Portland
Expo Center

During World War II, after the attack on Pearl Harbor, all Japanese people living in America were considered “enemy aliens.”  In April 1942, officials posted Civil Exclusion Orders on telephone poles and store windows throughout Multnomah County. A few weeks later, Civilian Exclusion Order No. 49 was posted in Hood River. The orders gave all Nikkei (people of Japanese heritage who live outside of Japan) only a few days to put their affairs in order before they had to report for evacuation. Many quickly sold their businesses, homes, and property at whatever price they could. 

On May 5, 1942, Nikkei in Military Area No. 1 reported to the Portland Assembly Center, leaving their pets, possessions, and lives behind. The center—a hastily constructed camp on the site of the Pacific International Livestock Exposition—was surrounded by barbed wire, watchtowers, and military guards armed with machine guns. The center had a peak population of 3,676. Those living in Military Area No 2, including the Japanese Americans in Hood River, were sent by train to the Pinedale Assembly Center in California's San Joaquin Valley. 

The government-named assembly centers served as temporary detention camps while ten permanent camps were being built. Overall, there were sixteen such camps, the majority of which were built on racetracks or fairgrounds and located relatively close to Japanese populations. The detention camps lacked privacy and basic sanitation. At the Portland camp, thin sheets of plywood were used to create housing units that were each lit with a single, bare bulb. Because the living areas had no ceilings, families could hear everything their neighbors were doing. The smell of manure was often overwhelming.