was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
on May 18, 1994, and designated a National Historic Landmark
on February 10, 2006.
, following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on December 7, 1941. The camp opened in August 1942 and had a maximum population of 7,318 persons.
Nearly all of those interned at the camp came from the West Coast
of the U.S., mostly from the Los Angeles
area. Each person was only allowed to bring one bag, therefore, many people were forced to sell what they could or give away their possessions before being forced out. This also included pets.
The camp's unofficial name quickly became Camp Amache, named after a Cheyenne Indian
chief's daughter, the wife of John Prowers (the county where Camp Amache is located is named after Prowers). This name change was due to a mail mix-up between the town of Granada and the camp.
The Camp Amache residential area is spread across a low hill, which prevented the flooding and mud problems which plagued other internment camps. It was surrounded by barbed-wire fencing, with eight machine-gun towers located all around the camp. However, all eight towers were rarely manned at one time, and the guns were never used. The camp had a police department which was actually worked by Japanese Americans living at the camp. Colorado Governor Ralph Lawrence Carr
was one of the few to welcome the Japanese to Colorado, going against the current anti-Japanese sentiment of the times.
Camp leaders, internees themselves, set up a separate Amache District for Boy Scouts
at the camp. These Scouts still flew the American flag, notwithstanding the treatment they and their families had received from the government, as seen in the photograph at left of a Boy Scout Memorial Day
parade at the camp.
Sources indicate that the high school football
team lost one game in three years. One noteworthy event was when the Amache football team played the undefeated football team from Holly, Colorado, which is located just 11 miles (17.7 km) east of Amache on U.S. 50. This game was unique because Holly actually agreed to come up to the camp and play Amache on their home field. One of the Holly team players was Roy Romer, who went on to become Governor of Colorado. The Amache team won this game by a score of 7-0, the only touchdown coming from a trick play, thus the Amache team can claim to be undefeated on their own field.
, etc. The highway signs identify the site only as Camp Amache http://amache.org.
In the southwest corner of the camp is a small cemetery and memorial dedicated to the Japanese Americans from there who volunteered to fight in Europe in World War II. Nisei from all the camps were in the 442nd Regimental Combat Team
, the most decorated unit of its size in American military history. A large stone memorial with men's names engraved in it sits in the cemetery in memory of those who died defending the U.S. in the 442nd. The graves at the cemetery are only of children who died while at the camp.
Since 1990, the Amache Preservation Society, a Granada high school group, has worked on preservation of the site and its documents. As a school project, Granada Undivided High School
students have set up a museum for the Granada War Relocation Center.
On December 21, 2006, President George W. Bush
signed H.R. 1492 into law guaranteeing $38,000,000 in federal money to restore the Granada relocation center and nine other former Japanese internment camps.
Japanese American internment
Japanese-American internment was the relocation and internment by the United States government in 1942 of approximately 110,000 Japanese Americans and Japanese who lived along the Pacific coast of the United States to camps called "War Relocation Camps," in the wake of Imperial Japan's attack on...
camp located in southeast Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
about a mile west of the small farming community of Granada
Granada, Colorado
Granada is a Statutory Town in Prowers County, Colorado, United States. The population was 640 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Granada is located at ....
, south of US 50.
The camp was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
on May 18, 1994, and designated a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
on February 10, 2006.
History
The Center was one of ten that were created by the administration of President Franklin D. RooseveltFranklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...
, following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on December 7, 1941. The camp opened in August 1942 and had a maximum population of 7,318 persons.
Nearly all of those interned at the camp came from the West Coast
West Coast of the United States
West Coast or Pacific Coast are terms for the westernmost coastal states of the United States. The term most often refers to the states of California, Oregon, and Washington. Although not part of the contiguous United States, Alaska and Hawaii do border the Pacific Ocean but can't be included in...
of the U.S., mostly from the Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
area. Each person was only allowed to bring one bag, therefore, many people were forced to sell what they could or give away their possessions before being forced out. This also included pets.
The camp's unofficial name quickly became Camp Amache, named after a Cheyenne Indian
Cheyenne
Cheyenne are a Native American people of the Great Plains, who are of the Algonquian language family. The Cheyenne Nation is composed of two united tribes, the Só'taeo'o and the Tsétsêhéstâhese .The Cheyenne are thought to have branched off other tribes of Algonquian stock inhabiting lands...
chief's daughter, the wife of John Prowers (the county where Camp Amache is located is named after Prowers). This name change was due to a mail mix-up between the town of Granada and the camp.
