Interesting History from a Simple Sign in Ketchikan
Are you a sign reader like me? When I am traveling and exploring new places, I always like to read historical signs and markers, which can drive my boys crazy. You learn so much from them, though!
I recently read a very interesting marker in Ketchikan, Alaska. The sign was about the town’s longest-running family business, Tatsuda’s Grocery. In 1910, Kichirobei (“Jimmy”) Tatsuda and his wife, Sen Seike, opened a grocery store that was also a pool hall, tobacco shop, and boarding house. Then, in 1916, the couple opened their first formal grocery store in a nearby building.
All five of their children worked with them in the store until World War II changed things. Sadly, the Tatsuda family was sent to an internment camp because of their Japanese ancestry. Despite this, three of their sons, Charley, Bill, and Jimmy, Jr., all served in the US Army as decorated soldiers. It is hard to imagine young men giving their lives to a country that also sent their parents to confinement!
The story of their family business did not end with the war. Fortunately, the Tatsuda family returned to their store after World War II, and their business operated for more than 100 years. The end would come in an unexpected way. On February 27, 2020, a massive rockslide destroyed much of the building. After that, the Tatsuda family finally decided to close their beloved store’s doors. You never know what interesting history you might learn from a simple sign!
“With the recent atomic bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima, for which no one could fully comprehend the destruction, and the subsequent surrender of Japan, James’s company was no longer waiting for orders to head to the Pacific. Instead, they were boarding boats for home, and mothers across the United States were relieved of new, unremitting worries.”
Songbird, Chapter 58
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