Oral History Program Yukio Miya Interviewed by Allison Bean 19 October 2004 i Oral History Program Weber State University Stewart Library Ogden, Utah Yukio Miya Interviewed by Allison Bean 19 October 2004 Copyright © 2014 by Weber State University, Stewart Library ii Mission Statement The Oral History Program of the Stewart Library was created to preserve the institutional history of Weber State University and the Davis, Ogden and Weber County communities. By conducting carefully researched, recorded, and transcribed interviews, the Oral History Program creates archival oral histories intended for the widest possible use. Interviews are conducted with the goal of eliciting from each participant a full and accurate account of events. The interviews are transcribed, edited for accuracy and clarity, and reviewed by the interviewees (as available), who are encouraged to augment or correct their spoken words. The reviewed and corrected transcripts are indexed, printed, and bound with photographs and illustrative materials as available. Archival copies are placed in Special Collections. The Stewart Library also houses the original recording so researchers can gain a sense of the interviewee's voice and intonations. Project Description The Weber State College/University Student Projects have been created by students working with several different professors on the Weber State campus. The topics are varied and based on the student's interest or task for a specific assignment. These oral history assignments were created to help Weber State students learn the value and importance of recording public history and to benefit the expansion of the Weber State oral history collections. ____________________________________ Oral history is a method of collecting historical information through recorded interviews between a narrator with firsthand knowledge of historically significant events and a well-informed interviewer, with the goal of preserving substantive additions to the historical record. Because it is primary material, oral history is not intended to present the final, verified, or complete narrative of events. It is a spoken account. It reflects personal opinion offered by the interviewee in response to questioning, and as such it is partisan, deeply involved, and irreplaceable. ____________________________________ Rights Management All literary rights in the manuscript, including the right to publish, are reserved to the Stewart Library of Weber State University. No part of the manuscript may be published without the written permission of the University Librarian. Requests for permission to publish should be addressed to the Administration Office, Stewart Library, Weber State University, Ogden, Utah, 84408. The request should include identification of the specific item and identification of the user. It is recommended that this oral history be cited as follows: Miyo, Yukio, an oral history by Allison Bean, 19 October 2004, WSU Stewart Library Oral History Program, University Archives, Stewart Library, Weber State University, Ogden, UT. iii Abstract: The following is an oral history interview with Yukio Miya. The interview was conducted on October 19, 2004, by Allison Bean, in the home of the interviewee. Mr. Miya discusses his experiences and knowledge of farming and agriculture in Utah, as well as his identity as a Japanese-American. Also present at the interview is Mrs. Shigemi Miya and Renie Miya. AB: It is October 19, 2004. We are in Clearfield, Utah, at the Yukio Miya home. For the purpose of transcription, I will address you as Mr. Miya, Mrs. Miya, and Renie. Is that okay? Mr. Miya, your brother (Min) told me your name is spelled Y-U-K-I-O. Is that correct? YM: Yes. AB: Mrs. Miya, your name? SM: Shigemi. AB: And Renie. RM: Yes. AB: Mr. Miya, would care if I asked your date of birth? YM: September 16, 1929. AB: So, you are nine years younger than your brother, Min. Correct? YM: Yes. AB: Okay. Mrs. Miya, do you care if I ask you your date of birth? 1 SM: July 27, 1941. AB: Okay. And are you from a farming family as well? SM: No. AB: What line of work was your family in? SM: My dad used to farm. AB: And so you grew up on a farm? SM: Well, kind of. YM: She is from Japan. AB: Oh, you are a first generation. When did you come over? SM: May 7, 1960. A long time now. AB: Okay, that will be an interesting story to get to in just a minute. Renie, can I get your date of birth? RM: It's November 27, 1963. AB: Okay. Your brother gave me your parent's information. I forgot it at home, so would you mind telling me your parent's names? YM: Nakaemon Miya and Seki Miya. AB: Now, if I remember correctly, your father came over in about 1906? YM: That I don't know. AB: Your brother said your father came over in 1906 and joined a brother who was working in Idaho. He worked his way from Vancouver and Seattle and went to Idaho. 2 Apparently, then he went to Colorado and then back to Utah. He worked on the railroad and then began to farm. YM: Well, he and mom both lived in Fairview, Utah, for a while. AB: Growing sugar beets. YM: Growing sugar beets. And then he came here close to where the Clearfield High School is. AB: And from there he rented land from Jim Ellison, and then began purchasing land. YM: He rented from Ellison’s and Kilfoyle’s. AB: And that was rented land? YM: Yes. AB: And they had a farm in Clinton was purchased? YM: I guess it would be Clinton, West Point, Clearfield, Syracuse. It would be more Clinton, I guess. AB: Okay, about how many acres do you think that farm was? YM: Oh, about twenty-five. AB: They were trying to think of the year. They narrowed it down to about 1948. YM: But anyway, we bought over there, and then we bought here. AB: This is part of the original family land? YM: Yes. Well, my brother, Min, he lived up in Farr West. AB: And they sold that several years ago before building their new home? 3 YM: A couple of years ago. AB: What would you say was the main staple for the farm? The sugar beets or the tomatoes or both? YM: Both. Tomatoes and sugar beets. Later on in the years, we had a lot of onions. AB: Was that after the sugar factories closed down? YM: Uh huh. AB: I am interested in the marketing aspect. Would you explain to me a little bit about the markets in Salt Lake? YM: You mean, when my brother Min was going down there and selling that? AB: Yes. Did you ever do that too? YM: No. I went with my dad a few times. AB: Do you remember how that worked? YM: What it is, usually we packed our tomatoes—it was usually tomatoes that we sold down there. We would pack it in lugs, and my dad took them down there. There was a place where it was built up. It had a roof over it. It was all open and people would just, farmers or whoever wanted to sell vegetables and that, would come in there. They had to rent a stall. Every day they came down, they had to pay so much to rent a stall. They would unload their stuff there, and buyers would just come down through there and look at your product. They would buy if it looked any good to them. AB: So, were these buyers like for Associated Foods, or were they individuals? 4 YM: No. They were individuals. Yea, they didn't have, at that time, big warehouses like Associated and Albertsons. AB: So, it was just people. YM: Yea. Just people came down there. Well, there were some down that they bought and resold. Or they used it in their little stores or whatever. SM: Here are some papers on his parents. AB: Oh, biographies. Who did these? SM: Oh, somebody gave them to us. I can make copies. AB: That would be great. Thank you. Would you care if we put those in the archives of the library? SM: No. AB: So, what decade would this be? The 1960s? When you went down to Salt Lake and sold? YM: The '60s? Oh, it would be earlier than that. It would be in the fifties. AB: So that was before Mrs. Miya came? YM: Yes. AB: Okay. How did that transition—after that way of selling, how did the markets change? YM: Well, then that was just part of it. Most of it went to a cannery. We used to raise early tomatoes. We would put them under caps, you know, under those... AB: Those white caps? 5 YM: Yes. Those white caps. We would put them under that. We'd put them in early in the spring—I think we started putting them in April. SM: You were still doing that when I came. YM: Yea. But then we raised a lot of cannery tomatoes. AB: Do you know the name of that cannery? YM: Well, it was in Ogden. Utah Cannery. Well, actually, it was Pierces. But we called it Utah Can. AB: What percentage would you think went up there? YM: Oh, we each raised forty or fifty acres of tomatoes. We picked it all by hand, put it in boxes, and loaded them all up on trucks. Hauled them up to the cannery. We'd leave early in the morning for the first load. We tried to haul about, oh, between three and four loads a day. AB: Okay. And then did you have hired help? Or as a family were you... YM: Yes. We had to hire two or three pickers, but mainly the family done it. AB: Okay. And this would be what time period? YM: Fifties and sixties. AB: Did the canneries stay open? Are they still open? YM: No. When did they close down? I think they closed down in the late sixties. AB: Did all of them close or just Pierces? 6 YM: Yea. Most of them closed down. There used to a cannery just right up here called Smith's Canning. In Woods Cross, there was two of them. AB: And they closed about the same time? YM: Yes. AB: So then what did you do? YM: When the cannery closed down, we were in sugar beets. Sugar beets, and then we got into, well, we raised onions. And we raised beans, peas. AB: How did you market those? YM: Peas, they had a ... the same cannery took it. Peas, we raised beans for them. AB: And then the sugar factory closed in the late 1970s. How did that affect your farm? YM: Well, when the sugar company closed down there, we got in heavy on potatoes. Potatoes, and then onions. AB: Did you survive the closing of the factories okay? You were able to make the transition? YM: It kind of set us back a little, but... Well, actually we got into onions pretty good. Let's see, when we had onions, we still had some sugar beets, I think. A little bit. AB: How did you sell your onions? YM: Onions, usually we sold to a... Well, we picked them all up, and then we put them in a shed like this one I have here. My brother, Min, he had one on his place. We put them in great big boxes and then stored them. And during the winter months, we ran them. Like starting, oh, we would usually start about now. Part of December, but mainly, it was after New Year’s. 7 AB: Okay, you sorted them, bagged them. And then where did they go? YM: We sold them to a packing house. Well, they still are doing onions. So, a place like Heinz. AB: Heinz is still here? YM: Yea. Heinz is still there. Utah Onions is still down here. AB: Now, that takes us about to the 1980s and 1990s. Renie, you were involved in about that time period, right? Do you mind sitting in on this? Can you describe how farming has changed from the earlier years? YM: The equipment is one that made it easier. Like when we used to have sugar beets, we had to use a knife that is about that long, and it has a hook on it. And then you go like that, and pick sugar beets out of the ground, and then cut the top off. And then put them in the row. AB: And that is what they called topping them. I have heard how difficult that was. YM: That's what it was. AB: And then they got toppers for sugar beets and onions? YM: Later on. AB: Later on. What years do you think those came out? RM: In the 1970s. YM: Sugar beets toppers has got to be in the sixties. AB: Sugar beet toppers came out before onion toppers? 8 YM: Like when my dad was raising them, it was tough. Everything was done by hand. Even loading them onto the trucks. AB: And your family did it all. There were four boys and one girl. And then their children started helping. So it was done by family? YM: But by the time our, well like Min's kids, we were already in machines and equipment. AB: Now, how many children did you have? YM: Three. All boys. AB: What are the other two boys doing now? YM: One is a civil engineer. He works for a little town by the name of Pittsburg in California. I have one working up to Hill Field. AB: What does he do there? YM: Oh, he is a kind of a mechanic. He works on airplanes. AB: Did either of them want to farm? YM: No. The youngest one. He's the only one who wanted to farm. AB: Okay. Renie. You chose farming as a profession. RM: Yes. AB: Do you enjoy it? RM: Yea. AB: I'm sure you helped your family as a child. YM: He drives a school bus, too. 9 AB: Okay. Can I ask what made you want to stay in farming? YM: I guess because I like tractors. AB: You like the equipment? RM: Yes. AB: Do you know of any other... you were telling me on the phone last night that out of all of your cousins, you are the only one farming. Do you know any other third-generation farmers? RM: Yes. AB: You do. RM: Darren (Tariguchi). AB: And where is he farming at? RM: In West Point. AB: But out of everybody else you know, it is just the two of you. RM: There is someone named Yamini. AB: That's the last name? Yamini? RM: Yes. AB: Why do you think there are so few third-generation farmers? RM: Probably because there are better jobs. AB: Better income? YM: Better paying jobs. 10 AB: I have heard that the cost of produce has remained stable while the cost of equipment skyrockets. Is that probably the biggest reason? YM: That's the biggest problem. Our produce, a lot of it hasn't changed for, I'd say, twenty years or more. AB: Your produce prices. YM: Like onions. We got about the price we're getting right now for our onions and that's when me and Min was farming, way back. Well, we were raising quite a few onions. AB: But everything else is going up? YM: Mainly equipment. And then labor. Labor went up, too. AB: Do you still hire labor? YM: Yes AB: How many acres are you two still farming? YM: Well, I help him mainly because I'm getting him to take over. But anyway, we ran about 150 acres. AB: Is it still scattered like it used to be or is it all right here? YM: Still scattered. AB: How does that work with your equipment? You just take it from one place to the next? YM: Yes. AB: Are they very far apart? 