When I interview Japanese Americans, I always want to ask them questions like, "Do you know where your roots are in Japan?" or, "Which part of Japan are your roots?" This is because I think that if I were born in America as a Japanese American, at some point I would want to know where my roots are.
For Japanese people, even if you trace back history as far as you can, it is natural that their roots are somewhere in Japan. Still, if you look closely at your family history, you can make unexpected discoveries, so you can imagine that the history of people whose roots lie beyond borders is full of ups and downs, and there are probably many mysteries even for those involved.
It is understandable that some Japanese people are trying to find their roots, but unless you have relatives in Japan, the language barrier means it is not that easy to trace your roots.
I have met three Japanese-American families during the course of my research, and out of my own interest as a reporter, I have helped them research their roots.
One of them is about Kim Kobayashi's family, who live in Florida. Kim's grandfather, Hideo Kobayashi, settled in southern Florida in the early 20th century as part of the Yamato Colony (Yamato Village), which was established by Japanese people.
Hideo came from Hyogo Prefecture as one of the first members of the colony, and started out living in a tent. He helped other settlers improve their living conditions and expanded the cultivation of vegetables and fruits. In the 1930s, while other settlers gave up on their local lifestyle and left, Hideo stayed with his wife Umeko and their three children. However, farming gradually became difficult, and they switched to landscaping.
When the war began, the Kobayashis were forced to leave because their land was requisitioned for the construction of a U.S. military base, but they remained in Florida throughout the war and after, continuing their landscaping business.
Only a few people connected to the colony remained in the area after the war, and as I listened to Kim's father, Tamotsu Kobayashi (Tom Kobayashi), who knew the history from the beginning, I ended up helping the Kobayashi family discover their roots.
Local history
The clue was the passport of Kobayashi Hideo, which had been kept by the Kobayashi family. According to the passport, issued on January 6, 1921, Hideo's address was listed as "Okutakeno Village, Kinosaki County, Hyogo Prefecture..." This is currently Toyooka City, Hyogo Prefecture, but until 2005 it was part of Takeno Town.
By the way, the Yamato Colony in Florida was a project started by Sakai Joh, a native of Miyazu City, Kyoto Prefecture, who learned about the development of Florida while studying abroad at New York University. He recruited participants from his hometown and many of them came from Miyazu City and the Tango Peninsula. The former Okutakeno Village can be considered an area adjacent to the Tango Peninsula, but even the Kobayashi family did not know why Hideo joined the colony.
In the fall of 2010, while I was in Miyazu doing research for the Yamato Colony, I visited the Takeno Branch of Toyooka City Library to look for local materials related to the former Okutakeno Village. Before the war, emigrating from rural areas to overseas was a major undertaking, and records of this are often mentioned in local histories.
The Takeno Branch Library had a "Takeno Town History" that was created after Okutakeno Village became Takeno Town, so I flipped through it quickly, but I couldn't find anything like that. I then went to the Takeno Branch of Toyooka City Hall to ask about immigrants from this area, but I couldn't find any information.
However, shortly after that, I received a message from a staff member at the Takeno branch office saying, "There is a passage in the Takeno town history that relates to immigrants and Hideo Kobayashi." I must have overlooked it. The following passage was found in the town history.
"Hideo Kobayashi (born December 17, 1883 in Omori Village as the fourth son of Tosuke Kobayashi)"
"I helped out on the farm until I came to the United States."
"In 1907, he settled at Yamato Colony, a vegetable cultivation facility run by a relative."
"At first, the results were not very good and many people dropped out, but Kobayashi-san stayed until the end and was fortunate enough to earn a large amount of money."
"He remained in Yamato Colony until 1942 and continued farming."
"Received an award as one of the distinguished contributors in the 100th anniversary of the establishment of amity and commerce between the United States and Japan."
Tracing family register
This allowed me to surmise that Hideo had relatives among the key figures in the colony. To find out more, I thought I could look up the Kobayashi family registry and find Hideo's relatives. So I contacted the Kobayashi family in Florida, and with their authorization, I applied for and obtained the Kobayashi family registry from Toyooka City.
Family registers are kept under strict custody, and after following the prescribed procedures and dealing with the Kobayashi family, I visited Toyooka City again in March 2011 and, armed with the necessary documents, was finally able to obtain the family register tracing back to Kobayashi Hideo at the Takeno branch office.
According to the family register, Hideo's eldest brother's wife was from the Tango Peninsula, and it is believed that Hideo came to the United States through this connection. Hideo was also listed as "still alive according to the family register." This is likely because when he died in the United States, the paperwork had not yet reached Japan.
From the family register, I learned that Hideo's eldest brother, Fujiji, had become head of the Kobayashi family and inherited it. Using the address written on Hideo's passport, I drove to the mountain area of Toyooka City to see if the Kobayashi family still existed. I was able to reach Hideo's birthplace.
At the top of the stone steps, there was a sturdy old-fashioned house with a nameplate of Toji Kobayashi still hanging there, and next to it was a sign with the same address as the one on Hideo's passport. Today, Toji's grandson, Mr. Y, has inherited the house.
According to Mr. Y, when he was a child, he used to receive beautiful Christmas cards from the U.S. It seems that he had some contact with Hideo in Florida.
The search for the Kobayashi family's roots in Florida had thus come to an end, and we were able to report this to Kim and his family. Our research into local history, family registers, and on-site research had borne fruit.
(Titles omitted)
© 2022 Ryusuke Kawai
