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Densho Encyclopedia

Tanforan (detention facility)

This page is an update of the original Densho Encyclopedia article authored by Lewis Kawahara. See the shorter legacy version here .

US Gov Name Tanforan Assembly Center, California
Facility Type Temporary Assembly Center
Administrative Agency Wartime Civil Control Administration
Location San Bruno, California (37.6167 lat, -122.4000 lng)
Date Opened April 28, 1942
Date Closed October 13, 1942
Population Description Held people from the San Francisco Bay area of California.
General Description Located 12 miles south of San Francisco, California.
Peak Population 7,816 (1942-07-25)
Exit Destination Topaz
National Park Service Info
Other Info

The Tanforan Assembly Center was located on the site of the Tanforan Racetrack in San Bruno, California. It was the second largest of the temporary WCCA camps, located 20 miles south of San Francisco, near the San Francisco International Airport. The camp was occupied from April 28 to October 13, 1942, a total of 171 days. Holding Japanese Americans mostly from the San Francisco Bay Area, its peak population was 7,816. All in all, 8,033 Americans of Japanese ancestry were incarcerated at Tanforan, 64 per cent of whom were U.S. citizens. About half of the inmates lived in former horse stalls. 98 per cent of the 7,824 Japanese Americans in Tanforan who were transferred to "relocation centers" were sent to the Central Utah WRA camp also known as Topaz. The site was subsequently used as a training camp by the VII Army Corps. A shopping center sits on the site today, a small historical marker commemorating its World War II history. [1]

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