Japanese commanders surrendered their swords to the Allies aboard the USS Missouri in a traditional ceremony September 2, 1945; nearly a month after the atom bombs fell on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in southern Japan where most Island Nikkei families originated. Kay Nakao and her sisters and brother lost their grandmother

Bainbridge Islanders arrived at Manzanar as it was still being constructed, the living quarters long barracks designed to house four families in 20'x20' rooms. Eventually 10,000 people would reside within the square mile of camp. At the edge of the Sierra Nevadas, Manzanar was a dusty expanse of barracks surrounded

On the morning of March 30, 1942, army trucks appeared at Island Nikkei homes to transport families to the Eagledale ferry dock where the Kehloken waited to take them to Seattle. Bainbridge High School allowed students to miss school to say "good–bye" to their friends; many younger students played "hooky"

On February 19, 1942, President Franklin Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, allowing for the creation of areas from which "any and all persons may be excluded." His action was unanimously authorized by Congress. FDR designated Lieutenant General J.L. DeWitt as the commander of such areas, thus transferring civilian control from

In the week following Pearl Harbor, many West Coast Issei previously identified as "suspect" by the FBI were arrested, questioned, and confined. On February 4, 1942, the FBI, along with Washington State troopers and Kitsap County sheriff deputies, entered and searched every Island Issei home. Contraband such as dynamite and

In the morning of Sunday, December 7, 1941, Japanese bombers attacked the U.S. Pacific Fleet based at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. There were more than 4500 casualties. The next day, President Franklin Roosevelt declared war on Japan. Bainbridge Islanders, along with all Americans, were stunned–and frightened. There are many military and