Behind the Barbed Wire

Aerial view of Topaz, 1943

In 1942, following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, 120,000 Japanese Americans living on the West Coast were forced to leave their homes. About 10,000 of these moved voluntarily, but the remaining 110,000 were placed in internment camps, or “war relocation centers,” throughout the west. One of these centers was Topaz, located in central Utah.

Topaz operated from September 1942 through October 1945, housing overall about 11,000 Japanese Americans, with a stable population of around 8,000. Built on 19,800 acres, there were 623 buildings at the camp, divided into 42 blocks, each including barracks, a mess hall, a recreation center, and a bathroom/laundry. There were also administration buildings, warehouses, schools, libraries, a hospital, and athletic fields... Read More

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