On the barren windswept corner of northwestern Wyoming there is a rocky outcropping called Heart Mountain, a bleak formation made up of limestone and ancient dolomite. It has little scenic or geologic appeal, but it is a sentinel for a profoundly shameful time in American history.
American citizens of Japanese descent on the West Coast were given short notice to prepare to leave. Merchants were forced to sell inventory at distress prices, and many never recovered their businesses. National Archives.American citizens of Japanese descent on the West Coast were given short notice to prepare to leave. Merchants were forced to sell inventory at distress prices, and many never recovered their businesses. National Archives.
Heart Mountain overlooks the site of what can only be described as an American concentration camp. On the barren prairie leading up to it, the US government in 1942 hastily constructed a prison for Japanese Americans who were forcibly re-moved from their homes on the West Coast because they were thought to be potential agents for Tokyo’s warlords during World War II.
