Manzanar Manzanar is most widely known as the site of one of ten camps where over 110 , 000 Japanese Americans were incarcerated during World War II . Located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada in California ' s Owens Valley between the towns of Lone Pine to the south and Independence to the north , it is approximately northeast of Los Angeles . Manzanar ( which means " apple orchard " in Spanish ) was identified by the United States National Park Service as the best - preserved of the former camp sites , and is now the Manzanar National Historic Site , which preserves and interprets the legacy of Japanese American incarceration in the United States . Long before the first incarcerees arrived in March 1942 , Manzanar was home to Native Americans , who mostly lived in villages near several creeks in the area . Ranchers and miners formally established the town of Manzanar in 1910 , but abandoned the town by 1929 after the City of Los Angeles purchased the water rights to virtually the entire area . As different as these groups were , their histories displayed a common thread of forced relocation . Since the last incarcerees left in 1945 , former incarcerees and others have worked to protect Manzanar and to establish it as a National Historic Site to ensure that the history of the site , along with the stories of those who were unjustly incarcerated there , are remembered by current and future generations . The primary focus is the Japanese American incarceration era , as specified in the legislation that created the Manzanar National Historic Site . The site also interprets the former town of Manzanar , the ranch days , the settlement by the Owens Valley Paiute , and the role that water played in shaping the history of the Owens Valley . Terminology . Since the end of World War II , there has been debate over the terminology used to refer to Manzanar , and the other camps in which Americans of Japanese ancestry and their immigrant parents , were incarcerated by the United States Government during the war . Manzanar has been referred to as a " War Relocation Center , " " relocation camp , " " relocation center , " " internment camp " , and " concentration camp " , and the controversy over which term is the most accurate and appropriate continues to the present day . Dr . James Hirabayashi , Professor Emeritus and former Dean of Ethnic Studies at San Francisco State University , wrote an article in 1994 in which he stated that he wonders why euphemistic terms used to describe camps such as Manzanar are still being used . Hirabayashi went on to describe the harm done by the use of such euphemisms and also addressed the issue of whether or not only the Nazi camps can be called " concentration camps . " In 1998 , use of the term " concentration camps " gained greater credibility prior to the opening of an exhibit about the American camps at Ellis Island . Initially , the American Jewish Committee ( AJC ) and the National Park Service , which manages Ellis Island , objected to the use of the term in the exhibit . However , during a subsequent meeting held at the offices of the AJC in New York City , leaders representing Japanese Americans and Jewish Americans reached an understanding about the use of the term . After the meeting , the Japanese American National Museum and the AJC issued a joint statement ( which was included in the exhibit ) that read in part : The " New York Times " published an unsigned editorial supporting the use of " concentration camp " in the exhibit . An article quoted Jonathan Mark , a columnist for " The Jewish Week " , who wrote , " Can no one else speak of slavery , gas , trains , camps ? It ' s Jewish malpractice to monopolize pain and minimize victims . " AJC Executive Director David A . Harris stated during the controversy , " We have not claimed Jewish exclusivity for the term ' concentration camps . ' " On July 7 , 2012 , at their annual convention , the National Council of the Japanese American Citizens League unanimously ratified the " Power of Words Handbook , " calling for the use of " . . . truthful and accurate terms , and retiring the misleading euphemisms created by the government to cover up the denial of Constitutional and human rights , the force , oppressive conditions , and racism against 120 , 000 innocent people of Japanese ancestry locked up in America ' s World War II concentration camps . " According to the " Power Of Words Handbook " : History before World War II . Owens Valley Paiute . Manzanar was first inhabited by Native Americans nearly 10 , 000 years ago . Approximately 1 , 500 years ago , the area was settled by the Owens Valley " Paiute " , who ranged across the Owens Valley from Long Valley on the north to Owens Lake on the south , and from the crest of the Sierra Nevada on the west to the Inyo Mountains on the east . Other Native American nations in the region included the " Miwok " , Western " Mono " , and " Tubatulabal " to the west , the " Shoshone " to the south and east , and the Mono