My Grandpa Jerry (Noburo Jerry Hirata) was unforgettable. Born in Watsonville, CA on December 9, 1918, Grandpa Jerry was funny, caring and honest despite all the hardships that he endured throughout his nearly 92 years.
(8th grader grandson) Dennis: Today January 13th [1991] I will be doing an oral history report on Jerry Hirata, father of Mel Hirata and grandfather of Dennis Hirata.
Dennis: What was the most difficult thing for you growing up during The Depression?
Grandpa Jerry: Losing my father when I was only 12 years old and then also losing my mother 3 years later when I was only 16 years old. There were six of us in the family, 3 brothers and 3 sisters. I was the second oldest. It is very difficult to describe how we ever survived. My oldest brother was only 18 years old at that time, and the youngest was my sister who was only 7 years old. We weren’t separated. We all worked hard and stayed together. Things were very difficult at times, but we managed to survive the rough ordeal. I don’t know how we did it, but we did it.
Dennis: Where did you attend school?
Grandpa Jerry: I started at an old country, two-classroom school called Railroad in Watsonville. I don’t know why they called it Railroad; there weren’t any railroads close by. After about 4 years later, the family moved to a different area. Then I attended a school named Amesti and graduated in 1933. I attended Watsonville High School until both of my parents passed away, where I then moved to Santa Clara Valley and I enrolled at Santa Clara High School as a Sophomore. I graduated from Santa Clara High in 1937. I’m sorry to say that it was the end of my education. I wished I could have pursued my education further but under the circumstances I wasn’t able to.
Dennis: Did you play any school sports?
Grandpa Jerry: Yes, I did. When I was in high school, I went out for basketball. One year I played Forward, and in my Senior year I played Center. You may think that since I’m small that you just can’t imagine how I could ever play Center. In those days, we had all different kinds of classifications. It went by your age, your height, and your weight. And if you were over 110 pounds, then you went into the next division which was 120 and so on and then 130 and then Varsity. I was in the 110 pound class and at that weight I wasn’t too small. So when I say I played Center, I played Center.
Dennis: In your lifetime did you ever serve in the military?
Grandpa Jerry: No, I did not serve in the military. In 1940, the first military draft was established since World War I. Everyone over age 18 was required to register. I think I was either 21 or 23 years old at that time. If you were married or had dependents, you were able to request for a deferment. During that time, I was taking care of my two sisters, so I was granted a deferment. I was classified 3A. World War II started on December 7th, 1941 and I was put in an Assembly Center in Pomona in June of 1942 and in August of 1942 was transferred to Heart Mountain, Wyoming. After being there for about 2 or 3 months, my draft board in Santa Clara sent me a new classification that was 1C. That was a classification given to all alien undesirable for military duties.
A year later or two, I received another reclassification from 1C to 1A. You know, just like playing a game of checkers. I would be required to serve military duty if I pass my physical examination. I went for my pre-induction physical in Cheyenne, Wyoming and I passed. I came back to camp and immediately notified my draft board. They advised me to find a job that was essential towards the war effort. Luckily the US Department of Interior was recruiting people to work at an ammunition depot in Utah. I applied and was accepted. This employment had to have military clearance which I received. And I took my family and went to Utah. The draft board advised me to have my employer request for a transfer which they did, so I was deferred from military duty for the duration of the war.
Dennis: In your mind, what do you thing about the war?
Grandpa Jerry: When all people of Japanese ancestry were ordered to be removed from the West Coast. That included California, Washington, and Oregon. You know I just could not believe that anything like this could happen to me because, after all, especially to an American citizen, I didn’t commit any crime or break any law, but still I was put in a camp without any hearing.
Dennis: Were you held at any detention camps?
Grandpa Jerry: First, we were put in an Assembly Center in Pomona, California in July of 1942. And then in August of 1942 we were all transferred to Heart Mountain, Wyoming.
Dennis: How did they treat you?
