9781422277454

13

Getting Here

Early Life on the Mainland I t was easy for Japanese workers to find jobs on the mainland. They worked building railroads, logging, and mining. Because many had grown up on farms in Japan or had gotten used to farm labor in Hawaii, some worked in California’s lush fields and dreamed of owning land of their own one day. In whatever industry they chose, the Japanese quickly earned a repu- tation for being fast and efficient workers. They were also good at saving money and many were eventually able to realize their dreams of buying land or businesses of their own. Sisters, daughters, and wives who had remained back in Japan were able to join them. Meanwhile, single men were faced with the challenge of finding Jap- anese wives of their own. With relatively few women on the mainland to choose from, many turned to their homeland to broaden the search. Men who remained in Hawaii faced the same dilemma. Pretty as a Picture F rom 1908 to 1924, more than 20,000 women came from Japan to Amer- ica or the Hawaiian Islands to become “picture brides.” Japan had a long tradition of omiai , or arranged marriages, meaning that a woman’s parents picked theman shewouldmarry. Picture brideswere an extension of this practice, with prospective brides and grooms agreeing to marry before even meeting, simply on the basis of a photo. According to some genealogists, most Japanese Americans can trace their ancestry back to a picture bride. Miyoshi YokotaOkamura, a picture bridewhose family has preserved her history for the Angel Island Immigration Station Foundation, was