The Camp Amache residential area is spread across a low hill, which prevented the flooding and mud problems which plagued other internment camps. It was surrounded by barbed-wire fencing, with eight machine-gun towers located all around the camp. However, all eight towers were rarely manned at one time, and the guns were never used. The camp had a police department which was actually worked by Japanese Americans living at the camp. Colorado Governor Ralph Lawrence Carr
Ralph Lawrence Carr
Ralph Lawrence Carr was the 29th Governor of Colorado from 1939 to 1943. Born in Rosita in Custer County, he grew up in Cripple Creek in Teller County and graduated from Cripple Creek High School in 1905. A Republican, Carr was committed to fiscal restraint in state government and opposed the...
was one of the few to welcome the Japanese to Colorado, going against the current anti-Japanese sentiment of the times.
Scouting in Colorado
Scouting in Colorado has a long history, from the 1910s to the present day, serving thousands of youth in programs that suit the rugged, mountainous environment in which they live.-Early history :Scouting got a brisk start in Colorado...
at the camp. These Scouts still flew the American flag, notwithstanding the treatment they and their families had received from the government, as seen in the photograph at left of a Boy Scout Memorial Day
Memorial Day
Memorial Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the last Monday of May. Formerly known as Decoration Day, it originated after the American Civil War to commemorate the fallen Union soldiers of the Civil War...
parade at the camp.
Sources indicate that the high school football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
team lost one game in three years. One noteworthy event was when the Amache football team played the undefeated football team from Holly, Colorado, which is located just 11 miles (17.7 km) east of Amache on U.S. 50. This game was unique because Holly actually agreed to come up to the camp and play Amache on their home field. One of the Holly team players was Roy Romer, who went on to become Governor of Colorado. The Amache team won this game by a score of 7-0, the only touchdown coming from a trick play, thus the Amache team can claim to be undefeated on their own field.
Present-day
Today the camp is a lonely, desolate place on the high prairie, covered by scrubby vegetation and small cacti. All but one of the buildings were removed, many having been sold at auction and hauled off. The sole remaining original building is a pumphouse beside the main water tank, both of which are still in use. Cement foundations of most of the buildings remain, and the site is largely undisturbed, though the land was sold at auction (rather than being returned to the original owners). Signs have been posted to show locations of schools, laundries, dining halls, clinics, fire stationFire station
A fire station is a structure or other area set aside for storage of firefighting apparatus , personal protective equipment, fire hose, fire extinguishers, and other fire extinguishing equipment...
, etc. The highway signs identify the site only as Camp Amache http://amache.org.
In the southwest corner of the camp is a small cemetery and memorial dedicated to the Japanese Americans from there who volunteered to fight in Europe in World War II. Nisei from all the camps were in the 442nd Regimental Combat Team
442nd Regimental Combat Team
The 442nd Regimental Combat Team of the United States Army, was composed of Japanese-American enlisted men and mostly Caucasian officers. They fought primarily in Europe during World War II, beginning in 1944. The families of many of its soldiers were subject to internment...
, the most decorated unit of its size in American military history. A large stone memorial with men's names engraved in it sits in the cemetery in memory of those who died defending the U.S. in the 442nd. The graves at the cemetery are only of children who died while at the camp.
Since 1990, the Amache Preservation Society, a Granada high school group, has worked on preservation of the site and its documents. As a school project, Granada Undivided High School
Granada Undivided High School
Granada Undivided High School is the high school serving Granada, Colorado. As of the 2004-05 school year, the school served 122 students in grades 7-12....
students have set up a museum for the Granada War Relocation Center.
On December 21, 2006, President George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
signed H.R. 1492 into law guaranteeing $38,000,000 in federal money to restore the Granada relocation center and nine other former Japanese internment camps.
Notable internees
- Kaneji DomotoKaneji DomotoKaneji Domoto , known as "Kan", was an architect and landscape architect. He attended Stanford University and UC Berkeley, and was interned at the Granada War Relocation Center during World War II. He studied with Frank Lloyd Wright in Taliesin and had a 50+ year career...
(1913–2002), an architect and landscape architect - Robert S. HamadaRobert Hamada (professor)Robert Hamada is the former Edward Eagle Brown Distinguished Service Professor of Finance and former Dean of the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.-Early life:...
(born 1937), the Edward Eagle Brown Distinguished Service Professor of Finance and former Dean of the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business - Mike HondaMike HondaMichael Makoto "Mike" Honda is an American Democratic Party politician. He currently serves as the U.S. Representative for , encompassing western San Jose and Silicon Valley...
(born 1941), an American politician - Lawson Fusao InadaLawson Fusao InadaLawson Fusao Inada is an American poet and was the fifth poet laureate of the U.S. state of Oregon.-Early life:Inada is a third-generation Japanese American...
(born 1938), an American poet. Also interned at JeromeJerome War Relocation CenterThe Jerome War Relocation Center was a Japanese American internment camp located in southeastern Arkansas near the town of Jerome. Open from October 1942 until June 1944, it was the last relocation camp to open and the first to close; at one point it contained as many as 8,497 inhabitants. After... - Yasuhiro IshimotoYasuhiro IshimotoIshimoto was born on 14 June 1921 in San Francisco, California, where his parents were farmers. In 1924, the family left the United States and returned to his parents' hometown within present-day Tosa, in Kōchi Prefecture, Japan...
