Known as the father of Japanese American baseball, Kenichi Zenimura built a baseball field inside the Gila River War Relocation Center. On March 7, 1943, the first official game was played at Zenimura Field, launching a 32-team league that became the heart of camp life.
The Heart Mountain Eagles were an all-Japanese American football team that played and defeated outside Wyoming high schools while imprisoned in a World War II incarceration camp.
Wataru “Wat” Misaka quietly broke the NBA’s color barrier in 1947. There were no headlines or recognition. The league’s first African American players would not enter the NBA for another three years.
At Gila River, Kenichi “Zeni” Zenimura built a real ballpark from desert sand, with bleachers, grandstand, box seats, even uniforms sewn from bedsheets. For thousands of incarcerated Japanese Americans, his field turned confinement into community, and despair into America’s favorite pastime.
Behind barbed wire, baseball gave Japanese Americans strength, pride, and unity. The Manzanar Baseball Project honors the game that helped them endure injustice and rebuild community.
From Tokyo streets to American fame, Rocky Aoki built an empire with Benihana, mixing performance and food into a new kind of dining experience. His wild life made him one of the most fascinating Japanese Americans of his era.
He was the first Nisei soldier to fall in battle, but certainly not the last.
Wally Kaname Yonamine broke barriers in two countries, first as a Japanese American football player in the U.S., then as the first American to play professional baseball in Japan. His speed, skill, and sportsmanship changed the game forever.
Type below to explore past stories and posts from our archives
This site uses cookies to enhance your experience. By using this site, you accept our use of cookies.