'44 Ramblings September, 1943 -- June, 1944
Topaz, Ut. 1944. 122,[6]pp. Original embossed cloth. Minor wear at corners and spine ends. Front hinge cracked, but solid. Copious, contemporary manuscript inscriptions in a plethora of hands. Scattered, minor foxing and toning. Still very good. Item #3840
An excellent, extensively annotated example of the second (of three) yearbooks published by the Associated Students of Topaz High School during the Japanese American internment period during World War II. The present copy owned by sister students and Topaz graduates Joan Namiye Ihara and Kimiye Ihara, and is profusely inscribed to both Ihara sisters with typical yearbook messages by legions of fellow students, administrators, and teachers. The inscriptions are often written to "Joan" or "Nami" for the older sister, while practically all of the younger sister's inscriptions are written to "Kimi." Joan "Nami" Ihara graduated as part of the January 1944 class, while Kimiye "Kimi" Ihara graduated in June 1945, each pictured in their respective graduating classes. The sisters came to Topaz from San Francisco, and were active as upperclass students, with Joan serving on the staff of both the yearbook and The Rambler (the camp student newspaper) and Kimi serving on the business staff and providing artwork for the yearbook.
Topaz High School served as the main educational institution inside the internment camp during its three-year run. As with other internment camp school yearbooks, on the surface, the present work looks much like any other high school yearbook from the 1940s, profusely illustrated with photographs of smiling students, faculty, and staff, information on clubs, sports teams, and other activities, schedules of events, and so forth. Considering their origins, however, the yearbooks carry a special resonance and represent the power of resiliency against incredible injustice.
From the 1944 yearbook: "As we, the students of Topaz High School, look back into our past a certain feeling of pride warms our hearts. We have grown both in scholastic and athletic standing from a small unknown school into a thriving, famous institution. We can look back with pride to our acceptance into the Utah state educational system, and our advancement in the athletic field. We have gone over many difficult hurdles and the obstacles that still stand in our path should act as a challenge to all our ingenuity and courage. This book stands as a record for all the hurdles that we have successfully cleared, and the remaining obstacles will give the students a goal for which to strive. The world today and the world before us will not be easy. With this in mind, we will guide our school life by the theme of our book, READY FOR TOMORROW."
Three yearbooks were produced in total by the Topaz students; all are rare. We locate only two institutional copies of this 1944 iteration, at the University of Utah and Princeton.
Price: $4,250.00