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Heart Mountain Internees' farewell

Pictured here are internees waving goodbye to their friends and neighbors before departing from Heart Mountain.

In January 1945, the Shishima family was given permission to leave the camp. In August, after the war ended, Bill, his father, and his older brother went back to Los Angeles to look for a place to stay while Bill's mother and younger siblings stayed at the camp. During this time, Bill and his brother took "school boy jobs" to support themselves. In November, Bill's father found a three-bedroom apartment in West Los Angeles. He then sent for his family staying at Heart Mountain. Bill, at the time, was working for a Japanese American-owned rabbit farm in Lomita, California.

Photo courtesy of National Archive Digital Collection