Lake Paiute to the north . The Owens Valley Paiute hunted and fished , collected pine nuts , and raised crops utilizing irrigation in the Manzanar area . They also traded brown - ware pottery for salt from the Saline Valley , and traded other wares and goods across the Sierra Nevada during the summer and fall . The Owens Valley had received scant attention from European Americans before the early 1860s , as it was little more than a crossroads of the routes through the area . When gold and silver were discovered in the Sierra Nevada and the Inyo Mountains , the resulting sudden influx of miners , farmers , cattlemen and their hungry herds brought conflict with the Owens Valley Paiute , whose crops were being destroyed . The Owens Valley Indian War of 1861 – 1863 ensued ; at the end , the Owens Valley Paiute , along with other native peoples in the region , were forced at gunpoint by the United States Army to walk almost to Fort Tejon , in one of the many forced relocations or " Trails of Tears " inflicted upon Native Americans in the United States . Approximately one - third of the Native Americans in the Owens Valley were forcibly relocated to Fort Tejon . After 1863 , many returned to their permanent villages that had been established along creeks flowing down from the Sierra Nevada mountains . In the Manzanar area , the Owens Valley Paiute had established villages along Bairs , Georges , Shepherds , and Symmes creeks . Evidence of Paiute settlement in the area is still present . Ranchers . When European American white settlers first arrived in the Owens Valley in the mid – 19th century , they found a number of large Paiute villages in the Manzanar area . John Shepherd , one of the first of the new settlers , homesteaded of land three miles ( 4 . 8 km ) north of Georges Creek in 1864 . With the help of Owens Valley Paiute field workers and laborers , he expanded his ranch to . In 1905 , George Chaffey , an agricultural developer from Southern California , purchased Shepherd ' s ranch and subdivided it , along with other adjacent ranches . He founded the town of Manzanar in 1910 . Chaffey ' s Owens Valley Improvement Company built an irrigation system and planted thousands of fruit trees . By 1920 , the town had more than twenty - five homes , a two - room school , a town hall , and a general store . Also at that time , nearly of apple , pear , and peach trees were under cultivation ; along with crops of grapes , prunes , potatoes , corn and alfalfa ; and large vegetable and flower gardens . " Manzanar was a very happy place and a pleasant place to live during those years , with its peach , pear , and apple orchards , alfalfa fields , tree - lined country lanes , meadows and corn fields , " said Martha Mills , who lived at Manzanar from 1916 to 1920 . Some of the early orchards , along with remnants of the town and ranches , are still present at Manzanar today . Quenching Los Angeles ' thirst . As early as March 1905 , the City of Los Angeles began secretly acquiring water rights in the Owens Valley . In 1913 , it completed construction of its Los Angeles Aqueduct , But it did not take long for Los Angeles water officials to realize that Owens River water was not enough to supply the rapidly growing metropolis . In 1920 , they began to purchase more of the water rights on the Owens Valley floor . As the decade went on , the City of Los Angeles bought out one Owens Valley farmer after another , and extended its reach northward into Mono County , including Long Valley . By 1933 , the City owned 85 % of all town property and 95 % of all ranch and farm land in the Owens Valley , including Manzanar . Although some residents sold their land for prices that made them financially independent and relocated , a significant number chose to stay . In dry years , Los Angeles pumped ground water and drained all surface water , diverting all of it into its aqueduct and leaving Owens Valley ranchers without water . Without water for irrigation , the holdout ranchers were forced off their ranches and out of their communities ; that included the town of Manzanar , which was abandoned by 1929 . Manzanar remained uninhabited until the United States Army leased from the City of Los Angeles for the Manzanar War Relocation Center . Wartime : 1942 – 45 . After the December 7 , 1941 , attack on Pearl Harbor , the United States Government swiftly moved to begin solving the " Japanese Problem " on the West Coast of the United States . In the evening hours of that same day , the Federal Bureau of Investigation ( FBI ) arrested selected " enemy " aliens , including 2 , 192 who were of Japanese descent . The California government pressed for action by the national government , as many citizens were alarmed about potential activities by people of Japanese descent . On February 19 , 1942 , President Franklin D . Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066 , which authorized the Secretary of War to designate military commanders to prescribe military areas and to exclude " any or all persons " from such areas . The order also authorized the construction of what would later be called " relocation centers " by the War Relocation Authority ( WRA ) to house those who were to be excluded . This order resulted in the forced relocation of over 120 , 000 Japanese Americans , two - thirds of whom were native - born American citizens . The rest had been prevented from becoming citizens by federal law . Over 110 , 000 were incarcerated in the ten concentration camps located far inland and away from the coast . Manzanar was the first of the ten concentration camps to be established . Initially , it was a temporary " reception center " , known as the " Owens Valley Reception Center " from March 21 , 1942 , to May 31 , 1942 . At that time , it was operated by the US Army ' s Wartime Civilian Control Administration ( WCCA ) . The Owens Valley Reception Center was transferred to the WRA on June 1 , 1942 , and officially became the " Manzanar War Relocation Center . " The first Japanese American incarcerees to arrive at Manzanar were volunteers who helped build the camp . By mid – April up to 1 , 000 Japanese Americans were arriving daily , and by July the population of the camp neared 10 , 000 . Over 90 % of the incarcerees were from the Los Angeles area , with the rest coming from Stockton , California ; and Bainbridge Island , Washington . Many were farmers and fishermen . Manzanar held 10 , 046 incarcerees at its peak , and a total of 11 , 070 people were incarcerated there . Climate . The weather at Manzanar caused suffering for the incarcerees , few of whom were accustomed to the extremes of the area ' s climate . The temporary buildings were not adequate to shield people from the weather . The Owens Valley lies at an elevation of about . Summers on the desert floor of the Owens Valley are generally hot , with temperatures exceeding not uncommon . Winters bring occasional snowfall and daytime temperatures that often drop into the range . At night , temperatures are generally 30 to 40 °F ( 17 to 22 °C ) lower than the daytime highs , and high winds are common day or night . The area ' s mean annual precipitation is barely five inches ( 12 . 7 cm ) . The ever - present dust was a continual problem due to the frequent high winds ; so much so that incarcerees usually woke up in the morning covered from head to toe with a fine layer of dust , and they constantly had to sweep dirt out of the barracks . " In the summer , the heat was unbearable , " said former Manzanar incarceree Ralph Lazo ( " see " Notable Manzanar incarcerees section , below ) . " In the winter , the sparsely rationed oil didn ' t adequately heat the tar paper - covered pine barracks with knotholes in the floor . The wind would blow so hard , it would toss rocks around . " Camp layout and facilities . The camp site was situated on at Manzanar , leased from the City of Los Angeles , with the developed portion covering approximately . The residential area was about one square mile ( 2 . 6 km ) , and consisted of 36 blocks of hastily constructed , by tarpaper barracks , with each incarceree family living in a single by " apartment " in the barracks . These apartments consisted of partitions with no ceilings , eliminating any chance of privacy . Lack of privacy was a major problem for the incarcerees , especially since the camp had communal men ' s and women ' s latrines . " . . . One of the hardest things to endure was the communal latrines , with no partitions ; and showers with no stalls , " said former Manzanar incarceree Rosie Kakuuchi . Each residential block also had a communal mess hall , a laundry room , a recreation hall , an ironing room , and a heating oil storage tank , although Block 33 lacked a recreation hall . In addition to the residential blocks , Manzanar had 34 additional blocks that had staff housing , camp administration offices , two warehouses , a garage , a camp hospital , and 24 firebreaks . The camp also had school facilities , a high school auditorium , staff housing , chicken and hog farms , churches , a cemetery , a post office , a cooperative store , other shops , a camp newspaper , and other necessary amenities that one would expect to find in most American cities . Manzanar also had a camouflage net factory , an experimental plantation for producing natural rubber from the Guayule plant , and an orphanage called Children ' s Village , which housed 101 Japanese American orphans . The camp perimeter had eight watchtowers manned by armed Military Police , and it was enclosed by five - strand barbed wire . There were sentry posts at the main entrance . Life behind the barbed wire . After being uprooted from their homes and communities , the incarcerees found themselves having to endure primitive , sub - standard conditions , and lack of privacy . They had to wait in one line after another for meals , at latrines , and at the laundry room . Each camp was intended to be self - sufficient , and Manzanar was no exception . Cooperatives operated various services , such