When History Wasn't Divine

Even though poking through history and archives can be fun, there are a few downsides. One that I've briefly mentioned before, and came across again a few days ago, is looking at something historic, but knowing what tragic things are going to happen soon.

I wrote before about going through the University of Washington's Three-Quarters of a Century at Washington, which includes an appendix of all UW alumni up to the 1941 publishing date. One of the things I noted then was all of the Japanese names, and that when the book was published, those former students didn't know what was coming soon--Pearl Harbor, the U.S. entering World War II, Japanese internment camps. This is especially poignant in the northwest because the west coast was designated an "exclusion zone," so the Japanese citizens--almost definitely including all those UW alumni still in the area--were rounded up by the thousands and sent to various internment camps in the western United States. At the time the book was published, though, just months before Executive Order 9066 allowed them all to be taken from their homes, were they excited to see their names listed as UW alumni? Were they still looking for their first real jobs out of college? Were they working in downtown Seattle? Courting sweethearts (possibly whom they met at the UW) or starting families? And how many more were not yet alums, but were still students at the UW, attending classes in the same Raitt building where I read and discussed When the Emperor Was Divine in an English class?

Then a few days ago, someone posted in the LinkedIn Historians, Librarians and Archivists group a link to a video on YouTube: "Rare Vintage 8mm Film: PS 74, Buffalo, NY - Halloween, 1932." The film shows young kids, many in their charming Halloween costumes, walking in the neighborhood and to school. Watching it, you think about how cute they are, how simple and yet wonderful their costumes are (No vinyl/plastic Iron Man costumes there!), and wonder whether they're excited about Halloween and what fun they might have that night.

But then one of the comments caught my eye: Lost & Found Travel says "I can't help but think that these 10-year-olds are going to be 19 in 1941." And then I stopped in my tracks, and did some math. Yeah, these little mischief-makers could very well be 19 in 1941. Going off to war. Those adorable cowboys or princesses, flappers, toy soldiers and court jesters are going to have their worlds turned upside-down, and some may not make it back to see their old school again. That toy soldier could have turned into a real soldier, and who knows what fate awaited him?

It's times like that and going through the UW alumni directory that I think maybe looking back at history isn't fun. It's one thing to know that war happened, and in a specific year and other details like that, but when you put 10-year-old faces or recently-graduated names to the concept, it becomes so much more disturbing.

 


Some extra links for you:
Japanese American internment (Wikipedia)
When the Emperor Was Divine (Wikipedia)