11 YM: Yes. It's hard on equipment when you have to drive here and there. In fact, I have one broke now. AB: Just from taking it on the roads? YM: Yea, we take it on the roads. We have to. But we have—now there's so much traffic on the roads. It's tough. Some people are rude. AB: So what are you growing now? RM: Sweet corn, watermelons, cantaloupe. YM: Our main crop is sweet corn. AB: I noticed you have a stand out here. What percentage of the marketing do you do out of your own stand? YM: Not even 10 percent, I don't think. We have to sell mainly to a produce house now. Now, we go mainly to Associated, Smith's. AB: Do they give you a contract ahead of time or do they just buy it as you bring it to them? YM: No. AB: No contracts anymore? YM: No. AB: Did they used to do contracts though? YM: Yea. When we used to go to the cannery it was contracts. AB: When did they phase out contracts? 12 YM: Well, I believe, like Albertsons and Smiths, they do have a contract. But we don't do business directly with them. It's a round-about way. Through another, what would you call it? RM: A broker. AB: He serves as the middle-man? YM: The middle-man, yea. AB: Do you plan to retire from farming? RM: If I last that long. AB: But that's your plan? YM: The trouble with farming now, right here, you know, the only piece of ground I've got is right here. And it's only about thirty acres that I've got. The rest of it we have to rent, but it's all going into homes. Last year, we lost about forty or fifty acres. AB: Land that you were leasing that was sold? YM: Well, my brother over here, he sold, so I lost around twenty acres there. Maybe a little more. Then, we were renting right down here about another forty acres, then they sold. AB: Again, to a developer for homes. YM: Yea, for homes. Then my sister and brother, they sold right here. I was using the whole piece. And they sold twenty some odd acres. AB: So the future of farming... YM: Farming in Davis County here is just going to be no more. It's all going into homes. I hate to see it, but that's just what it is. I don't know what people are going to eat. You 13 know, I have had some people tell me that all they have to do is just walk into the grocery store and just buy it. They don't know where it is coming from. They think it is coming out of the backside of the store—in their storage room or warehouse. Out of the back there. AB: Who runs your stand here? RM: My wife used to. My wife and mother. AB: So, you are married? RM: Well, I was. She passed away this year. AB: Oh, I am sorry. Do you have children? RM: One. AB: A girl or boy? RM: A boy. AB: Do you think he'll go into farming? RM: I doubt it. AB: How old is he? RM: Twelve. (Side 2 of tape) AB: Does he help out now? RM: Oh, if I beg him, once in a while. AB: Do you speak any Japanese? 14 RM: No. AB: So your son doesn't either? RM: No. AB: To change the subject a little, Mr. Miya, how did you and your wife meet? YM: I met my wife in Los Angeles. We've got the same last name, except we are not close. We might be related, except it would be a long ways. But she was called over to Los Angeles by her uncle to go to school. Of course, she graduated out of high school in Japan. And when I met her, she was going to school then. She also had a job doing house cleaning and what not. In fact, she worked for a movie actor. AB: Oh, really. Anybody famous? YM: Well, he had a TV series. It's about war, though. Let me get her. AB: Let me see if there's any more questions to ask you. Do you basically like farming? RM: I do. It depends on what we raise. AB: Long hours? RM: Yes. AB: Year round? RM: No, just early spring through the summer harvest. Right now, in the fall. AB: Your hours are still long right now? RM: Yes. AB: What type of things do you do in the fall? 15 RM: Right now we're harvesting pumpkins, squash. If the weather doesn't freeze, we still tomatoes, peppers. AB: Do you sale that to large corporations, too? RM: Associated Produce and some of the other brokers. I have three fruit stands open in Willard. AB: Oh, you do? The ones there along Highway 89? They buy from you? RM: Yes. SM: I have one done (copies of biographies). AB: Oh, I don't mean this to be a hassle. I'm sorry. SM: No. My copier is real slow. AB: Well, thank you. YM: Who was that, what was his name, Rick? SM: Rick Jason. AB: And he was an actor? SM: But he's dead now. He committed suicide. AB: While you were working for him or after? SM: No. A few years ago. YM: He had a TV series. It was about war stories. SM: When I was going to school, I stayed with them. And most people, most of our friends, they stayed someplace else. They gave you room and board. For that, you clean house 16 for them after you come home from school. Then after you come home, you have to clean their house, or help them cook, or wash their dishes. I would get same dinner, and then after, I would have to wash the dishes. But it was easy—just two of them living there in a great big house. I had a big room, maybe about one-half of this room. AB: And so, you enjoyed it? SM: Yes. AB: And then, if she was in Los Angeles, how did you two end up meeting? YM: I met her uncle. SM: Your cousin, we were having dinner, with his brother in California. He was visiting his brother there. And somebody just took me over there. (Laughing) And that day, we went to see a movie. AB: Did you have to follow any other the Japanese traditional customs of having the parent's approval? SM: No. Because my parents was in Japan. It was too far away. AB: Where did you marry? SM: Los Angeles City Hall. AB: That's a great story. I was wondering how you met. SM: I came in 1960—almost two years after that. AB: So, about 1962. SM: Yes, 1962. 17 AB: I have a few more questions. Do you have time for me to ask a few more? SM: Yes AB: You hear a lot about discrimination during the war time. How has it been for your generation, and then for your generation, Renie? YM: We had a little but it wasn't nothing like, I guess, some in California and that. But we've had some. I can remember one of our neighbors, he had a rock thrown through their window and that. But other than that, they treated us pretty good here. It's just some of the families that live down in West Point and Syracuse and that—they didn't like it. But as a whole, it's been pretty good. It's all right here in Utah. AB: When you were a child in school, you had friends? YM: Yes. AB: And what about you, Renie? Any problems? RM: I was just one of the boys. AB: Then, I have been confused on all of these farming organizations. Do you have time for me to ask you some questions about those? I hear of all of these organizations. There is a farm bureau, there is a Japanese farming association, the beet growers. Are they all the same thing? I know the Utah Farm Bureau is different, but are they the same thing and people are just using different names for the same farming organization? YM: Well, like the Japanese farmers had one organization. And we also had just... well, in Japan, they had different districts or whatever. SM: States. 18 YM: The people from the state got together. The Isseis had their own club. See, like my dad and mom, they're from Shizoka, Japan. So they had this Shizoka... AB: And did those transition into the farming organizations? YM: No, the farm organizations—they are all different groups? AB: Were they done by counties? YM: No. Usually our organization was mainly from Weber and Davis Counties. And like Box Elder County people, they had their own. And the Salt Lake people had theirs. SM: Just anybody who wants to join. AB: Did you call them the Japanese Farmer's Associations, or were they... YM: Right here we did AB: There is a man in Perry named Atsushi Sayama—he called it the Japanese Grower's Association. So is that different from the Japanese Farmer's Association? YM: No. It is the same. AB: They're the same. Okay, that's where I have been getting confused. What did you call yours—the growers or the farmers? YM: We called it the Japanese Farmers mainly. AB: I understand that these groups put on things like picnics. YM: Yes. AB: What decades did those cover? The Japanese Farmer's Associations and then the picnics? Did they start as early as the 1920s and 1930s? 19 YM: Well, I think so. AB: Your brother thought that they stopped in the 1970s. Do you agree with that? YM: 1970s? The picnics that they used to have at Davis High. When we were kids, you know where the Ogden Airport is? Right next to that, we used to have picnics right around there. AB: Japanese families would have picnics together? SM: Yes. YM: We used to get all together and have a picnic right out in that... There never was homes or anything there when we was kids. SM: And Kenji and _____ used to go to Komo Hot Springs. AB: Which hot springs? YM: Komo—you know, up in Morgan. AB: I don't know of them. So, would you agree that it was in the 1970s that everybody quit having picnics? YM: I think so. AB: Do you remember these at all, Renie? RM: Yes. I just remember that I won a tractor. YM: A tractor? Was it a tractor, or was there a car? RM: A tractor. AB: How did they win a tractor? 20 YM: Oh, it was just a little toy tractor. One of those you peddle as kids. (Laughing) AB: Oh. Okay. SM: We used to get all kinds of prizes. YM: Donations. We got a lot of donations from different stores. AB: And they would play games, and they would win them that way? YM: Races. SM: And we used to get lots of donations. YM: And then we had raffles. SM: We used to do the prizes. AB: What was the money used for—just to keep the association going or to fund the picnic? YM: Well, it was kind of to get donations. SM: And you donate, too. YM: You see, you donate to the association. SM: Toward the end, the other people started coming in. People always bring a friend, or some people bring more friends. It's getting too big. YM: Well, actually, the association was lending money. AB: I heard that. Like in the spring. Your brother said it worked like a short-term credit union. YM: Yes. AB: And so this would fund those loans. YM: Yes. 21 AB: Oh. That is good to know. SM: Everybody would put so much money in. YM: Well actually, the members went and put some money in it, too. And they also borrowed from it, too. AB: So the picnics were a big success. But they just got too big? YM: What really happened was that the third generation kind of faded away. The third generation went their way. AB: Just not enough people to keep it going? YM: Yea. Keep it going. AB: Do you belong to any Japanese organizations now? YM: No. We also had a Veteran's Association, too. AB: I haven't heard about this. What did they do? YM: It was, well, we just called ourselves Nisei Vets. We just had a little club. That was here in Davis and Weber Counties. AB: And you would have activities? What type of things did you do? YM: Well, it was just a club where we had bowling. We had dinners. And we had some outings. We also had a bazaar. AB: Similar to the ones that the churches do? YM: Similar to the one that, I don't know if you've ever been to that Buddhist bazaar in Ogden or not. 22 AB: I went a few weeks ago. YM: Yea. Like that. AB: And that was just a fun... YM: It was just a fun organization. SM: And then we had... just the farmers right here had the Clearfield Farmer's Club. AB: And what type of things did the Clearfield Farmer's Club do? SM: Oh, we would get together to have dinner. Everybody takes turns and puts on the party. Everybody takes turns. Six of us. AB: Do they still do that? YM: No. SM: Everybody's getting old. Little by little. Still five people are alive, but they don't want to do it anymore. We used to go to Wendover. We would have a dinner and stay over. AB: Did you ride the buses out to Wendover, or did you just drive yourselves. YM: No. SM: Everybody drove. YM: Whoever wanted to go. SM: And then who wanted to take friends ... we invite friends. We get bigger and bigger. We had dinner and the hotel, and you had so many people. They used to have a good steak dinner. 