(born 1921), an influential photographer - Kiyoshi K. MuranagaKiyoshi K. MuranagaKiyoshi K. Muranaga was a United States Army soldier and a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration—the Medal of Honor—for his actions in World War II.-Biography:...
(1922–1944), a United States Army soldier and a recipient of the Medal of HonorMedal of HonorThe Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her... - Walter OiWalter OiWalter Yasuo Oi is the Elmer B. Milliman Professor of Economics at the University of Rochester in Rochester, New York...
(born 1929), the Elmer B. Milliman Professor of Economics at the University of Rochester and fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. - Arthur OkamuraArthur OkamuraArthur Okamura was an American artist, working in screen printing, drawing and painting. He lived in the San Francisco Bay Area, and was Professor Emeritus at the California College of the Arts in San Francisco, California...
(1932–2009), a screen print artist - Pat SuzukiPat SuzukiPat Suzuki is an American popular singer and actress, who is best known for her role in the original Broadway production of the musical Flower Drum Song, and her performance of the song "I Enjoy Being a Girl" in the show.-Career:Suzuki is a Nisei or second-generation Japanese American...
(born 1930), a popular singer and actress - Edison UnoEdison UnoEdison Uno was a Japanese American civil rights advocate, best known for opposing laws used to implement the mass preventative detention of Japanese Americans in the United States during World War II....
(1929–1976), a Japanese American civil rights advocate. Also interned at the Crystal City Internment CampCrystal City Internment CampCrystal City Internment Camp was a World War II internment camp, named for Crystal City, Texas, the town where it was located. Many Japanese, German, and Italian Americans, as well as some Hispanics were imprisoned there for the duration of the war. Among the internees were many Japanese Peruvians...
. - George YuzawaGeorge YuzawaGeorge Katsumi Yuzawa was a Japanese-American community activist. He was involved in numerous social and political causes fighting racial discrimination against Asians and Asian Americans, providing aid for senior citizens, and organizing Japanese cultural events around New York City.-Family and...
(1915-2011), a community activist
See also
- Gila River War Relocation CenterGila River War Relocation CenterThe Gila River War Relocation Center was an internment camp built by the War Relocation Authority for internment of Japanese Americans during the Second World War. It was located about southeast of Phoenix, Arizona....
- Heart Mountain War Relocation CenterHeart Mountain War Relocation CenterThe Heart Mountain Relocation Center, named after nearby Heart Mountain, was one of ten internment camps used to incarcerate Japanese Americans excluded from the West Coast during World War II under the provisions of Executive Order 9066 signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt...
- Jerome War Relocation CenterJerome War Relocation CenterThe Jerome War Relocation Center was a Japanese American internment camp located in southeastern Arkansas near the town of Jerome. Open from October 1942 until June 1944, it was the last relocation camp to open and the first to close; at one point it contained as many as 8,497 inhabitants. After...
- Manzanar National Historic SiteManzanarManzanar is most widely known as the site of one of ten camps where over 110,000 Japanese Americans were imprisoned during World War II. Located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada in California's Owens Valley between the towns of Lone Pine to the south and Independence to the north, it is...
- Minidoka National Historic Site
- Poston War Relocation CenterPoston War Relocation CenterThe Poston War Relocation Center, located in Yuma County of southwestern Arizona, was the largest of the ten American internment camps operated by the War Relocation Authority during World War II....
- Rohwer War Relocation CenterRohwer War Relocation CenterThe Rohwer War Relocation Center was a World War II Japanese American internment camp located in rural southeastern Arkansas, in Desha County. It was in operation from September 18, 1942 until November 30, 1944, and held as many as 8,475 Japanese Americans forcibly evacuated from California...
- Topaz War Relocation Center
- Tule Lake War Relocation CenterTule Lake War Relocation CenterTule Lake Segregation Center National Monument was an internment camp in the northern California town of Newell near Tule Lake. It was used in the Japanese American internment during World War II. It was the largest and most controversial of the camps, and did not close until after the war, in...
- Densho: The Japanese American Legacy ProjectDensho: The Japanese American Legacy Project' is an award-winning nonprofit organization based in Seattle, Washington, which collects video oral histories and documents regarding Japanese American internment in the United States during World War II...
External links
- National Historic Landmark designation announcement
- Granada Japanese Internment Camp
- At Camp Amache
- Granada-Amache Japanese Internment Camp Site
- Amache Revisited in 2004
- Finding aid, with links to digitized materials, for collections concerning Camp Amache at Colorado College Special Collections
- Amache Digital Collections Project
- Amache Preservation Society
- Granada Relocation Center - Colorado Preservation Inc. - plans for improving the site