The attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 marked the turning point in the lives of the Nikkei in Canada. In response to public pressure rooted in anti-Asian racism, the federal government ordered the forced uprooting of close to 21,500 Japanese Canadians living within the restricted area, 100 miles along the west coast of B.C., and confiscated their property by October 31, 1942. The majority of the Nikkei were forcibly removed from their homes and detained in internment sites in the province, while others were sent to road and prisoner-of-war camps, industrial project sites, and sugar beet farms across the country. (Photo credit UBC Library, Japanese Photograph Collection, Access Identifier: JCPC_29_010)
Located in southern B.C. and today identifies itself as the smallest city in Canada, Greenwood was the first of ten internment sites in the province where approximately 1,200 Nikkei were relocated during World War II. (Photo credit Yuasa family collection)
On June 7, 1964, Prime Minister Pearson referred to the internment of Canadians of Japanese descent as “a black mark on traditional Canadian fairness and devotion to principles of human rights.” It was not until September 22, 1988 that Prime Minister Mulroney acknowledged the federal government’s wrongful treatment of the Nikkei and reached a redress settlement with the Japanese Canadian community. On May 7, 2012, the Province of British Columbia issued a formal apology to the Japanese Canadian community for the internment of approximately 22,000 Nikkei during and after World War II. A decade later on May 21, 2022, B.C. Premier John Horgan announced a $100 million funding initiative in recognition of the injustices committed by the province during the war. The resilience of the first immigrants of Japanese ancestry and their children paved the way for future generations to enjoy the rights and freedoms shared by all Canadian citizens. (Photo by William Milliot on Unsplash )
The Nikkei Legacy Park celebrated its transformation with a 15th century Japanese rock garden at the grand opening of the Nikkei Memorial Garden on July 20, 2025. (Photo credit Chuck Tasaka)
After the 1940s, some Nikkei chose to remain in Greenwood and now rest in its local cemetery.We hope to learn more about these Japanese Canadians, some of whom are "forgotten" and whose gravestones have been cleaned and restored by a volunteer.If you recognize or are related to any of the Nikkei, please contact info@GreenwoodNikkei.ca
CHIYOZO ANDO
JOSEPH K. HAYASHI
FUSAHO (ANNA) HIGASHI
MARY YASUE SHINKE HAYASHI
MASAKUZU HIGASHI
SHIZUICHI, TAZU HIGASHI
TAKAHARU KOMORI
IKARI (Photo credit: Chuck Tasaka)
YONESABURO KURODA
JOSEPH YOSHIO MAEDA
KIYOSHI BOB MAEDA
TOKUMATSU MATSUBA
HARUKO HARI, WATARU WALTER NAKATSU
CHOKICHI, HAN NISHIMURA
TSUMA OYAMA
JOSEPH SHOTARO OYAMA
PETER JOHN SANO (Photo credit: Chuck Tasaka)
ISAO, MICHIYO TANAKA
ISABURO, YOSHINO TANAKA
JENNIFER KEIKO YAMAMURA; JENICHI, AKIYE ASAHINA
HIKOTARO, HANA WAKABAYAHI
HIKOICHI WAKABAYASHI
JUNJI, KOTO WATANABE