In the middle of the barren Utah desert, among row upon row of tarpaper barracks surrounded by a barbed wire fence, the last thing you might expect to find is–a fish pond!
How did this happen? Fish? In the desert?
One man, Hatsuki Nakahara, had the idea when he spotted catfish in the irrigation canals outside of the Topaz camp, where he worked as a farm crew supervisor.
His daughter, Jun, who was nine years old at the time, does not remember where he got the materials–the concrete, the rocks… but with the help of a few other sturdy neighbors from Block 20, he built a pond stocked with catfish from the irrigation canals.
Jun’s future would take her to Idaho, Chicago, Japan, and California–but she would not return to Topaz for many years. When she did, she sought closure. What she found instead was the concrete shell of the pond her father had built; and she began to suspect that closure would be more elusive than she had thought.
We are happy to share a new Topaz story by Jun Dairiki, “Topaz Fish Story.”
The Topaz Stories Team
Join us on August 13, 2022 (1-2:30 pm) at the AZ Gallery in the Tanforan Mall. Five Topaz Stories authors will read their stories, and we’ll talk about how a few non-techy retired volunteers gathered over 70 stories from Topaz survivors/descendants, launched a website, and hosted two exhibits to share the stories with the public. Click here for details and registration or just register here (the event is free).
Plan to visit the Topaz Stories Exhibit in the Salt Lake City State Capitol building, open through December 2022.
Contact us if you have a Topaz Story to share.
Follow us on Instagram @topazstories
Media Coverage:
Watch Topaz survivors tell their stories (abc4 news, 4/22/2022)
Listen to the “In the Hive” podcast with interviews with Ann Dion, Jonathan Hirabayashi, and Topaz survivors Jeanie Kashima and Joseph Nishimura (KCPW, 4/28/2022)
Read How a Utah exhibit about Topaz Camp looks to find empathy in ‘an ugly stain on American history (ksl.com, 4/22/2022)
Read “Topaz Stories rise from the dust,” (Department of Culture & Community Engagement, 4/2022)
Listen to KQED Forum, Day of Remembrance interview with Ruth Sasaki, 2/15/2022
Listen to Max Chang and Ruth Sasaki interviewed (KRCL RadioActive, 2/9/2022
Read On Topaz Stories and ‘Authentic Voice’, the Discover Nikkei interview with Ruth Sasaki (10/14/2022)
Listen to Remembering the Japanese American Incarceration, the Topaz Stories podcast with Ruth Sasaki and Jonathan Hirabayashi (6/2/2021)
Thank you for contributing your story. The photos of then and now have such impact and your words about standing where your father stood brought tears to my eyes. I didn’t learn anything about this era in school and am only now learning some of the history of what happened to Issei and Nisei. I treasure each nugget of information and love hearing the stories. Thank you for contributing one of yours.
Thank you, Lois, for your kind words. I felt it a shame that this part of our history was never taught in school. Perhaps, our stories will help to “educate” those who want to know more about what happened to us. Hopefully, this will never happen again.