Nikkei Images National Nikkei Museum and Heritage Centre Newsletter ISSN#1203-9017 Autumn 2005, Vol. 10, No. 3 Zennosuke Inouye: Canadian Veteran by Peter Neary the Second World War. I could see and they had five children: Arthur, immediately that his story deserved Tom, Robert, Mary and Beverley. to be told. That set me on my quest. In The Inouyes built up a successful this I was extremely fortunate that his farm on Sandell Road in Surrey and daughter, Beverley Inouye, had family Zennosuke was a leading figure in the records, a fine memory, and a most work of the Surrey Berry Growers’ generous attitude towards having Co-operative Association. When the her father’s story told. The result Second World War began, Inouye is an article entitled “Zennosuke was still making loan payments as Inouye’s Land: A Canadian Veterans a soldier settler but, unlike many Affairs Dilemma,” which appeared other participants in that troubled in the September 2004 issue of the settlement scheme, he was still on Canadian Historical Review. the land and still in business. Zennosuke Inouye came to The fact that he was a veteran, Canada from Japan in 1900 and however, did not save him and his during his first years in this country family from being removed from the worked at a variety of jobs in British Sandell Road property in 1942. Nor Columbia. He was versatile, skilful did his status as a veteran exempt Zennosuke Inouye. ( Inouye Family and resourceful and knew how to his property from the compulsory photo, 1919) make a living. In 1916 he enlisted in sale of Japanese-Canadian assets My interest in the career of Calgary in the “Canadian Over-Seas that followed. Ironically, Inouye’s Zennosuke Inouye arises out of my Expeditionary Force” and the next property was sold for use under long-standing work on the history year was wounded in France. He the Veterans’ Land Act, which of Canadian veterans of the two left the army in 1919 and the same Parliament passed in 1942 to provide world wars of the twentieth century. year acquired fifty acres of wild opportunities for land settlement for My first venture into this field, a land in Surrey, British Columbia, veterans of the Second World War. 1993 article on how Newfoundland under a soldier settlement scheme The irony was not lost on Inouye, veterans became Canadian veterans, promoted by Ottawa after the war. In who campaigned vigorously during was followed by work on women 1920 he married Hatsuno Morikawa Continued on page 2 veterans and the co-editorship of Contents The Veterans Charter and Post- Zennosuke Inouye: Canadian Veteran 1 Japanese Canadian Veterans and War Memorial in Stanley Park 2 World War II Canada (Montreal Unveil Japanese Memorial Today 3 and Kingston: McGill-Queen’s Unveil Shaft to Japanese Soldiers 3 University Press, 1998). One day Monument to Japanese Canadian Volunteers Serving in Great European War 5 Lest We Forget 5 in my subsequent research on the Yoshizo and Alice Myra Takeuchi 8 history of Canadian veterans – a Thoughts on the Canadian Japanese Volunteer Corps 12 Fred Kagawa’s War 13 big subject in the twentieth-century Upcoming NNMHC Events 15 history of this country – I came across JCNM - Fall 2005 Report 16 a reference to Zennosuke Inouye’s NNMHC Role in the Kushiro 40th Anniversary Visit 17 Book Review: Tasaka 18 dealings with the Government of Tamaka Fisher: Life Artist 19 Canada during and immediately after Photographs of Stan Rowe 21 Monument to Japanese Canadian Volunteers Serving in Great European War (J) 22 1 Announcements and after the war to get his property on Sandell Road was restored to him. Salute to 5 Years Fundraising Dinner back. “Your petitioner believes,” This was exceptional. He was, as far Sat. Sep. 24, 2005, 6:00 - 9:00 PM he told Prime Minister Mackenzie as I can determine, the only Japanese- 2nd Annual Japan Expo King in 1944, “that his loyalty to Canadian veteran to recover property Sat. Oct. 1, 2005, 10:30 - 2:30 PM Canada has been well tested in the from the Government of Canada. great war, and that it does not seem Zennosuke Inouye’s long Japanese Farmer’s Market Sat. Oct. 15, 2005, 11:00 AM - 2:30 PM fair for the government to take away campaign for the restoration of what from one ex-service man a property was rightfully his is an important JCNM Lecture Series, NNMHC Thu. October 20, 7:00 PM so dear to him in order that it may episode in the history of British Donna Yoshitake Wuest be given to [a] soldier returning from Columbia and Canada. Moreover, as Coldstream: The Ranch Where It All Began the present war.” Inouye never took I wrote in my article for the Canadian NNMHC Children’s Halloween Party his case to court but after the war Historical Review, the story of the