In 1997, University of Washington librarians Theresa Mudrock, Carla Rickerson and Karyl Winn developed the Japanese American Exhibit and Access Project to provide enhanced access to UW Libraries holdings on the incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II. One feature of the site, the Camp Harmony Exhibit, created by Theresa Mudrock, has been honored over the last year as an outstanding Web site for the quality of its content.
The Georgetown University INNOVISTAS site selected Camp Harmony for inclusion in its American Studies Crossroads Project, and it features an interview with Mudrock detailing how electronic access enhances the use and accessibility of the print and archival materials included in the exhibit.
Lycos included Camp Harmony as one of its "Top 5%" of sites, writing that "the exhibit humanizes camp history by portraying the stories of schoolchildrens' meal-time and camp chores . . . The Cycle of Life: Birth, Marriage & Death is particularly touching with its documentation, taken from the camp's own newsletters."
In October 1997, the Scout Report reviewed the site, noting that "This site, created by the University of Washington, is a rare find: an excellent, well-crafted, content-rich online exhibit paired with a very useful guide to archival holdings on the same subject."
Camp Harmony is a recommended site on the Britannica Internet Guide, one of only three related to Japanese American relocation, and was labeled as one of Yahoo's "Cool Sites." The exhibit was also featured as the MSNBC "Site of the Night" on July 29, 1997.
The Japanese American Exhibit and Access Project represents a stellar example of how digitized primary materials, carefully selected and organized, can open access to an important part of 20th century American history. The American Studies Crossroads Project noted that the Web can transform the teaching of American Studies, allowing students and teachers to explore documents and photographs previously available only in archival collections.