23 AB: I am excited to learn about these groups. I have not heard about them. Speaking about steak dinners reminded me that I was going to ask you if you raised livestock. YM: Min did. My brother. The only thing I done is I kind of helped him a little bit. But you know, I lived here, and he lived over there so he did most of that. Feeding and that. But he was the only one that actually fed livestock. AB: Oh, I know a question I wanted to ask. I have read a lot about the baseball games. Did you participate in any of the Nisei baseball or basketball organizations? YM: I did both. Baseball and basketball, but I was sitting on the bench most of the times. AB: Do you have time to tell me about those teams? YM: Well, we had a league, but the league was in Salt Lake. AB: Was this for baseball and basketball? YM: Baseball, we had a league around here. We played against people in Salt Lake— actually we played a team from out of Corrine. AB: And I read that those were family affairs where people would come and have picnics. YM: Well, the only picnic that I know about is like we have been telling you. AB: Not around the baseball games? YM: No. AB: Okay. YM: But the baseball games I can remember played teams out of Salt Lake and out of Corrine. In fact... 24 SM: You used to have a bowling league, too. YM: We used to have a bowling league, too. But the baseball was mainly—we just played among the teams that we put together in Salt Lake and here. We had one in Syracuse. Our Veteran's Club had a team. AB: And what decades were those played? YM: They had to be in the forties—no, I take it back. Well, it would be the fifties. AB: Well, I don't want to keep you anymore, but I just have one quick question. YM: That's fine. AB: I appreciate your time so much. Do you know when they quit using horses on farms? YM: When we quit using horses? SM: I don't know. AB: It's okay. I was just trying to find out. Your brother said you got your first tractor in 1940. YM: 1940? AB: And so I was wondering if it was very long after that. YM: Well, probably in the mid-forties, probably. AB: Okay. I am just trying to document some of the changes. Well, that's it. I do appreciate your time very much. Is there anything else that you think should be added to this? SM: My making copies is almost done. AB: I am so sorry—this will be a nice asset, though, to have with your interviews. YM: We did have a big bowling league. 25 AB: Now, was Paul Sumida part of that? YM: Paul Sumida? AB: He told me he was in a bowling league. He lives just south of Brigham City. YM: Yea. They had their own league up there. The Box Elder people. AB: So was this mostly a Davis County group? YM: Yea. Davis and Weber. AB: So, Davis combined with Weber for a lot of things. YM: Yea. A lot of things. AB: Was that just the men, or did the women join in those leagues, too? YM: The women had their own league. AB: What about the children? YM: The children? No. No children at that time when we were bowling. AB: So, you had baseball, basketball, and bowling. And your brother said that there was a Wildlife Fishing group. YM: Yea. AB: Did you belong to that, too? YM: Oh, yea. Yea, we bought a boat. We went fishing up to Flaming Gorge a lot. AB: The Japanese community was very tight knit. Is it the same today? YM: No. AB: You don't think so. 26 YM: No. Now, the only time we get together is, I hate to say it, but it's weddings and funerals. And in church. AB: Renie, do you know a lot of people because of your parents? RM: Yes. AB: And then, do you go to the Ogden Christian Church too. You just mentioned the church. YM: Just say that I am a member. AB: The churches seem to be used quite a bit for social activities. YM: The Buddhist is pretty strong. AB: The Ogden one? YM: Well, the Salt Lake one, too. They held bazaars and different dinners. AB: Did you go up to the bazaar? YM: Yes. (Tape ends) 27 WEBER STATE UNIVERSITY GARDENS OF PLENTY: JAPANESE FARMS OF NORTHERN UTAH SENIOR THESIS DR. GREG LEWIS, HISTORY DEPARTMENT ALLISON BEAN In 1906, seventeen year old Nakaemon Miyagishima and his friends left Japan for the United States aboard a British cargo ship. They landed first in Canada and made their way to Seattle where Nakaemon separated from his companions to join his brother in the sugar beet fields of Sugar City, Idaho. After only two weeks in Idaho, Nakaemon left for Ogden, Utah, and found work as a gang laborer for the Southern Pacific Railroad, receiving a $1.75 per day. Upon completion of the railroad, Nakaemon moved again, to Colorado, to farm and then eventually returned to settle in Utah. In 1910, he rented forty acres in Clearfield, Utah where he raised tomatoes and sugar beets. Soon after, he leased an additional fifty acres, expanded his business, and formed contracts with local canning companies. After establishing himself and obtaining financial security, relatives in Japan deemed Nakaemon worthy of marriage. In 1919, thirty-one year old Nakaemon met and married Seki Ichikawa, a young picture bride from Japan.1 Nakaemon and Seki Miyagishima's immigration experiences were not uncommon. The lure of fortunes in America's western frontier beckoned thousands of Japanese immigrants at the dawn of the twentieth century. Many eagerly accepted employment in Utah's agricultural community with the hope of earning abundant riches prior to returning to Japan with aid for their struggling families. The majority of Issei (first generation Japanese-Americans born in Japan) 2 remained in the United States, with many making Utah their permanent home. The timing for the new immigrants was ideal as numerous new sugar companies were in need of laborers to work the companyowned sugar beet fields. The industrious laborers eventually acquired sufficient funds to lease their own lands to cultivate sugar beets. Their contribution to the sugar industry 2 was significant. By 1915 one-eighth of Utah's sugar beet harvest was produced by the small number of Japanese fanners in the state.3 Once established, Issei farmers sent for picture brides from Japan and produced a new generation. Their Nisei children (second generation) worked alongside their parents in the fields of Utah where they developed a strong work ethic, cooperative skills, and learned productive agricultural techniques. Adult Nisei farmers later found success as they incorporated improved marketing strategies and built upon previously established farming associations. The agricultural, communal, and personal experiences of Nisei farmers in northern Utah are unique and worthy of examination. This project will focus on the efforts of Nisei farmers as they built robust agricultural businesses that not only offered necessary economic means for their families, but also supplied substantial amounts of produce for local canneries, factories, and fruit stands. Their industrious work habits generated respect within the Anglo community and served as a vehicle to mitigate inherent prejudices. As the Nisei farmers assimilated into western culture, close relationships continued within the Japanese community through farming, social, and religious organizations. Oral histories of Japanese farmers form the basis of this research and are supported by available scholarship, biographies, and newspapers articles. The personal histories of three generations of the Miyagishima (Miya) family, along with other Japanese farmers, provide essential agricultural details and also illustrate familial and cultural values. Although accounts from oral histories are subjective, these narratives 3 offer rich and personal insight into the lives of Nisei farmers and their families. My research will demonstrate that the resilient nature of Nisei farmers provided a lasting impact on northern Utah's agricultural environment. As the number of Japanese farmers rapidly diminishes, documentation of their farming practices, Japanese farming associations, religion, and social relationships is crucial. The histories of Nisei Japanese-American farmers provide a critical segment of northern Utah's agricultural heritage and cultural landscape. Many early Japanese immigrants came to Utah for work in the railroad and mining industries but ultimately changed to farming. In 1900, Utah had 417 Japanese immigrant farm laborers, but by 1910 this number had increased to 2,110. The numbers continued to grow to 2,936 in 1920 and 3,269 in 1930.4 Historian Eric Walz offers several reasons why a significant number of gang laborers left the mines and railroads for employment in agriculture. First, Japanese farmers were traditionally respected in Japan because they "fed the nation."5 Second, small Utah farms with rows of sugar beets resembled the paddy fields of Japan, offering familiar circumstances in hand-tool farming. Third, farming provided independence and increased security, and fourth, rural regions often exhibited less racial discrimination than more heavily populated areas.6 With no available capital to lease or purchase land, Issei farmers made contracts with landowners to exchange labor for wages. This provided immigrants with a means of supporting themselves as they prepared for a financially independent future in farming. Once sufficient capital was raised, immigrants transitioned to sharecropping, with landowners providing a segment of land in exchange for a portion of the productive 4 yield. Additional capital offered new opportunities for immigrants to begin leasing their own land. Land lease terms ranged from one to ten-year contracts, and payment arrangements varied from lump sum to installment payments. Owning land was the most desired option, but most Issei lacked sufficient capital to acquire their own land during the early decades of the twentieth century.7 By 1930, the Miyagishima family had six children as they continued to farm in Clearfield. Although their acreage increased through leased contracts, they were still unable to purchase land. Hopes of land ownership were extinguished at the onset of the Great Depression as the Utah farming industry was devastated due to a nationwide surplus of agricultural products.8 Prior to the Depression, sugar beets sold for eight dollars per ton, but because of excesses, prices plummeted to only two dollars per ton. Nisei farmers endured economic difficulties, yet their self-sufficient nature prevented them from going hungry. Gardens generated produce that was supplemented with milk from family cows and meat from pigs and chickens. Families commonly traded produce with one another to enhance their limited diets.9 While most Japanese families survived, the loss of income created disastrous outcomes for many. The Okada family, for example, had purchased sixty acres during the 1920s. Prior to the onset of the Depression, their entire crop of sugar beets had been destroyed from a blight of white flies. Before they could recover, plunging beet prices further devastated their economic position. Payments could not be made to the sugar company that owned the land, and the entire investment was lost.10 5 For Nisei children, their formative years were affected by the example of their parents. Frank Nishiguchi remembers how his parents demonstrated the importance of hard work, integrity, and compassion towards neighbors. Moreover, their concern and ambitious efforts earned them respect throughout their community, aiding in diffusing any lingering prejudices. Knowing that the Nishiguchi farm had some of the only work available during the Depression, Anglo workers would spread wagon loads of manure onto the Nishiguchi fields for payment of one dollar per load. Other work, such as washing celery, was intentionally created by the Nishiguchis to help those who needed cash. Frank recalls that he rarely went into town without someone putting their arm around him, explaining their devotion to his father by saying... If it wasn't for him we wouldn't know what the heck to do."11 Nisei children assumed a vital intermediary role as they labored on family farms and became educated in both the Japanese and English languages as well as American customs. They were often required as interpreters for their parents in negotiations for contracts and communications between Anglo neighbors. Nisei children attended public schools and formed associations with Anglo children. In addition, they attended Japanese schools held in Buddhist churches on Saturdays and Sundays to support the retention of the Japanese language and culture. The first Japanese school began in Salt Lake City in 1919, soon to be followed by a small school in Honeyville.12 The Miya (Miyagishima was changed to Miya in 1954 when Nakaemon and Seki became U. S. citizens) children initially attended a Japanese school in Syracuse and later transferred to a makeshift school situated next to the Layton Sugar Company. The school was formed to serve children living in a Japanese camp located 6 on site at the sugar factory. The teacher, an educated Issei woman, used the wages donated by the parents to supplement her family's minimal income. Traditional Japanese customs were taught in the school along with other curriculum. The Miya boys were trained in the art of Judo, while Gene Fukui participated in baseball and basketball leagues that competed against other Japanese schools in northern Utah.13 Japanese schools remained a central element of Nisei life for several decades. However, their doors closed permanently on December 7, 1941. Life for the Japanese within the United States changed abruptly with the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Prior to the war, the vibrant Japanese businesses and communities were respected within the Anglo neighborhoods, and Nisei children enjoyed close friendships with neighboring Anglo children. War hysteria robbed the Japanese of the life their labors had allowed them to enjoy for more than two decades. In opposition to the proclaimed tradition of "freedom for all," individuals of Japanese descent, whether American citizens or not, were denied their