CLA event - Dream Interrupted Exhibit Event, 5/30
Please join us on Saturday, May 30th at 5:30-7 pm for the Exhibition Opening Event for Dream Interrupted: Remembering Life on a Pre-Incarceration Japanese-American Farmstead.
Location: Level 1, Robert E. Kennedy Library, Cal Poly
Exhibition Information: Open through Summer 2026
From 1928 to 1942, Tomoichi and Kikuno Yoshida lived with their 10 children and Tomoichi’s father, Yaemon, as tenant farmers on the Pecho Coast of San Luis Obispo County before they were incarcerated at the onset of WWII. While they were forcibly incarcerated in Jerome, Arkansas, the owner of their property sold the family’s farm equipment, preventing the Yoshidas from ever returning to their way of life on the coast—unjustly and shamefully stalling their pursuit of the American dream.
This display is a collaborative Senior Project presents findings from the archaeological project, designed by students Gaia Gray, Meredith Richards, and Madeleine Rubendall, advised by Dr. Elizabeth Minor. It is based on the first project exhibition at the San Luis Obispo History Center produced by Rachel Burgess (CSU Chico), Emma Bowman, Jesse Horsley, Collin Marfia, Lacey May, and Annie Pagel, and Dr. Terry Jones. Artifacts recovered from the dig offer insights into the daily life of this hard-working Japanese American family, including their foodways, dress, personal hygiene, work, and recreational pursuits. Combined with oral history from the descendants, the objects paint a picture of a challenging yet idyllic life on this coastal farm in the midst of the Great Depression. The artifacts and food waste from a trash pit reflect elements of the family’s traditional Japanese roots combined with American culture and lifestyle.
Tomoichi Kikuno Yoshida and their large family thrived on San Luis Obispo’s Pecho Coast, only to have their livelihood suddenly taken from them and endure a very dark chapter in United States history. Nonetheless, their descendants are a living testament to the ultimate perseverance of the Yoshidas. This display is intended to celebrate the lives of this Japanese-American family, just one of tens of thousands who suffered the same fate, and to recognize and honor their Gaman.
Gaman - A Japanese term of Zen Buddhist origin, which means “enduring the seemingly unbearable with patience and dignity.”