900:
250:. Almost immediately upon arrival at Gila River, and with support from the camp director Leroy Bennett, Zenimura built a baseball field and established a 32-team league. Baseball at Gila River gave Japanese-Americans a sense of pride, hope and normalcy, making life bearable during their unjust incarceration. With the closing of Butte Camp at Gila River, Zenimura field officially closed on November 10, 1945.
299:, as well as the enshrinement of the first Japanese American player. The campaign proposes that the first Japanese American player enshrined with a plaque in Cooperstown is Kenichi Zenimura, "the Father of Japanese American Baseball". At present, the wooden home plate from Zenimura field is on display at the Hall of Fame.
200:
Many baseball historians believe he earned his titles for his remarkable career as a player (he excelled at all nine positions), manager (of
Japanese-American league teams and European American teams in the Twilight leagues for older players), and international ambassador of the game (he led tours to
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in
Arizona. There he led construction of a complete baseball field including spectator stands, and he organized baseball leagues for the internees. These leagues were important both to the morale of the internees and to building relationships with nearby Arizona residents. Zenimura has been called
158:
player, manager, and promoter. He had a long career with semiprofessional
Japanese-American baseball leagues in the western United States and Hawaii; these leagues were very active and popular from about 1900 to 1941. He is also noted for the successful barnstorming tours he organized that brought
167:
to the west coast and to Japan for exhibition games in the 1920s and 1930s. Along with most
Japanese-Americans living on the west coast of the United States, during World War II he was incarcerated with his family in an internment camp. Their camp was the
257:, and continued to play competitive ball until the age of 55. In the early-to-mid-1950s, Zenimura was instrumental in negotiating the professional baseball contracts of several Japanese-American players in the
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During the 18th Annual
Cooperstown Symposium on Baseball and American Culture (2006), a campaign was launched to establish a permanent exhibit for Japanese American Baseball in the
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208:'s visit to Japan in 1934. Several years earlier, in 1927, Zenimura also helped arrange a barnstorming tour to Japan for the Negro-league All-Star
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formerly the Mills
Institute for Boys. In 1920 he moved to Fresno, where he played baseball on Japanese-American and previously all-white teams.
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578:"A Field in the Desert that Felt Like Home - An Unlikely Hero Sustained Hope for Japanese-Americans Interned in World War II"
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Kenichi
Zenimura continued to manage until his death in an automobile accident on November 13, 1968, in Fresno, California.
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In addition to organizing barnstorming tours to Japan, Zenimura was instrumental in the negotiations that led to
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and his own sons Howard Kenso
Zenimura and Harvey Kenshi Zenimura. The three later played in Japan for the
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Hawaiian Asahi, Mills High School, Fresno
Athletic Club (Nisei baseball team), Gila River (AZ) All-Stars
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Gan Hanada (director), Kerry Yo
Nakagawa (writer, producer), Chip Taylor (producer) (2004).
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Barbed Wire Baseball: How One Man Brought Hope to the Japanese Internment Camps of WWII
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Barbed Wire Baseball: How One Man Brought Hope to the Japanese Internment Camps of WWII
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342:, which is a book for young readers about baseball at the Gila River Internment Camp.
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Diamonds in the Rough: Zeni and the Legacy of Japanese-American Baseball
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Diamonds in the Rough: Zeni and the Legacy of Japanese-American Baseball
45:
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641:"America's pastime helped interned Japanese-Americans pass the time"
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In 2011, baseball historian Bill Staples, Jr. published a biography
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498:(illustrations). New York, NY: Abrams Books for Young Readers.
154:(January 25, 1900 – November 13, 1968) was a Japanese-American
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Among other awards and nominations, this book received the
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Zenimura was the principal subject of the 2004 documentary
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Zenimura and his family were interned in Arizona on the
227:, Zenimura and 120,000 other Japanese-Americans were
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Kenichi Zenimura, Japanese American Baseball Pioneer
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Kenichi Zenimura, Japanese American Baseball Pioneer
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907:
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288:; the documentary includes on-screen commentary by
231:across the southwest United States, as directed by
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125:
115:
24:
547:(forward). McFarland & Company. p. 201.
