California Genealogical Society blog: Nikkei Pilgrimage to Angel Island October 13

Approaching Angel Island by ferry

Taiko drummers greeted visitors at a previous year's Nikkei Pilgrimage

On October 13, please join us for the annual Nikkei Pilgrimage to Angel Island! The all-day outing is focused on the Japanese-American experience at this immigration station, which many Asian immigrants passed through—or were delayed in—on their way to a new life in America. There will be visual exhibits about the Japanese and Japanese American experience on Angel Island; a dance performance honoring the ancestors; and more. The schedule is designed to allow a free flow of activity during the day. Participants can explore history exhibits at the Immigration Station, get help with genealogy research, learn about community history and local organizations, and just enjoy time with family, friends and colleagues.

Entrance to the barracks

While Angel Island is notorious for the poor treatment of many Chinese immigrants detained there, approximately 85,000 people of Japanese descent also were detained on Angel Island between 1910 and 1940, making them the second largest ethnic group to pass through this point of entry. Before 1920, the immigration station also saw a large influx of “picture brides”—Japanese women who came to America through an arranged marriage with Japanese men already in the U.S. The station was closed after a fire in 1940, but the barracks were used during the Second World War to hold Japanese prisoners of war and Nikkei detainees from Hawaii and the Pacific Coast. All of this history makes for a rich experience

Grant Din, Judy Russell, interpreter Casey Lee, and Kim Cotton at last year's event

This is the fifth year in a row that the Nichi Bei Foundation has hosted the pilgrimage, and the fifth year that CGS has participated. Keynote speaker will be Sonoma State University president Judy Sakaki. Other speakers will include CGS past president Linda Harms Okazaki and Grant Din of the Angel Island Immigration Station Foundation. CGS volunteers will be on hand to offer personal genealogy consultations, and participants are enrolled in a raffle of 100 DNA kits generously donated by Ancestry.com.

Day trip packages include ferry departure from either Tiburon or Pier 39. Tickets for the outing are $25 (discounts for seniors and children), with the option to pre-purchase a bento lunch. To purchase tickets and for complete details on activities and transportation, visit the Nichi Bei Foundation’s website:
https://www.nichibei.org/angel-island-pilgrimage/