as the camp newspaper , beauty and barber shops , shoe repair , and more . In addition , incarcerees raised chickens , hogs , and vegetables , and cultivated the existing orchards for fruit . Incarcerees made their own soy sauce and tofu . Food at Manzanar was based on military requirements . Meals usually consisted of hot rice and vegetables , since meat was scarce due to rationing . In early 1944 , a chicken ranch began operation , and in late April of the same year , the camp opened a hog farm . Both operations provided welcome meat supplements to the incarcerees ' diet . Most incarcerees were employed at Manzanar to keep the camp running . Unskilled workers earned US $ 8 per month ( $ per month as of 2018 ) , semi - skilled workers earned $ 12 per month ( $ per month as of 2018 ) , skilled workers made $ 16 per month ( $ per month as of 2018 ) , and professionals earned $ 19 per month ( $ per month as of 2018 ) . In addition , all incarcerees received $ 3 . 60 per month ( $ per month as of 2018 ) as a clothing allowance . The incarcerees made Manzanar more livable through recreation . They participated in sports , including baseball and football , and martial arts . They also personalized and beautified their barren surroundings by building elaborate gardens , which often included pools , waterfalls , and rock ornaments . There was even a nine - hole golf course . Remnants of some of the gardens , pools , and rock ornaments are still present at Manzanar . Resistance . Although most incarcerees quietly accepted their fate during World War II , there was some resistance in the camps . Poston , Heart Mountain , Topaz , and Tule Lake each had civil disturbances about wage differences , black marketing of sugar , intergenerational friction , rumors of " informers " reporting to the camp administration or the FBI , and other issues . However , the most serious incident occurred at Manzanar on December 5 – 6 , 1942 , and became known as the Manzanar Riot . After several months of tension between incarcerees who supported the Japanese American Citizens League ( JACL ) and a group of " Kibei " ( Japanese Americans educated in Japan ) , rumors spread that sugar and meat shortages were the result of black marketing by camp administrators . To make matters worse , incarceree and JACL leader Fred Tayama was beaten by six masked men . Harry Ueno , the leader of the Kitchen Workers Union , was suspected of involvement and was arrested and removed from Manzanar . Soon after , 3 , 000 to 4 , 000 incarcerees gathered and marched to the administration area , protesting Ueno ' s arrest . After Ueno ' s supporters negotiated with the camp administration , he was returned to the Manzanar jail . A crowd of several hundred returned to protest , and when the people surged forward , military police threw tear gas to disperse them . As people ran to avoid the tear gas , some in the crowd pushed a driverless truck toward the jail . At that moment , the military police fired into the crowd , killing a 17 - year – old boy instantly . A 21 - year – old man who was shot in the abdomen died days later . Nine other prisoners were wounded , and a military police corporal was wounded by a ricocheting bullet . Closure . On November 21 , 1945 , the WRA closed Manzanar , the sixth camp to be closed . Although the incarcerees had been brought to the Owens Valley by the United States Government , they had to leave the camp and travel to their next destinations on their own . The WRA gave each person $ 25 ( $ today ) , one - way train or bus fare , and meals to those who had less than $ 600 ( $ today ) . While many left the camp voluntarily , a significant number refused to leave because they had no place to go after having lost everything when they were forcibly uprooted and removed from their homes . As such , they had to be forcibly removed once again , this time from Manzanar . Indeed , those who refused to leave were generally removed from their barracks , sometimes by force , even if they had no place to go . 146 incarcerees died at Manzanar . Fifteen incarcerees were buried there , but only five graves remain , as most were later reburied elsewhere by their families . The Manzanar cemetery site is marked by a monument that was built by incarceree stonemason Ryozo Kado in 1943 . An inscription in Japanese on the front of the monument reads , ( Soul Consoling Tower ) . The inscription on the back reads " Erected by the Manzanar Japanese " on the left , and " August 1943 " on the right . Today , the monument is often draped in strings of " origami " , and sometimes survivors and other visitors leave offerings of personal items as mementos . The National Park Service periodically collects and catalogues such items . After the camp was closed , the site eventually returned to its original state . Within a couple of years all the structures had been removed , with the exception of the two sentry posts at the entrance , the cemetery monument , and the former Manzanar High School auditorium , which