Save the Japanese Fishing Village on Terminal Island
The Issue
For more than forty years, Terminal Island in the Port of Los Angeles was home to a Japanese American community of some three thousand residents, supporting a thriving fishing and cannery industry before the start of World War Two.
After Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, amid a wave of anti-Japanese paranoia, the residents of the Japanese fishing village on Terminal Island were forcibly displaced and imprisoned in concentration camps. Soon after, the Navy bulldozed most of the village.
Miraculously, two buildings from the Japanese fishing village have survived to this day. Located on the community’s main commercial thoroughfare at 700-702 and 712-716 Tuna Street, they housed a dry-goods store called Nanka Shoken (est. 1918) and the A. Nakamura Co. grocery store (est. 1923).
Now, the Port of Los Angeles has proposed demolishing these buildings. This would mean the complete erasure of this community's presence — which is deeply concerning, especially to those with direct ties to Terminal Island and these two businesses. This important heritage must be preserved for future generations!
The “Terminal Islanders” (TI) — comprised of the surviving residents of the Japanese fishing village, their direct descendants, and supporters — and the undersigned petition the Honorable Los Angeles Board of Harbor Commissioners as follows:
1. To postpone any efforts to demolish the last two remaining structures located at 700 and 712 Tuna Street.
2. To allow a reasonable amount of time for the Terminal Islanders to decide on a use for the buildings that honors the memory and contributions of the estimated 3,000 residents that were forced out of their homes and businesses due to the hysteria surrounding WWII.
3. The Terminal Islanders will report their final recommendations to the Board of Harbor Commissioners.
For more information:
Random Lengths News — At Terminal Islanders Picnic, Growing Calls to Save Historic Tuna Street
Rafu Shimpo — Save Tāminaru: The Fight to Preserve Terminal Island’s JA Heritage
2,807
The Issue
For more than forty years, Terminal Island in the Port of Los Angeles was home to a Japanese American community of some three thousand residents, supporting a thriving fishing and cannery industry before the start of World War Two.
After Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, amid a wave of anti-Japanese paranoia, the residents of the Japanese fishing village on Terminal Island were forcibly displaced and imprisoned in concentration camps. Soon after, the Navy bulldozed most of the village.
Miraculously, two buildings from the Japanese fishing village have survived to this day. Located on the community’s main commercial thoroughfare at 700-702 and 712-716 Tuna Street, they housed a dry-goods store called Nanka Shoken (est. 1918) and the A. Nakamura Co. grocery store (est. 1923).
Now, the Port of Los Angeles has proposed demolishing these buildings. This would mean the complete erasure of this community's presence — which is deeply concerning, especially to those with direct ties to Terminal Island and these two businesses. This important heritage must be preserved for future generations!
The “Terminal Islanders” (TI) — comprised of the surviving residents of the Japanese fishing village, their direct descendants, and supporters — and the undersigned petition the Honorable Los Angeles Board of Harbor Commissioners as follows:
1. To postpone any efforts to demolish the last two remaining structures located at 700 and 712 Tuna Street.
2. To allow a reasonable amount of time for the Terminal Islanders to decide on a use for the buildings that honors the memory and contributions of the estimated 3,000 residents that were forced out of their homes and businesses due to the hysteria surrounding WWII.
3. The Terminal Islanders will report their final recommendations to the Board of Harbor Commissioners.
For more information:
Random Lengths News — At Terminal Islanders Picnic, Growing Calls to Save Historic Tuna Street
Rafu Shimpo — Save Tāminaru: The Fight to Preserve Terminal Island’s JA Heritage
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Petition created on July 9, 2024