Near Jerome in Jerome County, Idaho — The American West (Mountains)
Censored Mail
Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, August 8, 2019
1. Censored Mail Marker
Captions: (background) Photo 1943; (upper left) The censor's stamp is affixed to this postcard sent from Japan to Minidoka internee Yoshi Asaba of Block 36. A civilian wartime censor cuts text from a letter using a razor knife.
The camp's internee-run post office stood here. Hunt Post Office was a branch of the Twin Falls U.S. Post Office. Mail was the internees' main link with the outside world - with family members in Japan, other camps, or in locations outside the exclusion zones. It was also how they held onto their homes and businesses in the exclusion zones. They had mortgages to pay, bank accounts to maintain, and businesses to run.
However, mail was subject to censorship by the U.S. Army and the Office of Censorship - set up when the war started. Censors often read international and domestic mail, and blocked out or cut out parts of letters that the government thought were sensitive or inflammatory. Censorship significantly delayed mail deliveries and invaded privacy.
Erected by Minidoka National Historic Site, National Park Service.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Asian Americans • Communications • War, World
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Location. 42° 40.722′ N, 114° 14.964′ W. Marker is near Jerome, Idaho, in Jerome County. It is at the intersection of an unnamed road and Hunt Road on an unnamed road. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Jerome ID 83338, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Idaho’s Magic Valley. It is also in the American Mountain West. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Running a Camp (within shouting distance of this marker); Honor Roll (about 500 feet away, measured in a direct line); A Question of Loyalty (about 500 feet away); Garden Under Guard (about 500 feet away); On Guard (about 500 feet away); Minidoka Relocation Center (about 500 feet away); Soothing Waters (about 500 feet away); Symbols of Imprisonment (about 700 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Jerome.
Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, August 8, 2019
2. Censored Mail Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on August 30, 2019. It was originally submitted on August 30, 2019, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 366 times since then and 20 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on August 30, 2019, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.
