Research: Minidoka Relocation Camp
Location: Jerome County, south
central Idaho, 6 miles north of
Eden.
Land: Federal reclamation project
land, part of the Gooding Reclamation District.
Size: 33,500 acres.
Climate: Severe, plagued by
dust storms.
Population origins:
King County, WA (6,098)
Multnomah County, OR (1,927)
Pierce County, WA (1,051)
The poplulation was from mostly urban areas.
Peak population: 9,397.
Date of peak: March 1, 1943.
Opening Date: August 10, 1942.
Closing Date: October 28, 1945.
Project director(s): Harry Stafford
Community Analysts: Gordon
Armbruster, John de Young, and Elmer R. Smith.
Newpaper(s): Minidoka Irrigator,
(September 10, 1942 to July 28, 1945).
% who answered question 28 of the loyalty questionnaire
positively: 98.7%
Number and percentage of eligible citizen males inducted
directly into armed forces: 594 (8.8%).
Industry: Minidoka had a garment
factory which produced goods for internal consumption.
History: Minidoka was regarded
as the "best" of the camps whose positive atmosphere stemmed from
the relatively homogenous population and the relatively benevolent administration.
Because it was not in the Western Defense Command restricted area, its security
was lighter than that of other camps.
Source: Japanese American
History: An A to Z Reference, 1868 to the Present,
by Brian Niiya. New York: Facts on File, 1993. This information is provided
with the permission from the Japanese American National Museum and Brian
Niiya, 1997.
