At first, the Olivers seemed like an elusive group. For years, as I was doing research in Little Tokyo for my dissertation, I would hear people mention the Olivers and I was always curious. Who were they? What was their role in Little Tokyo’s history? And what was up with that name? Eventually I learned that the name was associated with Nisei sports activities, but wanted to find out more. Finally, I had a chance to work with the Little Tokyo Service Center on a grant application that allowed me to find out the answers to these questions through a deeply rewarding investigation into Jap…