420:"NISEI: The Early Japanese-American Ballplayers"
193:shortly afterwards. He first played baseball at
400:. National Japanese American Historical Society
369:
367:
1245:American baseball players of Japanese descent
670:
8:
534:
532:
173:the "Father of Japanese American Baseball".
677:
663:
655:
21:
639:Vascellaro, Charlie (February 20, 2019).
471:"A Field of Dreams in the Arizona Desert"
398:"A Century Of Japanese American Baseball"
464:
462:
418:Vascalleros, Charlie (January 7, 2002).
375:"The Dean of Japanese American Baseball"
1260:Japanese emigrants to the United States
443:"Backstory: The Players in the Shadows"
363:
323:was inspired by Zenimura's experience.
181:Zenimura was born January 25, 1900, in
143:
482:
480:
1066:Sahuarita Bombing & Gunnery Range
7:
381:. September 18, 2000. Archived from
16:Japanese baseball player and manager
1164:Arizona World War II Army Airfields
1270:Road incident deaths in California
599:. Chip Taylor Communications LLC.
576:Davis, David (November 16, 1998).
441:Lamb, Gregory M. (June 26, 2006).
14:
619:"The Shrine of the Eternals—2006"
473:. National Baseball Hall of Fame.
1092:Gila River War Relocation Center
898:
248:Gila River War Relocation Center
170:Gila River War Relocation Center
379:Nisei Baseball Research Project
352:Nisei Baseball Research Project
302:Zenimura was inducted into the
201:Japan in 1924, 1927 and 1937).
1265:Baseball people from Hiroshima
1194:New Mexico during World War II
297:National Baseball Hall of Fame
1:
524:California Young Reader Medal
447:The Christian Science Monitor
319:(2007) about baseball in the
244:Gila River Indian Reservation
1112:Poston War Relocation Center
1250:Japanese-American internees
1107:Parker Dam Reception Center
1019:Ground training and storage
930:Davis-Monthan Army Airfield
686:Arizona during World War II
647:. Arizona State University.
1286:
1189:Nevada during World War II
539:Staples Jr., Bill (2011).
1255:Japanese baseball players
896:
267:Satoshi "Fibber" Hirayama
237:Franklin Delano Roosevelt
210:Philadelphia Royal Giants
144:
135:
130:
120:
116:Oahu-Service League debut
97:
77:
52:
31:
313:The 2007 fictional film
265:including contracts for
239:, on February 19, 1942.
229:sent to internment camps
212:, led by Hall of Famers
189:and his family moved to
1051:Gila Bend Gunnery Range
995:Thunderbird Field No. 2
990:Thunderbird Field No. 1
950:Gila Bend Army Airfield
1097:Leupp Isolation Center
1046:Desert Training Center
1000:Williams Army Airfield
985:Sahuarita Flight Strip
955:Hereford Army Airfield
925:Dateland Army Airfield
920:Coolidge Army Airfield
308:Shrine of the Eternals
235:, signed by President
159:famed players such as
1121:Prisoner of war camps
1102:Mayer Assembly Center
1061:Navajo Ordnance Depot
960:Kingman Army Airfield
935:Douglas Army Airfield
855:Ronald Phillip Tanaka
820:Sidney Preston Osborn
520:California Book Award
321:Topaz Internment Camp
253:Zenimura returned to
195:Mid-Pacific Institute
975:Marana Army Airfield
965:Laguna Army Airfield
945:Falcon Army Airfield
940:Ernest A. Love Field
645:Global Sport Matters
621:. Baseball Reliquary
233:Executive Order 9066
1179:Great Papago Escape
1087:Catalina Honor Camp
1071:Yuma Proving Ground
1005:Yucca Army Airfield
740:Robert Taylor Jones
1174:Castle Hot Springs
1010:Yuma Army Airfield
980:Ryan Army Airfield
970:Luke Army Airfield
860:A. Wallace Tashima
730:Gordon Hirabayashi
582:Sports Illustrated
304:Baseball Reliquary
255:Fresno, California
88:Fresno, California
56:Kenichiro Zenimura
1222:
1221:
915:Ajo Army Airfield
875:Jürgen Wattenberg
715:Harry K. Fukuhara
424:The Diamond Angle
149:
148:
81:November 13, 1968
1277:
1199:Phoenix Massacre
1184:Machita incident
1159:American Theater
1143:Camp Papago Park
1128:Camp Continental
1080:Internment camps
902:
890:Kenichi Zenimura
840:Shinkichi Tajiri
725:Satoshi Hirayama
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426:. Archived from
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334:and illustrator
316:American Pastime
191:Honolulu, Hawaii
152:Kenichi Zenimura
126:Last appearance
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65:January 25, 1900
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27:
26:Kenichi Zenimura
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885:Wakako Yamauchi
880:Hisaye Yamamoto
865:Hisako Terasaki
800:Vincent Okamoto
770:Peter MacDonald
760:John F. Kennedy
745:Allen Dale June
735:Philip Johnston
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396:Otake, Gary T.
