Due to the current emergency situation, the JAHSSD office in Balboa Park is currently closed.
We can still be reached by email at jahssd@sbcglobal.net
COMMUNITY NEWS
Local Journalist Wins Emmy for Story on Internment Letters
Local ABC 10News journalist, Rina Nakano has been awarded a local Emmy by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, Pacific Southwest Chapter for her story “Dear Miss Breed: Letters of Hope During Internment.”
For the story, she interviewed local Japanese American community member, Elizabeth Kikuchi Yamada about her correspondence with Miss Clara Breed, librarian at San Diego Public Library, while her and her family were at Poston internment camp in Arizona during WWII.
Watch her special report here
CURRENT EXHIBITIONS
JAHSSD Gallery at San Diego History Center:
Letters from Santa Anita: Children’s Thoughts on Internment
Clara Breed was a librarian with San Diego Public Library where she became good friends with many of the young Japanese Americans who visited the library. Many of them carried on a regular correspondence with her during their time in internment camps which provides an interesting insight into how these young people viewed their situation. Using the letters written to Clara Breed from her young friends in Santa Anita, this exhibition reveals their thoughts and opinions on internment in their own words.
Japanese Businesses in Downtown San Diego Prior to WWII
Before WWII, the area around Fifth and Island in downtown San Diego was the center of the Japanese business community. The map featured in this exhibition shows the location of the various businesses and the diversity of services they provided. To accompany the map are images of the various businesses and their owners and staff.
A Window into History: Curiosities from our Collections
Currently on exhibit in our artifact exhibition space:
Forge and Anvil – used by the Oyama family in Chula Vista.
Made In Camp – everyday items made by internees at Poston internment camp, Arizona
