A History of Japanese Americans in Southeast Idaho

This site explores over a century of experiences and contributions of Japanese Americans of southeastern Idaho, centered on the towns of Pocatello and Blackfoot. Issei are the first generation immigrants, who arrived for work opportunities beginning in the 1890s. In that first decade, all of the immigrants were men who worked on the railroad. Many stayed, married women who arrived from Japan, and raised children: the Nisei or second generation. Nisei led the community through the difficult years of the Second World War, and their children, the Sansei or third generation, continued efforts to gain footholds of integrity and equality in the post-war decades. Together, all Americans of Japanese ancestry are Nikkei. This history of their community is told by students in the Idaho State University History Department's Global Idaho Seminar in the spring of 2020, working with the Pocatello-Blackfoot Chapter of the Japanese American Citizens League and the ISU Eli M. Oboler Library Special Collections.

In creating and collecting the resources on this site, our goal is to interpret the development and contributions of Americans of Japanese ancestry in Southeast Idaho and to promote public awareness of the wide range of resources available for further study and research on this topic.

The creators and authors of this project are professor Kevin Marsh and students Dan Cravens, Victor Curiel, Angela Davis, Dwain Garbett, Michelle Hancock, Dameon Hansen, Nancy Shiozawa, Felicia Thompson, Charlotte Wells, and Christa White.

Please visit the site often to explore its various parts. We welcome feedback, corrections, and suggestions for future additions. Send those to Dr. Kevin Marsh, marskevi@isu.edu.