"They Became an Indispensable Part"

Arrival at the Depot

In 1944, the Depot's Commanding Officer, Harold J. Preble, learned that the Quartermaster Training Companies from Fort Warren would no longer be coming to the Depot. Preble needed to find another source of labor to fill the positions these soldiers would leave open. When he asked Washington D.C. for help, the government's response was to recruit workers from the War Relocation Authority's (WRA) incarceration camps. 

On February 19, 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066 (EO 9066). This order led to the creation of the WRA and granted the Secretary of War the power and authority to exclude people from designated "military areas." President Roosevelt also gave the Secretary of War the responsibility of supplying food, shelter, and transportation, among other needs, to those excluded from designated military areas. Below is the full text of EO 9066. 

Although EO 9066 did not specify a particular group to be excluded, Japanese Americans who lived on the West Coast were the most impacted. Rather than acting as a precautionary measure for the nation, EO 9066 led to the forced removal of over 120,000 people of Japanese ancestry from their homes on the West Coast. Most of these people were American citizens. Below is a civilian exclusion order that Japanese Americans on the West Coast saw after EO 9066 came out. 

After ordering Japanese Americans on the West Coast to leave the military exclusion zone, with only what they could carry with them, the WRA sent them to 10 Confinement Sites throughout the interior United States.* These were located at Tule Lake and Manzanar in California, Minidoka in Idaho, Poston and Gila in Arizona, Topaz in Utah, Heart Mountain in Wyoming, Granada (Amache) in Colorado, and Rohwer and Jerome in Arkansas. Most of the Japanese Americans would remain in these areas for the duration of the war. Below is a map of all areas associated with the incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II. 

Though they were confined to these camps, some Japanese Americans, particularly the nisei, or second generation, were permitted to leave to work in other places. Japanese Americans from the incarceration camps had been used in other parts of western Nebraska to meet the agricultural demand of the war, but none had worked at the Depot yet by 1944. 

After receiving the federal government's response, Preble worked closely with the Cheyenne County community. He explained that without the Japanese Americans, the Depot may have to close before the war ended. Community members soon put their stamp of approval on the recruitment of Japanese Americans, and the Personnel Division got to work. 

Advertisements for jobs at the Depot appeared in camp newspapers, and the Personnel Division recruiters started visiting the camps. 

Employment

By the summer of 1945, over 100 Japanese Americans from the incarceration camps ended up working at the Sioux Ordnance Depot. Both men and women of Japanese ancestry worked in all areas of the Depot, primarily as munition handlers, truck drivers, forklift operators, tool and equipment servicemen, senior laborers, foremen, gang bosses, and clerk typists. 

The contributions of the Nisei helped the Depot to meet is quotas. The Cheyenne County community recognized their significance at the Depot. Many people remembered the Japanese Americans from the incarceration camps, as well as the circumstances that led to their arrival. 

Carl Farmer, Kathy Schaad, and Lupe Torres, children of Ordville, recall their memories of their Japanese American neighbors in the clips below. 

In his history of the Sioux Ordnance Depot, Larry Mahlman commented on the contribution that the Japanese Americans made to the mission:

“They became an indispensable part of the community and proved to be highly valued employees. Both Nisei men and women were employed in all phases of depot operations.”[7]

Impact of Employment

Although most of the Japanese Americans left the Depot after the war ended, there were several families who stayed. The interactions these families had with others in the community demonstrated the overall sense of safety and acceptance they found in Cheyenne County. 

The Japanese Americans from the incarceration camps were highly-valued employees at the Sioux Ordnance Depot because of their contributions during the nation-wide labor shortage. The Depot's leaderhsip was the most concerned with their safety and perception among the community during the war. The memories of community members and former employees, as well as the continued employment of several formerly incarcerated Japanese Americans show their importance in the Depot's history. 

Visit the Fort Sidney Museum and Post Commander's Home to view the Sioux Army Depot exhibit and learn more about this history!