JANUARY 1, 2008

Discovering Pre-WWII Japantowns in the East Bay
by Donna Graves
One of the surprises of the Preserving California’s Japantown survey was themultitude of historic resources we found in Oakland and Berkeley. The entire East Bay
had a large and vibrant Nikkei community before the war with Oakland and Berkeley
home to some of the highest numbers of Japanese residents in the state. Yet more thanonce we heard “I never thought of this as a Japantown” as our surveys of thesecommunities unfolded, reflecting two different perspectives. For non-Nikkei, the historyof Japanese Americans associated with their town was invisible due to the radical
disruption of WWII and subsequent erasure of physical signs and public memory toreconnect their histories to the place. On the other hand, many Nisei had never thoughtof their hometown as a Nihonmachi because they reserved that term for larger and more
densely concentrated Japantowns. Yet places like Oakland and Berkeley, and all of theother communities Preserving California’s Japantowns has documented, held thenecessary components for a thriving community.
Our primary source for the historic resources surveys were 1940-41 directories
published by Nikkei newspapers, which contain approximately 500 listings for Nikkei
businesses, churches and community organizations in Berkeley and Oakland. Theselistings revealed that Japanese Americans lived and worked in diverse neighborhoods
populated by other people of color and working class European immigrants, rather than
the readily identifiable ethnic enclave that the term “Japantown” brings to mind.
Today, both cities hold a significant number of historic structures associated with
pre-WWII Nikkei life. We found over two-thirds of the 100+ listings in Berkeley still
standing. While Oakland’s ratio of extant to demolished structures is not quite as high as
Berkeley’s, the sheer numbers of Nikkei pre-war sites was staggering. Almost 400

listings were included in the Nikkei directories for Oakland – and we located well over
100 structures that appear to date from before WWII. This can be attributed to the factthat these cities had been almost completely “built out” prior to the war, and while someareas of Oakland were demolished for post-war redevelopment or highway construction,
the dispersed pattern of Oakland’s Japantown meant that many historic resources escapedurban renewal.

Oakland had a remarkably dispersed pattern of Nikkei businesses, organizations, and industries
that stretched from the Berkeley border on the city’s northern edge to the farthest reaches of East
Oakland over ten miles away. Map courtesy of Ben Pease and the Japantown Atlas project.

The range of resources we discovered captures many dimensions of JapaneseAmerican history. Both cities have churches that represent the vital continuity of Nikkei
life; in the early 1950s, the Buddhist Church of Oakland went to great lengths to retain its
historic structure, even moving it two blocks north when the I-880 freeway passed
through its site! Berkeley retains an unusually high percentage of its historic churches,with two Buddhist temples and Berkeley Methodist United Church still serving membersin their pre-WWII locations.
On the other hand, few Japanese American businesses were able to be reclaimed
after WWII forced removal and incarceration, so this chapter of community history ishidden from public awareness. We found offices of Nikkei doctors, dentists, andmidwives, as well as dozens of small “mom and pop” businesses such as cornergroceries, cleaners and shoe repair shops that supported Japanese American families. A
handful of florists and nurseries still stand, representing the urban agriculture thatprovided an economic foundation for many Japanese immigrants.
Beyond documenting these historic sites, Preserving California’s Japantowns isworking to raise awareness in the East Bay and other communities where JapaneseAmerican historic sites still exist but have not previously been identified or valued.
Project research can provide the basis for local efforts to designate, protect and interpret
historical structures and landscapes. We have begun to communicate our East Bay
findings in several ways. Project staff organized a community workshop in July 2007
that drew more than fifty people to discuss Oakland and Berkeley’s historic Japantowns.
We have made special presentations to the State Historic Resources Commission inOakland, the Berkeley Landmarks Preservation Commission and Oakland Heritage
Alliance. All of these groups were eager to learn more about this little-known part oftheir local and state heritage.
Development pressures around the state threaten many resources that are mostly
unknown to local advocates and decision makers, and since our surveys were completedin Spring 2007, several buildings we identified have been lost. As I write, a long-time
Nikkei florist and nursery in Berkeley is being demolished. Recognizing that every time
we lose a historic structure we lose a chance to connect more fully to our community’sstory, city of Berkeley staff has committed to consulting our inventory of historicresources before issuing demolition permits, and pursuing grant monies from the State
Office of Historic Preservation to expand on our survey as a planning tool. Throughpartnerships such as this, Preserving California’s Japantowns can help local
communities reclaim space for a richer understanding of the variety of Nikkei experienceand the importance of Japanese American history throughout California.

Volunteer Anny Su, Preserving California’s Japantowns and Berkeley Architectural Heritage
Association to nominate the Telegraph Avenue studio of famed artist Chiura Obata as a Berkeley
landmark. From left: Anny Su, Obata’s granddaughter, Kimi Kodani Hill and her mother Yuri
Kodani, and Jill Shiraki.

The Oishi family in their Richmond nursery, 1940. Preserving California’s Japantowns isworking with the city of Richmond, developers and Rosie the Riveter/WWII Home Front National
Park to consider strategies for preserving and interpreting the Sakai and Oishi nurseries -- thelast intact Nikkei nurseries in the Bay Area dating to before WWII. Photo courtesy of the Oishi
Family.