was purchased by the County of Inyo . The County leased the auditorium to the Independence Veterans of Foreign Wars , who used it as a meeting facility and community theater until 1951 . After that , the building was used as a maintenance facility by the Inyo County Road Department . As of 2007 , the site also retains numerous building foundations , portions of the water and sewer systems , the outline of the road grid , remains of the landscaping constructed by incarcerees , and much more . Despite four years of use by the incarcerees , the site also retains evidence of the ranches and of the town of Manzanar , as well as artifacts from the days of the Owens Valley Paiute settlement . Notable incarcerees . Herzig - Yoshinaga and her husband , John " Jack " Herzig , pored over mountains of documents from the War Relocation Authority , a task that " was roughly equivalent to indexing all the information in a library , working from a card catalog that only gave a subject description by shelf , without giving individual book titles or authors . " Their efforts resulted in the discovery of evidence that the US Government perjured itself before the United States Supreme Court in the 1944 cases " Korematsu v . United States " , " Hirabayashi v . United States , " and " Yasui v . United States " which challenged the constitutionality of the relocation and incarceration . The government had presented falsified evidence to the Court , destroyed evidence , and had withheld other vital information . This evidence provided the legal basis Japanese Americans needed to seek redress and reparations for their wartime imprisonment . The Herzigs ' research was also valuable in their work with the National Coalition for Japanese American Redress ( NCJAR ) , which filed a class - action lawsuit against the US Government on behalf of the incarcerees . The US Supreme Court ruled against the plaintiff . " Internment was immoral , " Lazo told the " Los Angeles Times " . " It was wrong , and I couldn ' t accept it . " " These people hadn ' t done anything that I hadn ' t done except to go to Japanese language school . " In 1944 , Lazo was elected president of his class at Manzanar High School . He remained at Manzanar until August of that year , when he was inducted into the US Army . He served as a Staff Sergeant in the South Pacific until 1946 , helping liberate the Philippines . Lazo was awarded the Bronze Star for heroism in combat . After the war , he was a strong supporter of redress and reparations for Japanese Americans incarcerated during the war . The film , " " , from Visual Communications , documents his life story , particularly his stand against the incarceration . " Ueno made us aware there was opposition in the camps , " said Omori . " He made us feel that people did fight back and made us realize that one person can make a difference . " Preservation and remembrance . Manzanar Pilgrimage . On December 21 , 1969 , about 150 people departed Los Angeles by car and bus , headed for Manzanar . It was the " first " annual Manzanar Pilgrimage . But as it turned out , two ministers , Reverends Sentoku Mayeda and Shoichi Wakahiro , had been making annual pilgrimages to Manzanar since the camp closed in 1945 . The non - profit Manzanar Committee , formerly led by Sue Kunitomi Embrey , has sponsored the Pilgrimage since 1969 . The event is held annually on the last Saturday of April with hundreds of visitors of all ages and backgrounds , including some former incarcerees , gathering at the Manzanar cemetery to remember the incarceration . The hope is that participants can learn about it and help ensure that what is generally accepted to be a tragic chapter in American history is neither forgotten nor repeated . The program traditionally consists of speakers , cultural performances , an interfaith service to memorialize those who died at Manzanar , and " Ondo " dancing . " My mother was a very staunch Buddhist and she would always say , ' Those poor people that are buried over there at Manzanar in the hot sun — they must be so dry . Be sure to take some water [ as offerings ] , ' " said Embrey . " She always thought it was important to go back and remember the people who had died . " In 1997 , the Manzanar At Dusk program became a part of the Pilgrimage . The program attracts local area residents , as well as descendants of Manzanar ' s ranch days and the town of Manzanar . Through small group discussions , the event gives participants the opportunity to hear directly about the experiences of former incarcerees first - hand , to share their experiences and feelings about what they learned , and talk about the relevance of what happened at Manzanar to their own lives . Since the events of September 11 , 2001 , American Muslims have participated in the Pilgrimage to promote and increase awareness of civil rights protections in the wake of widespread suspicions harbored against them in the post 9 / 11 world . California Historical Landmark and Los Angeles Historic - Cultural Monument . The