Sat. Oct. 29, 2005, 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM he appealed for support to his old little man who confronts entrenched commanding officer, Major-General authority and wins is always worth 5th Annual Christmas Craft/Bake Sale Sat. Nov. 19, 2005, 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM W.W. Foster, and to the Canadian telling in a democracy. In truth, the Legion. He also presented his case to lives of Zennosuke and Hatsuno Naomi’s Road by Vancouver Opera Sat. Nov. 26, 2005, 7:30 PM - 11:30 PM the Royal Commission on Japanese- Inouye and their family have many Canadian Claims headed by Justice lessons for Canadians. That is why, Nikkei Winter Dance Henry Irvine Bird, another veteran once launched into this research, Sat. Nov. 26, 2005, 7:30 PM - 11:30 PM of the Great War. Bird responded I pursued the details of a complex All Events at NNMHC favourably to Inouye’s appeal, as story from Charlottetown, Prince did Milton Gregg, who had won the Edward Island, to Victoria, British Nikkei Images is published by Victoria Cross in the Great War and Columbia. That story reminds us the National Nikkei Museum became Minister of Veterans Affairs vividly of events that must never be and Heritage Centre Society in 1948. In 1949 Inouye’s property forgotten. ❁ Japanese Canadian Veterans and Editorial Committee: Stanley Fukawa, Grace Hama, War Memorial in Stanley Park Jim Hasegawa, Frank Kamiya, This issue of NIKKEI IMAGES on the unveiling of the memorial and Mitsuo Yesaki, Carl Yokota is dedicated to the Japanese Cana- are reprinted in the following three dian veterans who participated in articles. The Pacific Newspaper Subscription to Nikkei Images conflicts since World War I and the Group kindly granted permission to is free with your yearly Japanese Canadian War Memorial. reprint The VANCOUVER DAILY membership to NNMHCS: With the end of World War I, PROVINCE and THE VANCOU- Family $25 a grateful Japanese community in VER DAILY SUN. The TAIRIKU Individual $20 Vancouver paid tribute to its war NIPPO article on page 5 was sum- Senior/Student $15 dead at a service in the Empress marized into English by Sakuya Senior Couple $20 Theatre on January 31st. Tadaichi Nishimura. The Japanese version is Non-profit Association $50 Nagao, chairman of the Canadian reprinted on page 22. Corporate $100 Japanese Association, hosted the Sometime during World War II $1 per copy for non-members service and Reverend S.S. Oster- the Japanese Canadian war memo- hout of the Methodist Church gave rial was moved and the light in the NIKKEI PLACE the benediction in both English and lantern atop the memorial extin- 6688 Southoaks Crescent, Burnaby, B.C., V5E 4M7 Japanese. guished. In the mid-1980s a com- Canada A grateful Japanese community mittee was organized to raise mon- tel: (604) 777-7000 also raised $15,000 to build a per- ey and lobby for the restoration of fax: (604) 777-7001 manent war memorial in Stanley the war memorial and relighting of [email protected] Park. The memorial was erected on the lantern. The restored memorial www.jcnm.ca the third anniversary of the Battle of was officially dedicated on August www.nikkeiimages.com Vimy Ridge, April 9th, 1920. THE 2, 1985. The English version of the VANCOUVER DAILY PROV- brochure distributed on that occa- INCE, THE VANCOUVER DAILY sion is reprinted beginning on page SUN and TAIRIKU NIPPO reported 5. ❁ 2 Unveil Japanese Memorial Today (reprinted from THE VANCOUVER DAILY SUN, April 9th, 1920, page 14, with permissin from the Pacific Newspaper Group) Alderman McRae Delegated to Officiate at Ceremony on Behalf of City. In the absence of Acting Mayor enough of the country they lived in in which a light will be kept burning Ramsay, who is prevented from to bear arms in its defense, the ma- continually. attending, owing to press of civic jority of whom have returned to their This light will be switched on business, Ald. J. J. McRae has been homes in Canada. today by Ald. McRae following, the delegated to officiate at the unveil- The memorial will have a most unveiling of the monument. Follow- ing of the Japanese war memorial in picturesque setting amid the forest ing the unveiling ceremony, which Stanley Park today. This handsome giants of Stanley Park. It was erected is scheduled for 12:30, there will be memorial, which has been erected a by the local Canadian Japanese Asso- a luncheon tendered the representa- short distance back of the pavilion ciation and bears tribute to the ability tives of civic and other public bodies and along the chain of duck ponds, of a local artist, James A. Benzle. present at the Hotel Vancouver at is intended to perpetuate the memory While generally simple and clearly 1:30.