"Are They Our Enemies?" Delta Interaction with the Japanese-American Internment Camp at Topaz

Authors

Heather Pabst, Brigham Young University

Keywords

Delta Utah, Japanese American Internment camp, World War II

Abstract

In the small town of Delta, in the barren desert valley of central Utah, a rare phenomenon occurred during World War II. For the first time, fresh seafood was available in chis land-locked town. The entrepreneurs were the Hoshiyama brothers, internees of the Japanese-American internment camp located just sixteen miles outside of Delca. The wartime internment brought more than just fresh fish co Delea. le provided an economic boom, a new rival for high school sports, a venue for incerculcural exchange, and much more. Sadly, it also unearthed some of the intolerance of the town. In many aspects, the reaction of the Delta community to the building of the internment camp mirrored the prejudices of 1940s America. However, through interaction with the Topaz internees and the economic benefits of the camp, some Delta residents began to change these prejudices.

Recommended Citation

Pabst, Heather (2001) ""Are They Our Enemies?" Delta Interaction with the Japanese-American Internment Camp at Topaz," The Thetean: A Student Journal for Scholarly Historical Writing: Vol. 30: Iss. 1, Article 4.
Available at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/thetean/vol30/iss1/4