History of Seattle Nikkei Immigrants from The North American Times
This series explores the history of pre-war Seattle Nikkei immigrants by researching old articles from the online archives of The North American Times, a joint project between the Hokubei Hochi [North American Post] Foundation and the University of Washington (UW) Suzzallo Library.
*The English version of this series is a collaboration between Discover Nikkei and The North American Post, Seattle’s bilingual community newspaper.
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The North American Times
The newspaper was first printed in Seattle on September 1, 1902, by publisher Kiyoshi Kumamoto from Kagoshima, Kyushu. At its peak, it had correspondents in Portland, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Spokane, Vancouver, and Tokyo, with a daily circulation of about 9,000 copies. Following the start of World War II, Sumio Arima, the publisher at the time, was arrested by the FBI. The paper was discontinued on March 14, 1942, when the incarceration of Japanese American families began. After the war, the North American Times was revived as The North American Post.
Stories from this series
Chapter 9 (Part 1) — Flourishing Japanese Hotel Businesses
Sept. 7, 2022 • Ikuo Shinmasu
In the last chapter, I introduced some historical articles about the growth of Japanese barbershop businesses in Seattle beginning in 1917. In this chapter, I discuss the development of Japanese hotel businesses in Seattle in two parts. HISTORY OF JAPANESE HOTEL BUSINESSES As I reported in Chapter 2, the Japanese hotel business in Seattle was started by Manjiro Morita in 1896. Beginning in 1900, the number of hotels run by Japanese continued to grow with the increase in the Seattle …
Chapter 8 (Part 2) —Growth and Decline of Japanese Barbershop Business
Aug. 16, 2022 • Ikuo Shinmasu
In Part 1 of Chapter 8 about the growth of Japanese Barbershop businesses, I wrote about the Japanese Barbershop Committee and the increase of the haircut price. In this part, I would like to share some articles about the Seattle general strike and the Nisei who strove to start their own barbershop businesses around 1939. Seattle General Strike “Relation with the Japanese” (From the Feb. 4, 1919 issue) In February 1919, in sympathy with the strike of approximately 25,000 shipyard …
Chapter 8 (Part 1)—Growth and Decline of Japanese Barbershop Business
Aug. 15, 2022 • Ikuo Shinmasu
In the last chapter, I wrote about the NYK Seattle shipping route which made a great contribution to the development of Seattle. In this chapter, I’d like to talk about the growth of Japanese barbershop businesses in Seattle from 1918 in two parts by introducing articles about Japanese Barbershop Committee in Seattle and the Nisei who strove to start their own barbershop businesses around 1939. JAPANESE BARBERSHOP BUSINESS IN SEATTLE The Japanese barbershop business in Seattle experienced a large growth …
Chapter 7: Development of Seattle Route
July 15, 2022 • Ikuo Shinmasu
In the last chapter, I introduced some articles on the opening of Seattle Route and Seattle Route and the transcontinental railroad around 1918. This time, I will talk about the development of Seattle Route beginning in 1919. THE SHORTEST INTERNATIONAL OCEAN ROUTE “Japan-US Ocean Route and European Ocean Route” (From the Mar. 8, 1919 issue) “In Japan, traveling to Europe and/or the U.S. has become a craze after the (World War I) cease-fire, whether it’s for business or pleasure... There are …
Chapter 6—The Great Seattle Shipping Route
July 1, 2022 • Ikuo Shinmasu
In the last chapter, I introduced some articles on people’s expectations for Japanese Consulate. This time, I will talk about some articles on the opening of Seattle Route and Seattle Route and the transcontinental railroad around 1918. OPENING OF THE SEATTLE ROUTE Nippon Yusen Kaisha’s (NYK Shipping’s) Seattle Route opened in 1896, connecting Seattle and Yokohama. The opening of the route triggered a rapid increase in the number of Nikkei immigrants to Seattle. In the January 1, 1910 issue of …
Chapter 5: Expectations of the Japanese Consulate
May 6, 2022 • Ikuo Shinmasu
In the last chapter, I introduced some notable people in Seattle's Japanese community who were featured in the column, “Ichinichi hitori hito iroiro” (One Person a Day – Let Us Introduce Them) of The North American Times in 1919. This chapter introduces some Japanese Consuls who were appointed by the Japanese Consulate in Seattle, which was established in 1901. * * * * * The role of the Japanese consulate was significant in its support of Japanese residents in Seattle. In …