personal liberties with the signing of Executive Order 9066. The Order was signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on February 19, 1942, and authorized the Secretary of War to designate "military areas" as "protection against espionage and against sabotage" to ensure "successful prosecution of the war." Aimed only at individuals of Japanese descent, portions of Washington, Oregon, and California were declared "military areas," and more than one hundred thousand Japanese, whether American citizens or not, were subsequently ordered to evacuate the West Coast immediately.14 Most of the Japanese within Utah were neither interned nor imprisoned after the bombing of Pearl Harbor for several reasons. First, most Utah Japanese were well-liked by their Anglo neighbors and were not considered 7 threats. Secondly, the war efforts called for an increase in sugar production, and the Japanese farmers of northern Utah played an important role in generating sugar beets. Nonetheless, the effects of the proclamation filtered into every aspect of Japanese life and culture. June Nagao and her brothers did not hear news of the bombing until after they had arrived at school on the morning following the attacks. Upon arrival, they were asked to go home and not return. She recalls that the three mile trip home was across farm fields covered in deep snow. "I cried all the way home and my brothers too. It was terrible."15 Under the direction of the FBI, local law officials inspected the homes of every Japanese family in Utah. Sheriffs entered the Miya home and confiscated their guns, radios, and flashlights. Bank accounts were frozen, driving Japanese families to hide their money in quart jars in the fields behind their homes. Curfews were put into place that required those of Japanese descent to be in their homes by eight o'clock each night. Although much of the discrimination and violation of rights was instigated by the government, there were isolated incidences of hate aimed at Japanese farmers by their Anglo neighbors. For example, shots were fired at a home in Tremonton, "four-letter words" were painted on barns, and many establishments placed "No Japs Allowed" signs in their windows. Fears and tensions within the Anglo population escalated as thousands of Japanese people fled the West Coast and joined friends and family in Utah. The influx led to an increase in restrictions against all Japanese individuals. For example, law enforcement officers told the Nagaos and their neighbors that all Japanese artifacts must be destroyed or they would be confiscated. In an effort to distinguish themselves from the Japanese enemy, the families destroyed kimonos, 8 kendo outfits, flags, family heirlooms, and cherished personal items from Japan at a large bonfire gathering. June Nagao remembers they "had to get rid of... some special keepsakes ... because we wanted to be American and be accepted."16 Discrimination associated with World War II had significant impact in agricultural conditions as well. Nakaemon Miya's family had acquired approximately two hundred acres of leased land by the onset of the war. The Miya children contributed extensively to the farming business, helping them to produce enough crops to accumulate sufficient savings to finally purchase their own land. A bid was placed and accepted on sixty acres in Clearfield, and financing had been approved by Beneficial Life Company. However, just prior to closing on the transaction, Pearl Harbor was attacked. Although the land owner expressed his desire to move forward with the transaction, Beneficial Life withdrew their financing. Subsequently, the Miya family was not able to purchase land until 1948.17 The Miya's situation was not isolated. Anglo farmers throughout northern Utah were concerned that available farm land would be sold to the Japanese who were fleeing the West Coast. The Corrine Farm Bureau called a meeting in March of 1942 to implement programs designed to prohibit land sales to people of Japanese descent. The Box Elder News-Journal later reported that local farmers had "pioneered this valley" and the land should be held for "their boys when they returned from the war fronts." The results were a moratorium in Corrine on land transactions involving Japanese individuals.18 Similar incidences were common throughout Utah. The Utah Legislature supported discrimination by restricting land sales to Japanese individuals with the Anti-Alien Land Law that went into effect in March of 1943. The law remained in effect through 1947.19 9 Labor shortages and a high demand for food stuffs during World War II brought increased prosperity to Nisei farmers who already had leased or purchased property. Federal and state governments requested that all productive farm land be utilized to produce maximum yields. Japanese farmers in northern Utah responded to the call by increasing their production. The U.S. Department of the Interior wrote in a 1947 statement that the efforts of Japanese people had "definitely" contributed to the "economic well-being" of their communities. "Without the Japanese farm labor the area would have been hard put for manpower to carry out the agricultural demands placed upon it... the Caucasians recognized this, and still do for that matter."20 Farmers received additional labor from a release program instituted by the state government to buffer the effects of agricultural labor shortages. Farmers were unable to hire seasonal help to maintain and harvest increased crop production. As a result, some Japanese individuals were allowed "leave" from the Topaz Internment Camp near Delta to serve as farm laborers. More than 3,000 interned Japanese laborers participated in the program, significantly increasing food production as well as providing individuals with the opportunity to leave the camp.21 An article entitled, "The Japs, Whose Cousins Caused It All, Seen As Cure To Box Elder's Labor Ills" appeared in the Box Elder NewsJournal on August 21, 1942. It was written that the Utah-Idaho Sugar Company (U&I) had made appeals to the War Relocation Authority requesting seasonal help from internees at Topaz for beet thinning. U&l agreed to pay wages to the interned laborers in addition to transportation and housing costs. The newspaper reported that additional labor would enhance the production of Box Elder County crops and would "help win the 10 war." It added that "with fatal irony, or perhaps poetic justice, it is likely that a race of small, brown-skinned men and women which brought ill may provide the cure."22 Throughout the war, Nisei farms continued to be a cooperative familial production even as most eligible Nisei sons either enlisted or were drafted into the military. Min and Hideo Miya, the two oldest of the Miya sons, both served in the military during the war. Upon their return, they rejoined their parents, sister Chieko and her husband, and two brothers in the family farming business. Japanese custom required that the oldest son and his wife live with the husband's parents to care for them and the family business. Accordingly, when Min married Ume Shiba, they honored this custom by residing within the Miya household.23 In 1947, the anti-alien law was repealed, and the Miya’s acquired their own land in Clinton. The purchase of the new acreage, combined with the leased land in Clearfield, "became the foundation for the Miya farms." The entire Miya family remained together until 1957 when another farm was purchased in south Clearfield. Nakaemon, Seki, and several of their children relocated to the new farm while Min, his wife Ume and their four children, along with several of Min's siblings, stayed on the farm in Clinton. The Miya family continued to work as a partnership and took pride in caring for the farm with little hired help. All members of the Miya household, even the elderly Seki, labored long hours in the hundreds of acres of sugar beets and tomatoes.24 Life was especially hard for the women. They assisted in farm labor by weeding, hoeing, topping beets, picking tomatoes, and supervising the children during daylight hours. During the evening, women cooked, laundered clothing, and performed other domestic 11 necessities.25 Children were required to complete demanding tasks in the fields of rowcrops by weeding, thinning, fertilizing, and harvesting, in addition to caring for the animals. Gene Fukui worked on his father's beet farm in Tremonton. He awoke at four o'clock in the morning, milked a dozen cows, fed and harnessed the horses, and prepared himself for school. After school, he worked in the beet fields, hoeing and thinning the beets.26 Education was stressed even as Japanese children were expected to labor in the family fields. Issei and Nisei parents understood that education would bring their children opportunities, and therefore, were committed to keeping their children in school. Most Japanese children performed well in school due to family honor and the high expectations of their parents.27 Parents also understood that attending public schools provided opportunities for building relationships outside of the Japanese community. Anglo friendships offered social connections to Nisei children that aided them throughout their childhood and adult years. During World War II, Frank Nishiguchi's family was accused of "aiding the enemy" because they assisted thirty Japanese families that had fled the West Coast. Children from neighboring farms threatened to "beat up on him ," but Frank had Anglo friends who defended him. One large and solidly built friend declared that his ancestors were "from Germany and Franks were from Japan." He then hollered, "If you guys think you can take us, come on." The threats never happened again! 28 Japanese earned the reputation of being exceptional farmers through wellmaintained farms and high-quality produce. Some Nisei farmers found success with 12 new agricultural techniques. Frank Nishiguchi's father, George, won acclaim through his improved method of raising celery. Bleached celery was popular among consumers but was traditionally very labor intensive to produce. George's improved bleaching technique involved planting the celery in wide-spaced rows and then packing soil around each plant to block the sunlight. Later, tubes made out of newspapers were strategically placed over each celery plant for the same effect. This technique created sweet, bleached celery with an especially large and meaty stalk. Nishiguchi's celery, also known as Jumbo or Sweetheart celery, became popular throughout the western United States.29 Other Japanese growers in Utah also produced improved fruits and vegetables, such as the Kasagu family's Twentieth-Century Strawberries.30 One of the most important aspects of productive farming is marketing. Throughout the careers of Nisei farmers, there were significant changes in the methods of selling produce. During the 1920s through the 1970s, truck farming operations were utilized by many Japanese farmers in Box Elder, Davis, and Weber counties. According to historian Eric Walz, truck farming was conducive to Japanese agricultural conditions, "fill ing an economic niche."31 Strawberries, celery, tomatoes, beans, cucumbers, onions, potatoes, and beets were grown in small farms and then sold to local markets, dealers, or along roadsides.32 Yukiyoshi Inouye, the son of a Bountiful truck farmer, remembers that he awoke at four o'clock each morning to help his family pick strawberries and then hauled the produce to the Growers' Market in Salt Lake City. During a time when most of the farmers still used horses and wagons, Yukiyoshi drove the berries into town in his father's Model A pickup, and did so without a driver's license.33 13 The Miya family trucked their tomatoes to an open market in Salt Lake City during the 1950s through the early 1960s. Fifty acres of early tomatoes were planted each April and covered with white caps to protect them from frost. Once the tomatoes were ready to harvest, they were picked by hand, packed into boxes, and loaded onto trucks for delivery. The markets had two long platforms that were covered with a roof and contained numerous concrete stalls that were rented on a daily basis. The flatbed truck, typically driven by Min, was backed into a stall until it rested against a raised walkway. Individual buyers examined the produce and made purchases directly from each farmer. During this time period, market sales provided most of the Miya family's income.34 The dynamics of the Salt Lake produce markets transformed through the 1950s and 1970s. During the 1950s and early 1960s, the Miya’s continued to sell tomatoes to individuals at the Salt Lake markets. However, by the mid-1960s, they sold the majority of their produce to local brokers. Serving as middle men, the brokers purchased the produce from the farmers and then resold it to local grocery stores. As this process developed further, corporations, such as Associated Produce, assumed the brokerage role. While open markets continued in Salt Lake City, Ogden tried to establish a produce market called Pacific Fruit, but it did not receive enough support from local shoppers to stay open.35 During the 1960s, the number of canning companies increased throughout northern Utah. Del Monte, Heinz, Sterling Nelson, Pierce and other canneries signed contracts with local farmers to buy their tomatoes. Farmers acquired additional acreage 