Manzanar Committee ' s efforts resulted in the State of California naming Manzanar as California Historical Landmark # 850 in 1972 , with an historical marker being placed at the sentry post on April 14 , 1973 . Manzanar , which has been historically owned by the City of Los Angeles , was registered as a Los Angeles Historic - Cultural Monument in 1976 . National Historic Landmark and National Historic Site . The Manzanar Committee also spearheaded efforts for Manzanar to be listed in the National Register of Historic Places , and in February 1985 , Manzanar was designated a National Historic Landmark . Embrey and the Committee also led the effort to have Manzanar designated a National Historic Site , and on March 3 , 1992 , President George H . W . Bush signed House Resolution 543 into law ( ; ) . This act of Congress established the Manzanar National Historic Site " to provide for the protection and interpretation of the historical , cultural , and natural resources associated with the relocation of Japanese Americans during World War II . " Five years later , the National Park Service acquired of land at Manzanar from the City of Los Angeles . The site features an Interpretive Center housed in the historically restored Manzanar High School Auditorium , which has a permanent exhibit that tells the stories of the incarcerees at Manzanar , the Owens Valley Paiute , the ranchers , the town of Manzanar , and water in the Owens Valley . The site , which has seen 766 , 999 people visit from 2000 through 2010 , features restored sentry posts at the camp entrance , a replica of a camp guard tower built in 2005 , a self - guided tour road , and informational markers . Staff offer guided tours and other educational programs , including a Junior Ranger educational program for children between four and fifteen years of age . The National Park Service is reconstructing one of the 36 residential blocks as a demonstration block . One barrack will appear as it would have when Japanese Americans first arrived at Manzanar in 1942 , while another will be reconstructed to represent barracks life in 1945 . A restored World War II mess hall , moved to the site from Bishop Airport in 2002 , was opened to visitors in late 2010 . In late 2008 , historically appropriate vegetation was planted near the Interpretive Center . The Manzanar National Historic Site also unveiled its virtual museum on May 17 , 2010 and continues to collect oral histories of former incarcerees and others from all periods of Manzanar ' s history . Other works . A made - for - television movie , " Farewell to Manzanar " , directed by John Korty , aired on March 11 , 1976 , on NBC . It was based on the 1973 memoir of the same name , written by Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston , who was incarcerated at Manzanar as a child , and her husband James D . Houston . The book and the movie tell the story of the Wakatsuki family and their experiences behind the barbed wire through young Jeanne ' s eyes . On October 7 , 2011 , the Japanese American National Museum ( JANM ) announced that they had negotiated the rights to the movie , and that they would make it available for purchase on DVD . " Come See The Paradise " was a feature film about how forced relocation and imprisonment at Manzanar affected a Japanese American family from Los Angeles and a European American union organizer . The film , released in 1990 , starred Dennis Quaid and Tamlyn Tomita , and was written and directed by Alan Parker . The 1994 award - winning novel , " Snow Falling on Cedars " by David Guterson , contains many scenes and details relating to Japanese Americans from the Puget Sound , Washington , area and their incarceration experiences at Manzanar . The 2000 film based on the book also details that connection . Fort Minor ' s song " Kenji " , from the album " The Rising Tied " ( 2005 ) , tells the true story of Mike Shinoda ' s family and their experiences before , during , and after World War II , including their imprisonment at Manzanar . The Asian American jazz fusion band Hiroshima has a song entitled " Manzanar " on its album " The Bridge " ( 2003 ) . It is an instrumental song inspired by Manzanar and the Japanese American incarceration . Also , its song " Living In America " , on its album titled " East " ( 1990 ) , contains the phrase " I still remember Manzanar . " Channel 3 ' s song titled " Manzanar " is about the incarceration . A 2007 episode of the CBS television crime drama " Cold Case " , titled " Family 8108 " , dealt with the 1945 murder of a Japanese American man in Philadelphia , Pennsylvania after he and his family were released from Manzanar . The episode originally aired on December 9 , 2007 . Folk / country musician Tom Russell wrote " Manzanar " , a song about the Japanese American internment , that was released on his album " Box of Visions " ( 1993 ) . Laurie Lewis covered the song on her album " Seeing Things " ( 1998 ) , adding the Japanese string instrument , the koto , to her performance .