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177:Life and career
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785:Joe Morris Sr.
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765:Yuriko Kikuchi
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469:Coffey, Alex.
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430:on 2007-09-26.
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385:on 2012-02-09.
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271:Hiroshima Carp
263:Pacific League
259:Central League
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85:(aged 68)
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38:second baseman
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1056:Fort Huachuca
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795:Isamu Noguchi
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545:Don Wakamatsu
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505:9781419705212
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488:Moss, Marissa
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92:United States
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35:
30:
23:
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889:
850:Nao Takasugi
830:Hideo Sasaki
775:Doris Matsui
644:
634:
623:. Retrieved
613:
596:
590:
581:
571:
540:
496:Yuko Shimizu
491:
450:. Retrieved
446:
436:
428:the original
423:
413:
402:. Retrieved
391:
383:the original
339:
336:Yuko Shimizu
332:Marissa Moss
327:
325:
314:
312:
301:
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285:
283:
275:
252:
241:
225:World War II
222:
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199:
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151:
150:
106:
100:
83:(1968-11-13)
78:
53:
32:
1240:1968 deaths
1235:1900 births
1169:Bushmasters
1041:Camp Laguna
825:Roy I. Sano
815:Kazuo Otani
755:Yosh Kawano
750:Nobe Kawano
705:Thomas Claw
330:. In 2013,
218:Andy Cooper
1229:Categories
1036:Camp Hyder
1026:Camp Bouse
845:Miiko Taka
835:Reiko Sato
780:Pat Morita
625:2020-09-05
514:1043720139
452:2020-09-05
404:2020-09-29
338:published
290:Pat Morita
214:Biz Mackey
165:Lou Gehrig
61:1900-01-25
1138:Camp Pima
1031:Camp Horn
908:Airfields
720:Ira Hayes
605:921954934
563:689522317
310:in 2006.
206:Babe Ruth
183:Hiroshima
161:Babe Ruth
68:Hiroshima
34:shortstop
1152:See also
810:Miye Ota
522:and the
490:(2016).
346:See also
156:baseball
1213:Arizona
805:Ken Ota
246:at the
223:During
101:Batted:
46:pitcher
42:catcher
693:People
603:
561:
551:
512:
502:
280:Legacy
107:Threw:
358:Notes
187:Japan
140:Teams
109:Right
79:Died:
72:Japan
54:Born:
1211:USS
601:OCLC
559:OCLC
549:ISBN
510:OCLC
500:ISBN
261:and
216:and
163:and
131:1955
121:1919
103:Both
306:'s
1231::
643:.
580:.
557:.
543:.
531:^
508:.
494:.
479:^
461:^
445:.
422:.
377:.
366:^
220:.
185:,
90:,
70:,
44:,
40:,
36:,
678:e
671:t
664:v
628:.
607:.
584:.
565:.
526:.
516:.
455:.
407:.
63:)
59:(
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