Discover Nikkei

https://www.discovernikkei.org/en/interviews/clips/1379/

Writing Letters

Then about, that was about 6 months after I had arrived in Japan, she told me to go home, marry a nice American girl. Well, I felt kind of bad, and she got on the train and took off for her home in Fujisawa and so I didn't see her...I did go back home to Chicago but I couldn't...I wrote letters to her—cause I could use Kanji then and with Kanji and Romaji, English and all—I was able, we were able to correspond. But that...the letters all went to this Shizuko Naito in Radio Tokyo, who was my friend I tell you, and she passed my letters. I would write to Shizuko Naito, she would get it and inside the envelope was a letter to Hamako, my wife...well she wasn't my wife then.

So after 2 years of writing back and forth, and her father had no knowledge of this correspondence.


armed forces brides correspondence military retired military personnel United States Army veterans war brides wives World War II

Date: January 26, 2012

Location: California, US

Interviewer: John Esaki, Yoko Nishimura

Contributed by: Watase Media Arts Center, Japanese American National Museum

Interviewee Bio

Harry Schneider, (b. 1916), was a member of the U.S. Military Intelligence Service stationed in Tokyo. Although Harry was not Japanese, he initially was recruited for the M.I.S. training program in San Francisco because of his administrative skills, but then was motivated to learn the Japanese language with the other Nisei soldiers. He married his wife, Hamako, in 1948 soon after the end of WWII. At the end of the War, special legislation was required for an Asian “war bride” to be admitted to the U.S. In 1950 Harry and Hamako married again at the Japanese Consulate in Tokyo so that they could be one of the first couples allowed to enter. Harry passed away at age 97 in June 2013. (June 2014)

Kansuma,Fujima

Neighbor took care of hotel business during the World War II

(1918-2023) Nisei Japanese kabuki dancer

Sasaki,Fred

Anti-Japanese sentiment at the time of World War II

(b. 1918) Issei businessman in Canada

Kodama,Ryoichi

Affect of the World War II (Japanese)

Kasato-maru immigrants

Calloway,Terumi Hisamatsu

Four sisters had international marriages (Japanese)

(b. 1937) A war bride from Yokohama

Herzig,Aiko Yoshinaga

Lack of political power led to camps

(1924-2018) Researcher, Activist

Kadoguchi,Shizuko

Choice to move east or go to Japan

(b.1920) Japanese Canadian Nisei. Established the Ikenobo Ikebana Society of Toronto

Herzig,Aiko Yoshinaga

Feeling imprisoned at camp

(1924-2018) Researcher, Activist

Herzig,Aiko Yoshinaga

Institutionalization as a bad aspect of camp

(1924-2018) Researcher, Activist

Herzig,Aiko Yoshinaga

State Department records show concern for treatment of Japanese American internees

(1924-2018) Researcher, Activist

Sogi,Francis Y.

Remembering December 7, 1941

(1923-2011) Lawyer, MIS veteran, founder of Francis and Sarah Sogi Foundation

Sogi,Francis Y.

Volunteering to serve for the U.S. military in Japan

(1923-2011) Lawyer, MIS veteran, founder of Francis and Sarah Sogi Foundation

Sogi,Francis Y.

Meeting Japanese Americans from the mainland in MIS

(1923-2011) Lawyer, MIS veteran, founder of Francis and Sarah Sogi Foundation

Sogi,Francis Y.

Awareness of concentration camps as a Japanese American

(1923-2011) Lawyer, MIS veteran, founder of Francis and Sarah Sogi Foundation

Calloway,Terumi Hisamatsu

Disrespectful Child (Japanese)

(b. 1937) A war bride from Yokohama

Sogi,Francis Y.

Being stationed in Japan during the American occupation

(1923-2011) Lawyer, MIS veteran, founder of Francis and Sarah Sogi Foundation