Manzanar War Relocation Center, National Historic Site
About this property
Manzanar is the site of one of ten American concentration camps, where more than 120,000 Japanese Americans were incarcerated during World War II, from March 1942 to November 1945. Although it had over 10,000 inmates at its peak, Manzanar was one of the smaller internment camps. It is located in California's Owens Valley, on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada mountains, between the towns of Lone Pine to the south and Independence to the north, approximately 230 miles (370 km) north of Los Angeles. Manzanar means "apple orchard" in Spanish. The Manzanar National Historic Site, which preserves and interprets the legacy of Japanese American incarceration in the United States, was identified by the United States National Park Service as the best-preserved of the ten former camp sites. The first Japanese Americans arrived at Manzanar in March 1942, just one month after President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, to build the camp their families would be staying in. Manzanar was in operation as an internment camp from 1942 until 1945. Since the last of those incarcerated left in 1945, former detainees and others have worked to protect Manzanar and to establish it as a National Historic Site to ensure that the history of the site, along with the stories of those who were incarcerated there, is recorded for current and future generations. The primary focus is the Japanese American incarceration era, as specified in the legislation that created the Manzanar National Historic Site. The site also interprets the former town of Manzanar, the ranch days, the settlement by the Owens Valley Paiute, and the role that water played in shaping the history of the Owens Valley.
Location
Categories
Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).
Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
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Questions about this property
When was Manzanar War Relocation Center, National Historic Site listed on the National Register?
Manzanar War Relocation Center, National Historic Site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on July 29, 1976.
What type of historic resource is Manzanar War Relocation Center, National Historic Site?
Manzanar War Relocation Center, National Historic Site is classified as a site in the National Register of Historic Places.
Is Manzanar War Relocation Center, National Historic Site a National Historic Landmark?
Yes. Manzanar War Relocation Center, National Historic Site has been designated a National Historic Landmark (NHL), the highest level of federal recognition for historic properties in the United States.
What is the period of significance for Manzanar War Relocation Center, National Historic Site?
The period of significance for Manzanar War Relocation Center, National Historic Site is recorded as the listed era.
Can I research the history near Manzanar War Relocation Center, National Historic Site?
Yes. Aubrey Research reports search National Register listings, battlefield records, land patents, and other primary historical sources within any radius of a US address. A report for an address near Manzanar War Relocation Center, National Historic Site will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.
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