Location: Jerome County, south-central Idaho, six miles
north of Eden
Land: Federal reclamation project land, part of the Gooding Reclamation District
Size: 33,500 acres
Climate: Severe; plagued by dust storms
Origin of camp population: King, Washington (6,098), Multnomah, Oregon (1,927), Pierce, Washington ( 1,051) counties
Via "assembly centers": Most came from Puyallup(7,150) and Portland (2,318) "assembly centers"
Rural/Urban: Mostly urban Peak population: 9,397 Date of peak: March 1, 1943
Opening date: August 10, 1942
Closing date: October 28, 1945
Project director(s): Harry Stafford
Community analysts: Gordon Armbruster, John de Young, and Elmer R. Smith
JERS fieldworkers: James Sakoda
Newspaper: Minidoka Irrigator (September 10, 1942July 28, 1945)
Percent who answered question 28 of the loyalty questionnaire positively: 98.7
Number and percentage of eligible male citizens inducted directly into armed forces: 594 (8.8 percent)
Industry: Minidoka had a garment factory which produced goods for internal consumption
Miscellaneous characteristics: Minidoka was regarded by many as the "best" of the camps. Its positive atmosphere stemmed from its relatively homogeneous population and its relatively benevolent administration. Additionally, as a camp not in the Western Defense Command restricted area, security was lighter there than at other camps.
Image credit: Collection of the Bainbridge Island Japanese American Community Archives (NRC.1998.20.1)
Camp Related Materials from the Japanese American National Museum
America's Concentration Concentration Camps sites on the Internet
Bibliography of Japanese Americans and America's Concentration Camps