14 to meet the new demand. As the Miya's business grew to over three hundred acres, the family was still able to maintain the farm, except during the harvest season when extra laborers were needed. Three or four workers were hired to help the family pick, box, and deliver four loads each day to the canneries. Min recalls labor shortages in Davis and Weber Counties during the tomato and beet harvests, requiring him to hire day labor from unemployed men on 25th Street in Ogden.36 Nisei farmers in Box Elder County did not truck their crops to Salt Lake City, but rather marketed their crops to local canneries, sugar factories located in Garland or Brigham City, or in roadside stands. Row-crop farmers sold to Smith Canning Company, Del Monte, and Perry Cannery by harvesting their crops and delivering them to the local canneries. Other farmers, like the Sumida brothers, operated fruit stands along Highway 89 just south of Brigham City. Motohara Sumida, a full-time farmer, and his brother Paul, a junior high school mathematics teacher, purchased adjacent fruit orchards along the east bench in Perry during the late 1950s. Motohara's farm grew many varieties of produce, including fruits, squashes, celery, onions, and sweet corn, while Paul focused on orchard fruits. Homes and fruit stands were built on their respective properties, with each family operating their own stand. They did, however, assist one another on Sundays, special events, or times of need. Motohara's fruit stand, called Sumida's, is still in business today on Highway 89 in Perry.37 Sugar beets, as well as tomatoes, were vital to the agricultural economy of northern Utah. The Utah Sugar Company, later known as the Utah-Idaho Sugar Company (U&I), was established in 1889 in Bear River Valley. Sugar beets soon 15 became an essential segment of Box Elder County's agricultural economy. Issei and Nisei farmers played a crucial role in filling the sugar company's demand for beets. Sugar beets were the Okada brothers' major crop during the decades of the 1950s through the 1970s even though sugar beet production was particularly difficult for laborers. Short hoes bent the backs of workers as they swung knifed hooks, pulled the beets out of the ground, cut the tops off, and set the beets in rows to be picked up later.38 During the 1940s and 1950s, tractors aided the process, but specialized equipment such as beet toppers did not become available until the 1960s.39 Relying strictly on sugar beets, farmers invested heavily in specialized sugar beet equipment to enable them to produce more beets to meet the demands of the sugar companies. The majority of northern Utah's sugar beets were sold to the Utah-Idaho Sugar Company's plant in Garland. Established in 1903, the Garland factory produced approximately 80 percent of the one-hundred million pounds of sugar consumed annually along the Wasatch Front. It is estimated that three billion pounds of pure sugar were produced by the Garland sugar factory.40 The sugar industry became central to northern Utah's agricultural economy, and Nisei farmers supplied substantial amounts of the necessary sugar beets. In addition to aiding the surrounding community, sugar beets provided Japanese farmers with the opportunity to build dynamic agricultural businesses that provided for the economic needs of their families. Jim Tazoi noted the significance of sugar beet production in northern Utah when he claimed that "the sugar beet crop has probably paid more mortgages than any single crop in this whole valley."41 16 The demand for sugar beets came to a sudden halt when the Utah-Idaho Sugar Company closed its Garland plant in February of 1979. To protect their livelihoods, Nisei and Anglo farmers formed alliances in efforts to buy the facilities from U&I. The purchasing terms required local farmers to pay yearly installments to the corporation. The farmers, however, could not afford the asking price. Negotiations to purchase the Garland plant ceased, Utah-Idaho Corporation left its Utah facilities empty, and many farmers were left to start over.42 The Okada brothers had invested eighty thousand dollars into specialized sugar beet equipment in 1976. Three years later, after the Garland factory closed, their equipment was no longer needed, and their large investment was lost. In spite of the economic setback, most Niseis made the necessary adjustments to continue farming. During the late 1970s, the Miya family foresaw the dismal future of the sugar company and began to diversify their crops by growing onions and potatoes in addition to sugar beets and tomatoes. They also converted some of their acreage to raise livestock, requiring hay and grains to be grown as well. The Miyas, Okadas, and many other Niseis, demonstrated their resiliency by continuing to farm, despite the deteriorating conditions. A small number, though, chose to retire and either sold their land to developers or rented it to those still farming.43 Recognizing that economic difficulties were common within the farming industry, farm bureaus were organized by Issei farmers during the 1920s.44 The associations, patterned after those found in Japan, were structured to create new markets and to support Japanese agricultural efforts.45 The Nisei farmers built on these organizations, which played a major role in bringing Japanese farmers together. Open to all Japanese farmers, the organizations provided collective strength that better enabled them to 17 establish and maintain successful businesses. As large and organized groups, Nisei farmers had greater negotiating power enabling them to purchase fertilizers, gas, and herbicidal sprays at discounted rates. Farm bureaus also provided representatives who traveled to Nevada to negotiate the price of tomato plants, canning crops, and sugar beets. Farmers identified their needs which were then combined with those of other local farmers. Japanese farm bureaus varied from county to county. For example, the Davis County Japanese Farmers' Organization combined farmers from both Davis and Weber counties, with a membership ranging between fifty to seventy-five farmers. The Northern Box Elder Growers' Association was smaller with only about fifteen members. No matter the size, all maintained the objective of supporting the needs of Japanese farmers. The Box Elder bureau purchased bulk canned goods from California that were then delivered by truck to its members. The cooperative efforts expanded into other business aspects by providing group rates for health insurance during the 1970s.46 Min Miya, who was president of the Davis County bureau during the 1950s, cites his organization's most notable achievement was to provide financial aid to Japanese farmers through the issuance of short-term loans. Due to the high costs of farming, many Nisei farmers did not have sufficient funds to plant and fertilize their crops in the spring. In such instances, the farm bureaus assumed the role of credit unions and loaned money to Japanese farmers at the lowest interest rates possible. The loans would then be repaid after the fall harvest. The farm bureaus received the necessary funds as the farmers "pooled" their money in order to help one another. The farm 18 bureau’s held bazaars, raffles, and picnics to provide additional funds to the loan program.47 Nisei farmers also belonged to other associations that established them within the farming community. Memberships in the Utah Farm Bureau, the largest collective body of farmers in the state, were common. The abilities of Nisei farmers were recognized as they were placed in leadership positions within regional and state organizations. Jim Tazoi, for example, was on the state agricultural committee during the 1970s. Frank Nishiguchi served as a member of the board and then president of the Box Elder County Farm Bureau during the 1950s and 1960s. In 1978, he was elected president of the Utah Farm Bureau, a position he held for nine years.48 In January 1983, Frank was honored in Texas as he accepted an award for the best state farm bureau in the nation. The Utah Farm Bureau News recognized Frank's contribution to the organization by calling the recognition a logical journey and a fitting destination ... for a man whose adult life has been devoted to the service of others."49 In 1985, Frank was appointed by the governor as chairman of the State Agricultural Advisory Board, a resource group designed to advise the Commissioner of Agriculture. In addition to agricultural and financial aspects, Japanese farming organizations sponsored picnics and other social activities that further connected the Japanese community. The Japanese Growers Association in Box Elder County held annual picnics each August at Crystal Springs Resort in Honeyville. Farmers and their families throughout the county gathered to strengthen personal and farming relationships.50 Dinner groups were organized to further maintain close connections within Japanese 19 farming communities. The Clearfield Farmers Club consisted of Nisei farmers and their wives in the Clearfield area, including the Miya brothers. Couples took turns hosting dinners in their homes as they developed more intimate friendships. The dinners soon developed into annual trips to Wendover, Nevada, for several days of buffets, gambling, and relaxation.51 The Davis County Japanese Farmers' Organization was one of many who sponsored annual picnics at Lagoon and then later at Davis High School in Kaysville. The central location was chosen to facilitate Japanese people from all over Utah, as well as southern Idaho and western Wyoming, to attend the event. The main attractions of the picnics were the foot races. Different age groups, ranging from small children to adults, participated in both running and relay races. Crackerjacks, popsicles, and small toys served as prizes for the winners. Large groups also gathered in the center of the field to play games of tug-of-war. At noon, families and friends gathered to eat sushi, teriyaki, tempura, and other Japanese cuisine.52 The picnic required extensive planning by both Issei and Nisei men and women. Support from the larger community was also utilized as canneries, local stores, and businesses donated items that were auctioned in raffles.53 The picnics played a significant role in bringing social unity to the Japanese population throughout the entire state. These activities were well-attended and provided a chance to "look over the potential marriage pool."54 This proved to be true for Frank Nishiguchi who met his wife at a picnic in 1953. Lasting friendships were made as both young and old played, ate, and reminisced at each annual event. Junior Yagi recalls the sense of community he received from the picnics. He believes that "there wasn't a 20 Japanese family in the state we didn't know." The names of old acquaintances are still very familiar, even "after all of these years."55 The community of Nisei farmers was further unified by other social events. Athletic sports became extremely popular among Nisei farmers after the end of World War II. A Japanese athletic club was formed in 1946 to accommodate the needs of teenagers aged fifteen and over. The club sponsored events such as roller skating, bazaars, and dances.56 While the athletic club did not survive, other athletic events gathered momentum. Perhaps the most popular of these was Nisei baseball. Organized baseball leagues had been a tradition since the early 1930s but dwindled during World War II. Interest in them was renewed again during the late 1940s, and eventually, eight to ten teams were organized throughout northern Utah communities.57 The first team was Yamato; the name was soon changed to the Box Elder Niseis. The Miya brothers joined a team of Nisei veterans named the Veterans Club. They originally played teams from Ogden, Corrine and Syracuse, but as baseball became more popular they competed against teams scattered along the Wasatch Front. The teams traveled in carpools to Salt Lake City, the Logan area, and Malad, Idaho. During the baseball season, each community transformed a cow pasture into a baseball field. The games were held on Sunday afternoons and served as family and community entertainment. Fans packed lunches and had picnics while enjoying an afternoon of baseball.58 Tournaments were organized and the season closed with a Nisei baseball championship. Additional tournaments were occasionally held against teams from Colorado and California.59 The sports section of local newspapers covered the Nisei baseball games, increasing their popularity. Anglo families began attending the events, 21 bringing the two communities together. Their support was demonstrated in monetary forms as well. Brigham City businesses recognized the local Honeyville Japanese baseball team with trophies and other awards after they placed third in a western states competition in 1952.60 Bowling and basketball were popular during the winter months among the Nisei generation. Bowling leagues were formed not only among Nisei farmers but also for their wives and children. Basketball teams traveled throughout northern Utah to compete against other Nisei teams. In 1950, Gene Fukui played on a team that traveled to Idaho Falls for a tournament game, and although not "much of a basketball player," Gene captured the attention of a young Japanese woman. The two corresponded for two years after which the