Grandpa Jerry: I would say we were created fairly. We weren’t prisoners of war and besides all the camps were administered by civilian government employees. The only area that was ruled by the military was at the main entrance of the camp and all the guard towers which were on each corner of the enclosed barbed wire fence. There were soldiers on duty 24 hours a day with guns in each Tower and then at night, the search light would be turned on to watch the fence.
Dennis: What do you think the conditions were like there?
Grandpa Jerry: The conditions were terrible. They were constructed just like the army barracks, in row after row. The outside walls were made from black tar paper. There were four units in each barrack. The two outside rooms were a little smaller than the two middle ones. And each room was about 20 by 20 without any partition, and each room had a coal burning pot belly stove for heat. This is where your family slept. We had no running water or bathroom in this unit. When we had to take a bath or shower or use the bathroom, you had to walk outside to the community bathroom. And we all had to eat all our meals at a large
mess hall just like in the army.
Dennis: How many years did you stay at Heart Mountain?
Grandpa Jerry: Approximately three years. I was going out of the camp to work on the outside. We were able to do this if we had been offered employment from the outside. This type of leave work was called seasonal leave. As soon as the work was done, we had to return to camp. On a couple of these seasonal leaves, I went to Colorado to help harvest fruit and to Nebraska at a sheep stockyard. And then one year before the war ended, I went out of camp on indefinite leave to Utah. Indefinite leave meant that once you left camp, you were not able to return to it. I worked in Utah until the war ended and then came home to California.
Dennis: What’s the most memorable thing about coming home?
Grandpa Jerry: The wonderful California weather. The beautiful beaches which I never saw for four years. I don’t think there’s nothing like coming home where you were born and raised in.
Dennis: What has been the most exciting thing that has ever happened to you in your lifetime?
Grandpa Jerry: I think the most exciting thing that happened to me during my lifetime was when you were born Dennis. Heh heh. I was so excited that I got drunk. Just kidding, just kidding. I think the most exciting thing was when I won two Super Bowl football pools. One
was for $1100 and the second one for $850. First time in my life that I won anything. It was really, really very exciting.
Dennis: How many kids did you have?
Grandpa Jerry: We had four children. Three sons and one daughter.
Dennis: What do you think was the worst thing that my Dad did in his whole childhood
Grandpa Jerry: You’re trying to put me on the spot now, aren’t you? Ha ha. Well, your Dad did so many bad things that it’s kind of hard to pinpoint the worst thing that he did because the things he did were all bad. Maybe you can ask him and find out what he did for recreation or maybe what kind of hobbies he had. Probably one of his hobbies was collecting traffic tickets. Ha ha. I don’t know how many tickets he had. I lost count.
Dennis: Can you tell me what you think the WORST thing that he did though?
Grandpa Jerry: Didn’t I answer that already?
Dennis: Can you tell me what he did to get traffic tickets?
Grandpa Jerry: Usually he was speeding. He was a hot rodder and most of his tickets were from speeding. Does that answer your question?
Dennis: Yes. And for the final question do you have any advice for younger viewers that are about my age?
Grandpa Jerry: Let’s see. You are 13 years old. Most young viewers do not listen to advice that is given by an adult. Listen when an adult gives you advice. It doesn’t cost you anything to get advice from any adult, especially your parents. If your parents didn’t care or love you, then they will leave you alone and you could have your own freedom and do whatever you want. It has been a great pleasure doing this interview with you, Dennis, and I want to thank you for having the honor of doing this with you. Listen to your parents, study hard, and keep your nose clean, and you will have no problem. There’s a great future ahead of you, so don’t screw it up. God bless you, and I love you.
Dennis: Thank you, Grandpa Jerry, for all your time, effort, care, and information that you gave me and letting me interview you for this oral history report.
Dennis currently lives in Aptos with his wife and two children. (Only about 15 minutes from where Grandpa Jerry was born.)
