“Imperial and Detached Places” Picture Cards, undated

The Yamamoto family papers contain records and photographs related to the lives of Cho and Jinzo "Joe" Yamamoto and their two daughters, Yuki and Fumi. Included in the collection are passports and travel documents related to Cho and Jinzo’s passage from Japan to the United States (1917, 1920), naturalization documents (1956) and Cho’s watercolor drawings (ca. 1963). Also included are Yuki Yamamoto’s poems (1938-1939), telegrams sent to her during World War II (1942-1945), personal journals and sketches (1971-1986), correspondence sent to her sister, Fumi (1945-1980s) and a collection of drawings. Additionally, the collection contains Fumi Yamamoto’s passports, report cards and diplomas (1928-1951), journals (1944-1998), fiction and non-fiction writings (1939-1960s), postcards from friends and family (1940s-1970s) and miscellaneous material, including sorobans (abacuses), and a biographical, academic paper (1997) that was written by a Northwestern University student after she conducted an interview with Fumi.

The Photographs series contains images from both Japan and the U.S. reflecting Cho and Jinzo's early married life, their daughters' childhoods in Whitefish, MT and Spokane, WA, Yuki's adult life in Japan, Fumi's adult life in New York and Chicago, and Cho and Fumi's trips to Japan to visit Yuki. Of note are photographs of Jinzo "Joe" Yamamoto in a United States military uniform, Jinzo and Cho in their Japanese market in Spokane, WA, and the Yamamoto family on a ship as they bid farewell to Yuki on her departure for Japan.