parents, honoring Japanese tradition, entered into negotiations regarding marriage between the young adults. Once mutual consent was obtained, they married in the Buddhist Church in Ogden.61 Religion, more than any other cultural or social aspect, was central in the lives of Japanese families. Early immigrants maintained religious traditions brought from Japan to preserve their beliefs and heritage. Church services were conducted in Japanese until the 1950s when Nisei children began to assume religious leadership responsibilities. Buddhism was the most commonly practiced religion by Issei immigrants. The first Buddhist "gathering place" in northern Utah was established in Honeyville in 1912. Buddhists gathered to meet when priests62 from Salt Lake traveled once a month to officiate in services. In 1931, members donated four thousand dollars, then a substantial amount of money, to purchase a building in Honeyville from the Utah- 22 Idaho Sugar Company. The two-story brick building and its five acres of land were renovated to serve as both a religious edifice and a Japanese school for the Nisei children. The school stayed open until the beginning of World War II when all Japanese schools were discontinued.63 The building was then renovated into apartments to house Japanese families forced to flee the West Coast.64 After the war, the Honeyville Buddhist Church continued to serve the communities of Honeyville, Brigham City, Garland, and Tremonton. Attendance was high among the elderly Issei and their adult Nisei children. In 1961, an addition was added onto the chapel to accommodate the large membership. In 1970, the Honeyville Buddhist Church joined with the Ogden Buddhist Church to create the Buddhist Temple of Utah-Idaho. The Honeyville Church became independent on April 1, 1970. Other Buddhist churches were established throughout northern Utah. The Buddhist Church of Ogden was established in 1926; the first building was purchased in 1936 on Lincoln Avenue. Due to increasing membership, a larger building was purchased on North Street in 1964.65 The Corrine Buddhist Church was built in 1944 when members contributed their time to dig the footings, haul cement, and construct the walls on donated land for their new meeting house.66 The Buddhist churches received funding through donations made by each family and also through fundraising efforts. The most common form of fundraising was bazaars. Women assumed the majority of the responsibility as they spent days preparing and cooking the Japanese cuisine. Countless hours of work were put into making quilts, art work, and baked goods to be sold at auctions and raffles. Word of 23 mouth was the best form of advertising for the bazaars— people of all races came from around the region to enjoy the authentic food and to participate in bingo games for the adults and fishing ponds for the children. Yearly bazaars dating back to the 1930s are still the most popular form of fundraising.67 Although Buddhism was the predominate religion of early Issei farmers, some families converted to Christianity. The Miya family joined the Ogden Japanese Christian Church in 1932. This congregation's first building was purchased in 1927 for seven thousand dollars. The members held bazaars from 1931 through 1991 to supplement membership donations. Like the Buddhist bazaars, these events were very successful and well-attended.68 Memberships in both the Honeyville Buddhist and Japanese Christian churches have diminished along with the aging Nisei generation. Third-generation Japanese have assimilated into all aspects of western culture, even its religions. Min and Ume Miya view this change as natural and suggest that their children are more a part of the community after "joining the Caucasian."69 With the exception of the Ogden Buddhist Church, the bazaars no longer exist; the Honeyville church held their last bazaar in 1992. In the mid-1980s, the Honeyville church lost its independent status due to its declining membership (currently about fifty people). A priest now travels from Salt Lake City eight times per year to hold services.70 The era of Nisei farmers in northern Utah is coming to a close. What was once a strong and vibrant community is now only a small number of individual farming businesses. Most third-generation children were not encouraged to pursue farming 24 because it "is too hard of a life." Yukio Miya's son, Renie, is a rare exception as he continues to farm the family's land in Clearfield. Renie is committed to a successful career even though he recognizes that most small- scale farms are no longer profitable. Wholesale costs have remained stable for twenty years, yet equipment and land prices continue to escalate. Urban sprawl further hampers farmers as developers purchase land previously leased to Nisei farmers.71 Aware of the increasing difficulties in farming, Niseis stressed the value of education and made financial sacrifices for their children's college education. They were rewarded as a vast majority of third-generation Japanese received bachelor degrees and many continued through graduate programs. As Min Miya reflects upon his life in the "Miya farms," he believes farming was beneficial given that they "sent all of their kids through college ... we worked really hard to do that... it had to be a little profitable to do that."72 The Miya family is representative of the Japanese heritage in farming. Personal histories obtained from three generations of Miya farmers characterize the unique story of twentieth- century Japanese agriculture in northern Utah. Early immigrants came to America in hopes of earning fortunes prior to returning to Japan. Many never returned but remained in northern Utah. The Issei commitment to retain their heritage is evident in the establishment of Japanese religion, customs, and agricultural practices. Japanese-style associations were created to offer communal strength within the agricultural industry. Farm bureaus provided increased purchasing power and financing options but also served Japanese communities through sponsored social activities, 25 such as picnics and outings. Farm bureau members organized local dinner groups that aided in the development of more intimate friendships among Japanese farmers. Many of these relationships continue still today. Traditional Japanese customs were sustained through religious services and social events. The Japanese language was spoken in early church services and Buddhist schools. Annual bazaars helped to financially sustain the churches as well as connect the Japanese and Anglo communities. Communal solidarity was also achieved as Nisei social activities, especially baseball games, were enjoyed by the Japanese and the surrounding populations. World War II drastically changed the existence of Japanese farmers. Sons willingly entered into military service, displaying honor and valor, as their parents suffered injustices at home. Local and federal officials confiscated personal items and coerced families to assimilate into western culture, resulting in the loss of treasured Japanese customs and heirlooms. The war, however, gave Japanese farmers an opportunity to display their value. Despite their small size, Japanese farmers were essential in meeting the high demand for increased food production during World War II. For more than eight decades, the cumulative effects of their cooperation and industrious work habits resulted in successful family businesses, supplied demands for produce, and alleviated discrimination. Despite their assimilation, the effects of the Nisei legacy are still evident today. Sumida's, the produce stand owned by Motahara Sumida, continues with a thriving business along Utah's "Fruitway" on Highway 89 between Ogden and Brigham City. His 26 brother's fruit stand is abandoned today, but its vibrant past is preserved in a photograph prominently displayed in Brigham City's town hall. Yukio and Renie Miya own a produce stand in Clearfield and also supply three "Fruitway" stands. The agricultural developments of improved varieties of celery and strawberries, introduced by Japanese farmers, can still be found in local markets. The once thriving Honeyville Buddhist church still operates, and the Ogden Buddhist Church holds annual bazaars each fall. Most Nisei descendants still reside in northern Utah, and although few farm today, they continue the tradition of family honor by contributing to the economic, religious, and social climate of their communities. Indeed, the Nisei legacy is manifested in northern Utah's rich agricultural heritage and cultural landscape. 27 __________________ 1 Nakaemon Miya, Personal history (1970), Ed. Paul Kato, Utah Historical Society, 2000, (Photocopy provided by Mrs. Yukio Miya); Seki Miya, Interview by Paul Kato, 20 March 1976, Syracuse, Utah. (Photocopy provided by Mrs. Yukio Miya). 2 John H.Yang, ed., Asian Americans in Utah: A Living History, (Salt Lake City: State of Utah Office of Asian Affairs, 1999), 126-127. Issei literally means "one or first generation." This term is used to refer to first generation immigrants who were born in Japan. Nisei means "two or second generation," and is used when referring to the children of Issei. Sansei means "third generation," however, this term is not commonly used. 3 R. Todd Welker, "Sweet Dreams in Sugar Land: Japanese Farmers, Mexican Farm Workers, and Northern Utah Beet Production," (Master thesis, Utah State University, 2002), 10 quoting Frederick M. Huchel, The History of Box Elder County, (Salt Lake City: Utah Historical Society, 1999). 4 Yamato Ichihashi, Japanese in the United States, (New York: Arno Press and The New York Times, 1969), 170-171. 5 Kelen, Leslie G. and Eileen Hallet Stone. Missing Stories: An Oral History of Ethnic and Minority Groups in Utah, (Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 1996), 313. 6 Eric Walz, "Japanese Immigration and Community Building in the Interior West, 1882-1945," (Ph.D. diss., Boise State University, 1998), 96. Dr. Walz obtained this 28 information from the Japanese in the Intermountain Area, (Salt Lake City: Rocky Mountain Times, 1925), 151.the Rocky Mountain Time. 7 Ted Nagata ed., Japanese Americans in Utah, (Salt Lake City: Printers, Inc., 1996), 79. 8 Eric Walz, "Japanese Immigration and Community Building in the Interior West, 1882-1945," 136. 9 B. Toru Okada, Interview by Sandra Fuller and Leslie Kelen, 18 August 1984, Special Collections, University of Utah Marriott Library, Accession no. 1209, Salt Lake City, Utah; Gene Fukui, Interview by R. Todd Welker, 23 January 2002. Corrine, Utah, Audio, (Tapes in R. Todd Welker's possession). 10 B. Toru Okada Interview. 11 Frank Nishiguchi, Interview by R. Todd Welker, 6 January 2002, Riverside, Utah, Audio, (Tapes in R. Todd Welker's possession). 12 Helen Z. Papanikolas and Alice Kasai, "Japanese Life in Utah." In The Peoples of Utah, Helen Z. Papanikolas, ed. Salt Lake City: Utah State Historical Society, 1976, 350, 351. 13 Min Miya, Interview by author, 14 October 2004, Layton, Utah, Audio, (Tapes in author's possession); Gene Fukui, Interview by Sandra Fuller and Leslie Kelen. 14 Executive Order 9066: Japanese Relocation Order, by Franklin D. Roosevelt, President of the United States, (Washington, D.C: 1942), 2. 29 15 Tomo Nagao, Interview by author, 11 October 2004, Honeyville, Utah, Audio, (Tapes in author's possession). 16 Min Miya; Junior Yagi, Interview by R. Todd Welker, 15 December 2001, Corinne, Utah, Audio, (Tape in R. Todd Welker's possession). 17 Min Miya. 18 "Farm Group To Oppose Any Jap Land Deal: Corrine Farm Bureau Against Sale of Land to Jap Evacuees," Box Elder News-Journal, Brigham City, Utah, 27 March 1942. Also see Huchel, 277, and Welker, 20. 19 John H. Yang, Ed, Asian Americans in Utah: A Living History, Salt Lake City: State of Utah Office of Asian Affairs, 1999, 134; Elmer R. Smith, "The Japanese in Utah (Part II)," Utah Humanities Review 2 (July 1948): 208-230:215. 20 Elmer R. Smith, "The Japanese in Utah (Part II), 212 quoting People in Motion (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of the Interior, 1947), p.77. 21 Ibid. 212-213; Sandra C. Taylor, "Leaving the Concentration Camps: Japanese American Resettlement in Utah and the Intermountain West/' Pacific Historical Review 60 (May 1991): 169-194: 171, 174-175. 22 "The Japs, Whose Cousins Caused It All, Seen As Cure To Box Elder's Labor Ills," Box Elder News- Journal, 21 August 1942. 23 Min Miya. 24 Nakaemon Miya; Min Miya. 25 Nagata, 76. 30 27 Gene Fukui, Interview by Sandra Fuller and Leslie Kelen, 18 August 1984, Special Collections, University of Utah Marriott Library, Accession no. 1209, Salt Lake City, Utah, 2:24-2:25. 28 Yang, 132. 29 Frank Nishiguchi, Interview by R. Todd Welker; Frank Nishiguchi, Telephone Interview by author. 30 Huchel, 320-321; Frank Nishiguchi, Interview by R. Todd Welker. 31 Nagata, 79. 32 Eric Walz, "From Kumamoto to Idaho: The Influence of Japanese Immigrants on the Agricultural Development of the Interior West," 411. 33 Norkia Yakasaki, "Ethnic Cooperativism and Immigrant Agriculture: A Study of Japanese Floriculture and Truck Farming in California," (Ph.D. diss., University of California, Berkeley, 1982), 190. 34 Kelen and Stone, 337. 35 Min Miya; Yukoi Miya, Interview by author, 19 October 2004, Clearfield, Utah, Audio, (Tapes in author's possession). 