Young Buddhist Association panoramic photographs, 1934 January - 1939 July

File — Folder: O/S 2

Staff Only

Scope and Contents of the Collection

From the Collection:

The focus of this collection is the acquisition of visual materials that support the curriculum of The Claremont Colleges. Currently, the collection includes materials relating to California history and locations, historic photographic materials, materials related to social, immigration, and climate justice movements and organizations, and assorted artist prints and posters. Growth is anticipated for this collection.

Dates

Creation: 1934 January - 1939 July

Language of Materials

From the Collection:

Languages represented in the collection: English, Spanish.

Access

Collection open for research.

Extent

From the Collection: 13.5 Linear Feet (4 oversize flat boxes, 1 document box, 1 oversize document box, 2 map drawer folders)

Additional Description

Note

A collection of four panoramic photographs of gatherings of the Young Buddhist Association in California held on the eve of the Second World War, during which the Golden State's Japanese American population was forced into incaceration camps in the western interior of the United States.

The history of the Young Buddhist League is closely associated with the arrival of Revs. Sonoda Shuye (1863-1922) and Nishijima Kakuryo (1873-1942) in San Francisco in 1899, marking the beginning of of the Buddhist Churches of America (BCA). Their arrival was prompted by a plea by Hirano Nisaburo to the Honpa Hongwanji Sect in Kyoto to dispatch priests to the growing Japanese Immigrant community in the U.S. This led to the establishment of the Bukkyo Seinenkai (Young Men's Buddhist Association), the first Jodo Shinshu Buddhist organization in the continental United States. With its counterpart, the Young Women's Buddhist Association, the organization spread to Sacramento, Vancouver, Seattle, and other West Coast communities. During the decades that followed, the organization played in an important role in establishing the foundation of Nisei culture.