Tonarigumi

Tonarigumi. Alameda’s Historic Japantown. Becoming a Japantown , A neighborhood planted, a community flourished , With the growth of Japantown, the Tonarigumi, or cohesive neighborhood, began to take shape as Japanese immigrants settled in dwellings, cottages and Victorian flats, primarily in the 6-block area bounded by Blanding and Encinal Avenues between Park and Walnut Streets. Kenjin kai, mutual support associations, were formed by newcomers who had come from the same town or prefecture in Japan. Within one block of each other, a Buddhist temple and Japanese Methodist church planted roots. The Alameda Japantown community came together as one to instill Japanese culture and language, to celebrate and to play ball!, Rooting for the Home Team , Not allowed to participate in civic programs, youth developed skills, team camaraderie, and friendship through Japanese American sports leagues., Providing a sense of pride for the whole town, Alameda Taiku-Kai (ATK), or the athletic club, competed against community and college teams from Japan. The ATK diamond was built at the northwest corner of Walnut Street and Clement Avenue at McKinley Park on land offered rent free by former SF Mayor James Rolph. The team played ball every Sunday until the outbreak of World War II., Inset Images: , Mudhens Football, ca. 1934 , Alameda Young Women’s Buddhist Association Basketball, 1938. , Fans in their Sunday’s finest filled the grandstand. , Alameda Taiku-Kai, 1936., Nurturing Our Children , In response to racist bans that prohibited “orientals” from attending white schools and organizations, the Alameda Japanese Grammar School was established at 2256 Pacific Avenue in 1908. The fully accredited school taught by teachers from Japan, provided instruction in reading, writing, arithmetic, calligraphy, history, geography, and Japanese ethics. In 1916, the State passed a law forbidding schools from teaching in any foreign language and forced the closure., Inset Images: , After the closing of the Japanese Grammar School, the students enrolled in the local public schools. Porter Elementary School, 1920. , Alameda Japanese School, ca. 1914. , Alameda’s first Japanese Boy Scout Troop formed in 1918., Creating Community , Inset Images: , Gathering as a community centered around picnics, a time to enjoy homemade bento, good company and games outdoors. Albany Hill, ca. 1918 , Nisei children line-up for a race at McKinley Park, ca. 1920 , Young children enjoy watermelon. Ca. 1920 , Issei, first generation immigrants, collect warabi, a fiddlehead fern. ca. 1912, Demise of Japantown , Soon after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, the U.S. declared war against Japan and a shroud of fear overshadowed Japantown. On February 19, 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066, forcibly removing all people of Japanese descent on the West Coast from their homes and businesses. Due to its proximity to the Naval Air Station, Alameda was the first city whose residents were ordered to evacuate. Within less than two weeks, Alameda Japantown was abruptly erased from the cityscape., On March 1, 1942, Japanese American residents boarded buses to Tanforan Racetrack, where they were penned in for five months, before boarding trains to an undisclosed location. After living for over three years in the barren desert of Topaz, Utah, former Alamedans found their homes had been taken over and their belongings destroyed. The Buddhist temple and Methodist church served as temporary hostels for returning families. Once again, the Japanese American neighbors came together for the sake of the children. - Komodo no tame ni., Inset Images: , Many of the former Alameda residents were among the 8,130 individuals incarcerated at Topaz Concentration Camp close to Delta, Utah. , Japanese Americans arrive at Tanforan race track in San Bruno, California. , Tanforan library was set up by a graduate student from Mills College. , Japanese Americans board trains to unknown destinations. , Temporary housing built in former horse stalls., Cultivating Culture , Mochitsuki, or rice pounding, was an annual Japanese New Year’s tradition that brought the neighborhood together., Inset Images: , Issei, Japanese immigrants, celebrate the new year. ca. 1915 , Shaping the pounded rice required many hands. ca. 1952 , Mochitsuki begins with the rhythmic pounding of rice using wooden mallets in a stone mortar. ca. 1928, Alameda’s Tonarigumi , Due to restrictive covenants and nearby shops on Park Street, Japanese Americans resided between Pacific and Lincoln Avenues in the early years. From the 1920’s to 1940’s, the neighborhood fanned out in close proximity to the church and temple, across Oak Street, along Buena Vista Avenue and Bank Alley. Living nearby, Japantown neighbors offered support, reciprocity and friendship., Inset Images: , A family out on the town. ca. 1910 , Nisei children play together. ca. 1935 , Issei mothers and children gather on the porch of a neighborhood home. ca. 1914, Tonarigumi, next door or close neighbor in Japanese, describes the cohesive bond in Alameda’s Japanese American community that remained steadfast despite racism, wartime hysteria, and the erasure of its Japantown. The four historic markers tell the story of the spirit and resolve of the Japanese immigrants settling and adjusting to a new land in Alameda., Historic Issei photos by Ozeki Photo Studio. Additional photos courtesy of Alameda History Museum, Buddhist Temple of Alameda, Buena Vista United Methodist Church, and the Kawamura, Nakata and Takeda families. Wartime Relocation Authority photos from the UC Berkeley Bancroft Library., Tonarigumi, Alameda’s Historic Japantown , A collaboration of the Alameda Free Library, Buddhist Temple of Alameda, Buena Vista United Methodist Church, City of Alameda and Rhythmix Cultural Works. , Kazumu Julio Cesar Naganuma, Creative Direction and Design, Grace Horikiri, Designer, Map: Ben Pease, Japantown Atlas