36 Min Miya. 37 Ibid. 31 38 Atsushi Sayama, Interview by author, 15 October 2004, Brigham City, Utah, Audio, (Tape in author's possession); Paul Sumida, Interview by author, 11 October 2004, Perry, Utah, Audio, (Tape in author's possession). 39 Junior Yagi, Interviewed by R. Todd Welker, 15 December 2001, Corinne, Utah, Audio, (Tape in R. Todd Welker's possession). 40 Yukio Miya. 41 Beet Growers to Meet, Discuss Course of Action, Box Elder News-Journal, 21 December 1978; "Sugar Plant at Garland Close Today," Box Elder News-Journal, 22 February 1979; "Hope U&I Will Change Mind," Growers Chief Says," Box Elder NewsJournal, 23 November 1978; "Beet Growers Seek to Keep Plant Open," Box Elder News-Journal, 14 December 1978; "Hope Is Fading for Sugar Plant," Box Elder NewsJournal, 15 February 1979. 42 Jim Tazoi, Interviewed by R. Todd Welker, 6 January 2002, Garland, Utah, Audio, (Tape in R. Todd Welker's possession). 43 Gene Fukui, Interview by R. Todd Welker, 23 January 2002, Corrine, Utah, Audio, (Tapes in R. Todd Welker's possession). 44 Min Miya; Yukio Miya; Gene Fukui, interview by R. Todd Welker; Atsutsi Sayama. 45 Eric Walz, "From Kumamoto to Idaho: The Influence of Japanese Immigrants on the Agricultural Development of the Interior West," 414. 32 46 Eric Walz, "Japanese Immigration and Community Building in the Interior West, 1882-1945," Ph.D. diss., Boise State University, 1998, 124-125. 47 Tomo Nagao. 48 Min Miya. 49 Jim Tazoi; Frank Nishiguchi, Interview by R. Todd Welker. 50 "Frank Nishiguchi: The Long Road to Number 1," Utah Farm Bureau News, Volume 29:2, February 1983. 51 Atsutsi Sayama 52 Yukio Miya; Frank Nishiguchi, Interview by R. Todd Welker. 53 Nagata, 108. 54 Yukio Min. 55 Yang, 132. 56 Frank Nishiguchi, Interview by R. Todd Welker; Junior Yagi. 57 Ibid., n.p. 58 Min Miya, (Telephone interview by author on December I, 2004). 59 Dan Tanaka. References to the tournament games in Colorado and California were obtained from Yukio Miya and Ted Nagata's book, 120. 60 Ted Nagata, 120. 61 "Local Japanese Baseball," Box Elder News-Journal, 1 August 1952. 33 62 Gene Fukui, Interview by R. Todd Welker. 63 Current scholarship refers to ministers within the Buddhist faith as "ministers," however, the term "reverend" was consistently used by church members during the interviews. Sociologist Dr. Robert Reynolds explained to the author that the term "priests" is the correct term. 64 Huchel, 173. The "gathering place" quote is from Eric Walz, "Japanese Immigration and Community Building in the Interior West, 1882-1945," 147 quoting a letter written to him from Kim Aoki, 14 February 1996. 65 Atsutsi Sayama; Gene Fukui, Interview by Sandra Fuller and Leslie Kelen, 13. 66 Nagata, 90-91. 67 Huchel, 175-176; Atsutsi Sayama and his wife Shirley explained the need for the 1961 remodeling of the Honeyville chapel. 68 Gene Fukui, Interview by R. Todd Welker; Gene Fukui, Interview by Sandra Fuller and Leslie Kelen, 27- 28; Atsutsi Sayama; Tomo Nagao. 69 Nagata, 97-99; Min Miya. 70 Min Miya. 71 Atsutsi Sayama; Tomo Nagao. 72 Yukio Miya; Renie Miya. 73 Min Miya. 34 ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY Primary Sources Box Elder News-Journal. Brigham City, Utah. 1942, 1943, 1944, 1952, 1978, and 1979. The Box Elder News-Journal is a small newspaper that is published bi-weekly. It is based in Brigham City and has been in operation since the late 1880s. Because an index is not available, the research process has been extremely tedious. I have, however, located some articles, from 1942-1944 regarding proposed legislation, Japanese farmers, and immigrant workers during World War II. I also obtained articles regarding Nisei baseball and the closure of the U&I Sugar Factory in Garland in 1979. Deseret News. Salt Lake City, Utah. 1946.1 located this article through the journal archives in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints Library in Salt Lake City. The article is a newspaper editorial highlighting some of the successes of Japanese soldiers serving in World War II. It was useful in demonstrating that many individuals and businesses developed a new respect for Nisei citizens in light of their World War II military service. This article was not used as a resource in this paper since I chose to delete the lengthy section regarding Nisei service in World War II. However, it is an excellent source for further research as it illustrates lingering tensions, but most importantly, a call to end discrimination against the Japanese. Executive Order 9066: Japanese Relocation Order. By Franklin D. Roosevelt, President of the United States. Washington, D.C.: 1942. Internet online. <http://www.ourdocuments.gov/print_friendly.php?page=transcript&doc=74&title> 29 September 2004 . This website provided a copy of the official Order. It has the 35 subheading of "Authorizing the Secretary of War to Prescribe Military Areas." It was especially useful as the original document was scanned and could be downloaded for printing. The document was used to offer information on the 1942 evacuation order. Fukui, Gene. Interview by Sandra Fuller and Leslie Kelen, 18 August 1984. Special Collections, University of Utah Marriott Library, Accession no. 1209, Salt Lake City, Utah. This interview comes from a collection of oral histories conducted by Sandra Fuller, the Director of the Oral History Department at the University of Utah, along with her assistant Leslie Kelen. The file consists of forty-four interviews with Japanese Americans regarding their lives in Utah. Topics covered within the interviews are the Great Depression, life during and after World War II, Topaz Relocation Center, farming and gardening in northern Utah, business, and life in California. This particular interview was conducted in 1984 and the transcriptions are 48 pages long. This interview provided rich and detailed information regarding personal and family life, childhood chores, working relationships between father and children, the Buddhist bazaars, Nisei sports, and the importance of education. Fukui, Gene. Interview by R. Todd Welker, 23 January 2002. Corrine, Utah. Audio. (Tapes in R. Todd Welker's possession). Todd Welker, a doctoral student at the University of California, San Diego, loaned me tapes of interviews with Japanese American farmers he conducted for his Master's thesis in 2002. In his interviews, he focused mostly on the immigrant farmer's relationship with the Utah-Idaho Sugar Company. However, these tapes proved to be a valuable source for this project as well. Mr. Fukui was a second generation farmer whose experiences with the Utah Farm Bureau and the Beet Growers Association benefited this project. 36 Miya, Min. Interview by author, 14 October 2004. Layton, Utah. Audio. (Tapes in author's possession). Mr. Miya and his wife Ume provided valuable details regarding their farming experiences in Davis County. They owned and worked a large farm in combination with Mr. Miya's parents and siblings. They were active in farming associations and helped to sponsor events such as picnics and bazaars. The Miyas followed Japanese tradition upon marrying by having the wife move into the home of his parents (he is the oldest son). The experiences they incurred during these early years are unique and fascinating. Their expertise and knowledge was extremely useful in this project. Miya, Nakaemon. Personal history (1970). Ed. Paul Kato, Utah Historical Society, 2000. (Photocopy provided by Mrs. Yukio Miya). Mr. Miya wrote his life history when he was 82 years old. He describes his life in Japan, his immigration to the United States, and his early years as a railroad worker and farm laborer. He discusses further his life as a potato and beet farmer in Colorado and then Utah. The document was used to provide details of land leases and purchases, financial aspects of farming, and farming experiences in general. Miya, Seki. Interview by Paul Kato, 20 March 1976. Syracuse, Utah. (Photocopy provided by Mrs. Yukio Miya). Mrs. Miya was born to a tea leaf farmer in Japan and immigrated to the United States in 1918 as a picture bride. This interview describes the circumstances surrounding her marriage, journey to the United States, and life in Utah as a farmer's wife. She raised six children and worked along side her family in their sugar beet fields. While farming, the Miya's belonged to a farmer's association and employed a mediator to aid in contract negotiations. In addition to farming related information, this interview 37 contains a very human side as Mrs. Miya explains her affection towards her family, especially her deceased husband. This interview was used extensively in the first section of the project. Miya, Renie. Interview by author, 19 October 2004. Clearfield, Utah. Audio. (Tapes in author's possession). Renie Miya is the last and probably final farmer in the Miya family. Although he has numerous cousins, he is the only third-generation Miya who has chosen farming as a profession. This interview was applied to the project to compare Renie's experiences as a "modern" farmer to those of his Nisei father and Issei grandfather. Miya, Yukio. Interview by author, 19 October 2004. Clearfield, Utah. Audio. (Tapes in author's possession). Mr. Miya is the youngest of the Miya children. Although he is seventy-five years old, he still farms in Clearfield with his son, Renie. His wife immigrated from Japan in 1960 and was the housekeeper for a popular movie and television star. Their shared experiences in farming, as well as numerous social activities, enriched this project. They also provided me with copies of interviews of his parents, Nakaemon and Seki Miya. The Miya family graciously provided personal, cultural, and agricultural details to this project, and their story is reflective throughout the paper. Nagao, Tomo. Interview by author, 11 October 2004. Honeyville, Utah. Audio. (Tapes in author's possession). Tomo Nagao and his wife, June, were Japanese American farmers - in Honeyville. Mr. Nagao and his brother purchased their father's land and then divided it evenly. The Nagao's grew row-crops and raised cattle. Their produce was sold to Del Monte and Utah-Idaho Sugar Company. They are still active in the 38 Japanese community and in the Honeyville branch of the Buddhist church. They were a gracious couple whose histories offered significant substance to this project. Nishiguchi, Frank. Interview by R. Todd Welker, 6 January 2002. Riverside, Utah. Audio. (Tapes in R. Todd Welker's possession). This is the most lengthy of Mr. Welker's interviews. Mr. Nishiguchi was a second-generation farmer who not only has expertise in farming but in politics, farming organizations, corporate details of the U&I Sugar Company, and Japanese/Anglo relations. This interview proved to be very useful in this project with Mr. Nishiguchi's experiences in county and state farm bureaus. Nishiguchi, Frank. Telephone interview by author, 30 November 2004. (Notes in author's possession). This interview was conducted to validate and clarify data regarding the "infamous" Nishiguchi celery. Mr. Nishiguchi was extremely helpful in providing unique and interesting information. The interview also provides information regarding his years of service as president of the Utah Farm Bureau. Okada, Tetus. Interview by R. Todd Welker, 23 January 2002. Corrine, Utah. Audio. (Tapes in R. Todd Welker's possession). Mr. Okada is one of four brothers who began farming after the death of their father prior to World War II. They share similar experiences with other Japanese farmers, however, Mr. Okada's view of the Farm Bureau, the sugar company, and the Mormon Church mirror the other histories. These views provided a different perspective to the paper. Okada, B. Toru. Interview by Sandra Fuller and Leslie Kelen, 18 August 1984. Special Collections, University of Utah Marriott, Accession no. 1209, Library, Salt Lake City, Utah. This 118 page interview was obtained through the archives at the University of Utah Library. 