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Located in Inyo County, California, just outside of the town of Lone Pine. Opened March 21, 1942, as the Owens Valley Reception Center, it was later renamed on June 1, 1942, as the Manzanar War Relocation Center. At its peak, Manzanar held around 10,046 incarcerees, mainly from the Los Angeles area. Nearly 800 Nisei from Manzanar would serve in the armed forces. Manzanar would close on November 21, 1945.

Heroes Among Us: Stories of Courage, Patriotism & Sacrifice

Born on November 19, 1921, in the small town of Penryn, California, outside of Sacramento, Minoru was one of six children born to the Furuto family. His parents were farmers in the area, but soon moved the family to Little Tokyo in Los Angeles to run a produce market. When the war broke out, he and his family were sent to Manzanar before being approved for leave clearance to work on the sugar beet farms in Utah. While in Utah, Minoru was drafted into the 442nd Regimental Combat Team. He would go on to serve in the Apennines and Po Valley Campaigns, as well as the fight for the Gothic Line.

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Street scene of Manzanar Barrack Homes

Manzanar Soldier Roster

Research through the Valor in Confinement project enabled GFBNEC to build a list Japanese American soldiers who served from the ten War Relocation Authority confinement sites during WWII. These soldiers were recruited out of the concentration camp and/or had direct family incarcerated in the camp. List periodically updated.

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Manzanar Concentration Camp

Heroes Among Us: Stories of Courage, Patriotism & Sacrifice

Manzanar Soldier Roster