To view video, Click Here. Mitsue M. talks about the severe dust storms and barren landscape of Topaz.

"It was out in the Sevier Desert with all the dust storms, you name it, cold in winter... the road was impassable, you get mud all over your feet and that sort of thing. When the wind blew, it blew the gravel so you had to -- and you were outside -- you had to hide behind the barracks or someplace. That's how it was. But the welcome mat when we arrived was this: you know, we got to a station called Delta, and of course there were buses there to transport us to our final internment camp. And as we went along we said, "This is plush, look at all the farmland." It looked real good to us. But all of a sudden what do we find? This area that they had opened up was Sevier Desert, I guess that's what they call it. Most of the sagebrushes were gone which loosened all the sand there. So when we got off the bus, guess what? We were welcomed with this terrible dust storm, just terrible. And besides, the barracks weren't quite finished either. There was no sheet rock in the interior, so that all the sand seeped through the roof wherever there's an opening. And my goodness, you'd wipe that one time and next minute you had to do it again and that's how it was."

Mitsue M. Interview - Copyright © 1997 Densho. All Rights Reserved.

Nisei female. Born in San Francisco, California. As a young woman, entire family visited Japan for ten months, where she acquired the skill of Japanese typing at the Kumahira Typist Yoseisho in Hiroshima. Returned to the U.S. with most of her family (eldest brother remained in Japan) and was working at the Japanese Chamber of Commerce in San Francisco when the U.S. entered World War II. Was incarcerated with the family at Tanforan Assembly Center, San Bruno, California and Central Utah Relocation Center, Topaz, Utah. After spending a year at Topaz, was able to secure employment as a Japanese typist at the Military Intelligence Service Language School (MISLS), Camp Savage and Fort Snelling, Minnesota. Soon thereafter, was temporarily assigned as secretary to Mr. John F. Aiso and remained in that capacity until Major Aiso received orders to go overseas. Married a MISLS instructor, and went again to Japan postwar during her husband's service in the U.S. occupation forces.

Courtesy of Densho: The Japanese American Legacy Project