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Densho Encyclopedia

Tulare (detention facility)

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

US Gov Name Tulare Assembly Center, California
Facility Type Temporary Assembly Center
Administrative Agency Wartime Civil Control Administration
Location Tulare, California (36.2000 lat, -119.3333 lng)
Date Opened April 20, 1942
Date Closed September 4, 1942
Population Description Held people from California: Los Angeles and Sacramento Counties and the Southern California coast.
General Description Located in the southern San Joaquin Valley of California.
Peak Population 4,978 (1942-08-11)
Exit Destination Gila River
National Park Service Info

Tulare was a temporary detention camp, located in the Southern San Joaquin Valley, half-way between Fresno and Bakersfield, on the outskirts of the city of Tulare (pop. 10,000). It was built on grounds formerly used by the Tulare-Kings County Fair. The camp was occupied from April 27 to September 4, 1942, a total of 131 days. It housed 5,061 Nikkei (with a maximum at one time of 4,978), mostly from the coastal counties north of Los Angeles. There were about 100 barracks within the fairgrounds and another 55 barracks to the south of the fairgrounds adjacent to the county hospital. After spending about four months in the camp most Nikkei were deported to the Gila River camp in Southern Arizona. The grounds were thereafter occupied by African American soldiers of the 7th Army Corps. [1]

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