Beneath Heavy Pines in World War II Louisiana: The Japanese American Internment Experience at Camp Livingston

Hayley Johnson; Sarah Simms

doi:10.5771/9781666923377

Summary

December 7, 1941 changed the lives of thousands of Japanese Americans who became "enemy" in the eyes of the United States government within hours. With Pearl Harbor still smoldering, these men would be arrested and put into the enemy alien internment system. As the study of internment has steadily grown, the information about the confinement sites and ability to piece together the experiences of the men within has remained a challenging task.

Camp Livingston, famous as a site for the Louisiana Maneuvers, holds a darker and less well-known history. From 1942-1943, over 1,000 men of Japanese ancestry were held in this internment camp in the pine forests of central Louisiana. The authors approach this camp's history via the experiences and linkages to and through two families, the Miyamotos and Koharas, who are the beating heart at the center of this saga. Through them, the authors have laid out a historical counter narrative that is part biography and part critical exploration of a forgotten chapter of American history.

This manuscript is the first of its kind to focus primarily on exploring Camp Livingston, arguably one of the lesser-known enemy alien internment camps, in depth including its layout, operations, and the daily life and experiences of the internees within.

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Bibliographic data

Edition: 1/2023
Copyright year: 2023
ISBN-Print: 978-1-6669-2336-0
ISBN-Online: 978-1-6669-2337-7
Publisher: Lexington, Lanham
Language: English
Pages: 298
Product type: Book Titles

1. Contents No access
2. 1. Notes No access
3. 1. Note No access
1. Uncovering Camp Livingston and Enemy Alien Internment No access
2. Structuring Memory No access
3. Why This Matters No access
4. Notes No access
Acknowledgments No access Pages 15 - 16
1. 1. The War Relocation Authority No access
  2. The Enemy Alien Internment Program No access
  3. A Reckoning through Recognition No access
  4. Notes No access
2. 1. Notes No access
3. 1. Notes No access
4. 1. Notes No access
5. 1. Notes No access
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3. 1. Notes No access
4. 1. Notes No access
5. 1. Notes No access
1. 1. Fort McDowell, California: No access
  2. March 30, 1942, to April 6, 1942 No access
  3. Fort Sill, Oklahoma: No access
  4. April 9, 1942, to May 29, 1942 No access
  5. Notes No access
2. 1. Notes No access
3. 1. Notes No access
1. 1. Interactions with Guards and Men Stationed at Livingston No access
  2. Prisoner of War, Number One No access
  3. Living Conditions in Camp No access
  4. Notes No access
2. 1. Labor in Camp No access
  2. Camp Activities No access
  3. Faith, Ritual, and Religion No access
  4. Notes No access
3. 1. 1. Fourth Poetry Reading and Critique Session, August 19428 No access
  2. Gaman: An Act of Resistance, Connection, and Solidarity No access
  3. Notes No access
4. 1. Notes No access
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2. 1. Notes No access
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Note No access Pages 270 - 270
1. Camp Livingston Rosters from 1942 No access
2. Note No access
1. Notes No access
Index No access Pages 287 - 296
About the Authors No access Pages 297 - 298