World War II brought loss, devastation and grief to the entire world, and Utah was no exception. According to the World War II Honor List Of Dead And Missing, issued by the War Department in 1946, during the war, 1,450 Utahns died in combat or from combat injuries, or were reported Missing In Action.
However, Utahns weren’t the only people in the Beehive State who experienced great loss. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, some Americans experienced a government-ordered loss of freedom, and were forcibly transported from their homes on the West Coast to Utah, where they lived in a camp behind barbed-wire fences.
Just west of Delta, you’ll find the ruins of Topaz - an internment camp for Japanese Americans during World War II. Here are some photos of what remains there today.
Kelly Michals/flickr
Kelly Michals/flickr
Kelly Michals/flickr
Kelly Michals/flickr
President Roosevelt ordered the forced relocation of up to 120,000 people of Japanese heritage in an executive order issued on February 19,1942.Sixty-two percent of those ordered to report to internment camps were U.S. citizens.
Dorthea Lange/Public Domain
Japanese Americans interred in California were hired to build a new camp near Delta. The workers built the barracks and strung the barbed wire fence inside which they and their families would live for as long as three years.
Photo Credit
Topaz opened on September 11, 1942. Over 11,000 people were processed through the camp during World War II. Most came from the San Francisco Bay Area.
Stewart, Francis, War Relocation Authority photographer/Public Domain
Once they arrived at Topaz, people were paid to work there. Wages ranged from $12 for general workers to $19 for medical doctors.
Topaz Japanese American Internment Camp/Facebook
An investigation ordered by President Carter in 1980 found that the internment of Japanese Americans was not justified and was simply due to racism.In 1988, President Reagan signed the Civil Liberties Act, which formally apologized on behalf of the country. Just a few months later, President George H.W. Bush appeared publicly to apologize to internment camp survivors and issued each a settlement of $20,000.
Topaz Japanese American Internment Camp/Facebook
To learn more about this part of Utah’s history, visit the Topaz Museum in Delta.The museum is located at 55 West Main Street in Delta. It’s open Monday through Saturday from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.. You’ll also find some excellent information at the museum’s website.
mliu92 from San Mateo/wikimedia
Interested in some more Utah history? Check out these photos of Utah during the Great Depression.
Kelly Michals/flickr
Dorthea Lange/Public Domain
Photo Credit
Stewart, Francis, War Relocation Authority photographer/Public Domain
Topaz Japanese American Internment Camp/Facebook
mliu92 from San Mateo/wikimedia
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