39 Mr. Okada was born in 1919 and farmed in Corinne along with his brothers. This transcript offers information regarding their heritage, farming and agricultural methods, economic circumstances, and other pertinent data. Many of the stories found within the transcripts are interesting, captivating, and humorous. Because of the comprehensive nature, this particular interview provided information in many aspects, such as agricultural practices, crops, equipment, farm bureaus, religion, and the Anglo community. Salt Lake Tribune. Salt Lake City, Utah. 1946. This editorial article is located at LDS Church library. The article illustrates the changing attitudes towards the Japanese peoples after World War II. It quotes an editorial from the New York Times that calls for an end to discrimination, which perhaps suggests a movement towards ending prejudices against Japanese Americans. This article was not used for the same reason as the Deseret News article. Sayama, Atsushi. Interview by author, 15 October 2004. Brigham City, Utah. Audio. (Tape in author's possession). Mr. Sayama is a second-generation farmer who took over his , father's farm in Corrine, Utah. Mr. Sayama and his wife Shirley discussed the histories of their parents and then provided details into their own experiences. They retired only several years ago from farming and share expertise in many aspects of farming, marketing, and cultural and social aspects of Japanese American life in Box Elder County. This interview was especially useful in providing information regarding the Honeyville Buddhist Church. Sumida, Paul. Interview by author, 11 October 2004. Perry, Utah. Audio. (Tape in author's possession). Paul and Jean Sumida live on Highway 89 in Perry, Utah. Mr. Sumida was 40 raised on a farm but educated at Utah State University as a junior high school math teacher. In 1969, he purchased 25 acres of neglected orchards which took five to ten years to transform. At one point, he taught school, worked at Smith's Food King, and farmed the orchard. The Sumida's marketed their fruit in a stand next to their home for about twenty years. This interview provided excellent information regarding the struggles and rewards of orchard farming, as well as entrepreneurial farming and marketing processes. Tanaka, Dan. Interviewed by R. Todd Welker, 23 January 2002. Honeyville, Utah. Audio. (Tape in R. Todd Welker's possession). Mr. Tanaka's interview offers similar farming details found in the other interviews but provides two unique points. The first is his experiences on Japanese baseball teams during the 1950s. These teams were a major social event for all members of Japanese families. Mr. Tanaka also offers a unique insight into intermarriage—he and his Caucasian wife married in 1959. They believe theirs to be one of the first Anglo/Japanese marriages in the area. This interview was most helpful in describing the social connections found in Nisei baseball. Tazoi, Jim. Interviewed by R. Todd Welker, 6 January 2002. Garland, Utah. Audio. (Tape in R. Todd Welker's possession). Although Mr. Tazoi is a veteran of the infamous all Japanese 442nd unit during World War II, this interview focuses mostly on his experiences as a Nisei farmer during the 1940s through his retirement in the 1980s. He and his brother, also a war veteran, purchased land shortly after the war and remained farmers throughout their working years. This is an extremely useful and fascinating interview that offers insight into pertinent information such as farm bureaus, the UtahIdaho Sugar Company, and other critical factors. 41 Utah Farm Bureau News. Salt Lake City, Utah. 1983 and 1985. This newspaper is published monthly and serves Utah farmers. It highlights the successes within the agricultural industry, and two articles focusing on Frank Nishiguchi were located through the Utah Historical Society. They were beneficial in providing sufficient details regarding his service in the Utah Farm Bureau and agricultural advisory committee. Yagi, Junior. Interview by R. Todd Welker, 15 December 2001. Corinne, Utah. Audio. (Tape in R. Todd Welker's possession). This interview is similar to the others except Mr. Yagi has a unique perspective of Japanese farming in Northern Utah—he was a Japanese farmer who was married to a Mormon, sent three sons on LDS missions, and then . converted to the LDS Church himself. These experiences provided a unique look at institutions, such as the church owned sugar company and farm bureaus that the other interviews did not provide. Secondary Sources Huchel, Frederick M. The History of Box Elder County. Salt Lake City: Utah Historical Society, 1999. This book is a comprehensive study of the history of Box Elder County, beginning with the natural setting and environment prior to settlement. The author is a historian, as well as a lifelong resident of Box Elder County. Although most of the text covers unrelated topics, it does have three separate sections detailing the Japanese American community within Box Elder County. These topics describe the customs, beliefs, and practices of Japanese immigrants, racial discrimination, and their agricultural contributions. The bibliography of this book was useful in providing newspaper and archival sources. 42 Ichihashi, Yamato. Japanese in the United States. New York: Arno Press and The New York Times, 1969. First published in 1932, this book describes many conditions faced by Japanese immigrants. The areas of focus within the text are the causes leading to Japanese immigration, Japanese farmers and agriculture, the Gentlemen's Agreement, and anti-alien laws. Although this work covers only Japanese immigration through the late 1920s, it was used to provide valid statistical data, such as career background on immigrants. Kelen, Leslie G. and Eileen Hallet Stone. Missing Stories: An Oral History of Ethinic and Minority Groups in Utah. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 1996. This book contains oral histories on a significant number of Japanese Americans, three of whom were farmers. The introduction for the Japanese section includes a lengthy history of Japanese immigration to Utah. This work provided background information regarding anti-alien immigration laws that were passed in the latter portion of the nineteen-century and early decades of the twentieth-century. It also offered insight into the cultural practices and beliefs of the Japanese people, while describing the work ethics and family responsibilities common to Japanese American farms. The oral histories also offered descriptions of the agricultural produce, methods of distribution, as well as some of the prices of the fruits and vegetables. Nagata, Ted, ed. Japanese Americans in Utah. Salt Lake City: JA Centennial Committee, 1996. This book is a compilation of biographies, narratives, and photographs pertaining to the Japanese community within Utah. It was edited by a Japanese American and is an insightful view into the values of a unique culture. The book contains one section designated specifically to Japanese farmers, offering descriptions into the availability of 43 land, working conditions, farming equipment, and family responsibilities. The end of the book contains a lengthy record of short Issei histories that were submitted by family . members. This section was useful in providing names of prospective interviewees as the occupations of the individuals were provided along with the name, address, and relationship of the person submitting the history. This book was invaluable and was used extensively to provide information on farming, social, military, and religious activities. Papanikolas, Helen Z. and Alice Kasai. "Japanese Life in Utah." In The Peoples of Utah, Helen Z. Papanikolas, ed. Salt Lake City: Utah State Historical Society, 1976. This project looks into the roots and histories of Utah's ethnic past with a significant portion dedicated to people of Japanese descent. While much of the information within this book is similar to that found in other texts, there are unique details regarding the cultural aspects of Japanese immigrants and their descendents. Other useful information includes relevant legislation, awards, and political influence of Japanese individuals or communities. This work provided information into the Buddhist church and Japanese schools. Smith, Elmer R. "The Japanese in Utah (Part I)." Utah Humanities Review 2 (April 1948): 129144. Elmer R. Smith wrote this scholarly article as an anthropologist studying the Japanese community within Utah after World War II. The project is divided into two parts with Part I focusing on the social relationships between Anglo and Japanese residents. It provides critical census data relating to the Japanese community, pre and post-World War II. Also described are typical employment opportunities for early immigrants, their descendents, and the West coast evacuees during the war. The article 44 offers insight into cultural practices during the first half of the twentieth-century. This article was not cited, but it was useful in providing background information on the Nisei generation in general. . "The Japanese in Utah (Part II)." Utah Humanities Review 2 (July 1948): 208-230. Part II of this project looks at Nisei (second generation—born in America) culture where Part I focuses mostly on Issei (first generation Japanese—born in Japan). This article concentrates heavily on the education and employment opportunities of the Nisei in Utah, including agricultural employment. It also offers great insight into the tolerance (or lack of) towards persons of Japanese descent during and after World War II. It describes proposed Utah legislation attempting to outlaw the sale of land to any individual of Japanese descent, along with community reactions to suggested legislation. Because this article is almost sixty years old, it was useful in displaying a different perspective or insight than the more contemporary works. It was written shortly after World War II and is reflective of the atmosphere regarding discrimination during those years. Taylor, Sandra C. "Leaving the Concentration Camps: Japanese American Resettlement in Utah and the Intermountain West." Pacific Historical Review 60 (May 1991): 169-194. Sandra Taylor is a history professor at the University of Utah. This scholarly article focuses on the resettlement process required by Japanese internees following their release during World War II. It specifically examines individuals who chose to settle in the intermountain region. This article does not provide detailed information on agriculture, but it does offer needed facts, such as statistical information on the interned, those 45 released for work duty, as well as other data. It also provides extensive background on the War Relocation Authority (WRA), discrimination issues, and employment » opportunities for Japanese Americans during the 1940s. This article was used only to supply statistical data concerning the work release program for individuals interned at Topaz. Walz, Eric. "From Kumamoto to Idaho: The Influence of Japanese Immigrants on the Agricultural Development of the Interior West." Agricultural History 74 (Spring 2000): 404-418. Eric Walz is a history and political science professor at Brigham Young UniversityIdaho. This scholarly article was extremely helpful as is offers background information on Japanese immigrants who arrived in Utah at the beginning of the twentieth century. It provided excellent descriptions of the working conditions found in Utah, as well as the work ethics of Japanese immigrants. While focusing on Japanese farmers throughout Utah, this article does discuss several Japanese farmers in Box Elder County. It offers insight into the lives of women and children and their contribution to family agricultural businesses. The footnotes and bibliography of this valuable article directed me to an extensive collection of Japanese oral histories found in the archives at the University of Utah. This scholarly article, however, was most useful in illustrating the proper layout of a lengthy social history paper. "Japanese Immigration and Community Building in the Interior West, 1882-1945." Ph.D. diss., Boise State University, 1998. This dissertation focuses on all aspects of life within the Japanese American community in the Intermountain West. It was a superb resource tool in enhancing my knowledge in Japanese immigration, tradition, religion, and discrimination. The dissertation provided excellent information on Japanese agriculture 46 before and during World War II. It details sugar beet farming, truck farming, agricultural associations, and anti-alien land legislation, all of which were used in this project. Welker, R. Todd. "Sweet Dreams in Sugar Land: Japanese Farmers, Mexican Farm Workers, and Northern Utah Beet Production." Masters thesis, Utah State University, 2002. This thesis was located in the Utah State University Merrill Library. It is a manuscript containing a tremendous amount of information regarding early twentieth-century beet farmers in Box Elder County. The thesis compares working relationships between the Utah-Idaho Sugar Company, Japanese immigrant farmers, and Mexican immigrant farmers. The bibliography of the thesis has proven to be especially helpful—Mr. Welker graciously loaned me use of taped oral histories of four northern Utah Japanese American farmers. These interviews were invaluable in writing this project. They were never transcribed so I completed the task, keeping copies for myself and forwarding copies to Mr. Welker. (The thesis concentrated on ethnic relations and was only used to provide the percentage of sugar beet acreage farmed by Isseis.) Yakasaki, Norika. "Ethnic Cooperativism and Immigrant Agriculture: A Study of Japanese Floriculture and Truck Farming in California." Ph.D. diss., University of California, Berkeley, 1982. This dissertation was made available through interlibrary loan. Although it focuses on Japanese farmers within California, it offers insight into Japanese culture, farming techniques, and marketing practices. It is a comprehensive study covering immigration, family life, racial discrimination, and the economic aspects of < truck farming. I incorporated information regarding truck farmers into the paper. Yang, John H., ed. Asian Americans in Utah: A Living History. Salt Lake City: State of Utah 47 Office of Asian Affairs, 1999. Using a similar perspective to other texts, this book offers a significant amount of duplicate information and statistical data. It was, however, useful in its comprehensive explanation of Japanese terms such as Issei, Nisei, and Sansei. These terms are explained in other texts but in less detail. This text also was used in understanding the chronology of anti-alien legislation that was common to the first onehalf of the twentieth century. 48