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Guide to the James Y. Sakamoto Papers
1928-1955

Minidoka Relocation Center, 1942. Photo: Francis Stewart. Special Collections, UW Libraries, UW21141z

Biographical Note

1903

Born, Seattle

1920

Graduated, Franklin High School

1921

Helped to found Seattle Progressive Citizens' League

1921

Blinded while prize fighting

1928

Founded and began publishing Japanese-American Courier (newspaper). Ceased publication in 1942.

1930

Helped to found Japanese American Citizens' League

1936-1938

Served as president of JACL

1942

Incarcerated at Puyallup Assembly Center

1942-1945

Incarcerated at Minidoka

July 1945

Returned to Seattle

1946-55

Worked for the Society of St. Vincent de Paul

1955

Died

James ("Jimmie") Sakamoto was a prominent Nisei community leader, activist, and newspaper publisher renowned for his ardent American patriotism. He was born in Seattle in 1903 to Japanese immigrant parents who arrived in the Northwest in 1894. He graduated from Franklin High School in 1920. A year later, he helped to found the Seattle Progressive Citizens' League to oppose the city's anti-alien land law and various other proposed pieces of anti-Japanese legislation. In 1923, Sakamoto moved to the East Coast where he became a professional welterweight (often known as "featherweight") prize fighter. During this time he also worked as English editor of the New York City Japanese American Daily News and took classes at Princeton. In 1927, as a result of injuries suffered in the ring, he went blind and returned to Seattle shortly thereafter.

In 1928, Sakamoto established and became publisher of Seattle's English language newspaper, the Japanese-American Courier, which quickly boasted circulation figures over 10,000. In 1930, he helped to form the Japanese American Citizens' League (JACL) and from 1936-1938 served as the organization's second national president.

The advent of the War in the Pacific led to one of the most influential periods in Sakamoto's life -- the approximately four months he spent as "Chief Supervisor" at the Camp Harmony assembly center in Puyallup. There Sakamoto offered critical support and leadership for his fellow Japanese Americans and was, simultaneously, a trusted functionary of Army officials.

But World War II also brought the end to one of Sakamoto's longest-running professional accomplishments, the Japanese-American Courier newspaper, and compelled him to put aside his vigorous activist work for the JACL. Moreover, he, his wife Misao, their two young daughters, and his wife's parents were forced to leave their home -- along with nearly 13,000 other Washington State residents of Japanese descent -- and were incarcerated for three years at the Minidoka Relocation Center in southern Idaho. At Minidoka, Sakamoto's leadership efforts were not encouraged in the way they had been at Camp Harmony. Although he continued to mediate on behalf of his fellow Nisei -- such as writing letters to political figures (including President Franklin D. Roosevelt) and arbitrating disputes -- he served in no official political capacity.

Upon his release from Minidoka in July 1945, Sakamoto returned to Seattle with his wife and family. In 1946, he began working for the Society of St. Vincent de Paul and remained there, as head of the Pick-up and Telephone Solicitation Department, until his untimely death in 1955 after being hit by a car while walking to work.

Scope and Content

The collection consists of Sakamoto's personal papers and two subgroups, the Japanese American Citizens' League (JACL) and the Japanese-American Courier. The personal papers include material on the evacuation and relocation of the West Coast Japanese, and on the Japanese community in general. The bulk of the materials on subjects such as the evacuation, Camp Harmony, and the Minidoka Relocation Center are located in subject series of the same names; however, researchers should be aware that other sections in the accession -- especially Incoming and Outgoing Letters, General Correspondence, Case Files, re: Internees, Speeches and Writings, and Legislation -- also contain significant amounts of material on such matters.

The JACL subgroup ranges from approximately 1930 to 1954 and consists primarily of correspondence and minutes concerning the development of the organization, its role in supporting legislation regarding immigration and citizenship, and its stand during the relocation and evacuation. The Courier subgroup mainly concerns the business aspects of the newspaper, but it also includes correspondence pertaining to the newspaper's activities in the Japanese community of the Seattle area, such as its sports leagues, Public Service Bureau, and cooking school.

General Notes

The Microforms and Newspapers Center in Suzzallo Library owns a complete collection of the Japanese-American Courier which may be easier to read than the single copies found in this accession in Special Collections. This microfilm may be borrowed through Interlibrary Borrowing.

Restrictions on Use

The literary rights of these papers have been retained. Thus, users who wish to quote Sakamoto's writings must contact the Sakamoto family for permission. In addition, users who wish to quote Sakamoto's correspondents must search for their heirs and contact them directly for permission.

Acquisition Info

Sakamoto's widow, Misao Sakamoto, donated and personally organized this 8.45 cubic foot accession in 1971.

Alternate Forms Available

A microfilmed copy of the papers is available in Special Collections and may be borrowed through Interlibrary Borrowing.

Inventory