Résumé

Draftsman, Arthur Froehlich, Architect, Los Angeles, CA, 10/1940. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; Wwii Draft Registration Cards For California, 10/16/1940-03/31/1947; Record Group: Records of the Selective Service System, 147; Box: 1318, accessed 06/15/2023.)

Principal, Kenneth M. Nishimoto, Architect, Pasadena, CA, c. 1963. Progressive Architecture magazine printed a very short article on Nishimoto in 1963: "Architect Kenneth M. Nishimoto's annual architectural tour of Japan will leave from Los Angeles for a 25-day journey on October 6." (See "Calendar," Progressive Architecture, vol XLIV no. 6, 06/1963, p. 70.)

Professional Activities

Nishimoto organized an architectural study trip to Japan in 10/1957. He prepared an itinerary and descriptive brochure for the excursion. (See "P/A News Bulletins," Progressive Architecture, vol. 38, no. 7, 07/1957, p. 90.)

College

B.Arch., Architecture, University of Southern California (USC), Los Angeles, CA, 1934. Between 1932 and 1934, Nishimoto belonged to the Japanese Trojan Club, an ethnically-segregated organization. He served as its president in 1933.

Relocation

Masao Nishimoto was born in Tokyo, Japan, on 10/21/1907. Census records indicated that Kenneth came to the US in 1920, the last of his family of four to make the journey from Japan to San Francisco, CA. The Nishimotos lived in a Japanese-immigrant rooming house at 1570 Laguna Street in 01/1920. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Year: 1920; Census Place: San Francisco Assembly District 30, San Francisco, California; Roll: T625_138; Page: 6B; Enumeration District: 214, accessed 06/15/2023.)

The 1920 US Census listed his parents Ryoyu and Yaye as arriving in 1914, and his younger brother Michikata as migrating in 1919. (A decade later, the 1930 US Census recorded his parents as coming in 1913, and his younger brother Michikata made the trip in 1919.) He took the Anglicized first name "Kenneth" after settling in the US.

The 1930 US Census found Nishimoto living in San Francisco with his parents and brother at 2056 Bush Street. This was an apartment building for which they paid $40 per month. There were many Japanese-Americans living in the immediate neighborhood on 1800-2100 blocks of Bush, Buchanan, Laguna, Pine and part of Webster Streets at the time. it was a relatively compact and segregated neighborhood around 2056 Bush. This was the northern part of what became known as "Japantown" in San Francisco.

He resided at 1048 South Kenmore Avenue with his wife Kay in 1940. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; Wwii Draft Registration Cards For California, 10/16/1940-03/31/1947; Record Group: Records of the Selective Service System, 147; Box: 1318, accessed 06/15/2023.)

Kenneth and Kay Nishimoto were sent to the Gila River Internment Camp on 10/27/1942 from Los Angeles. Kay and their infact daughter Diane were released bound for Altadena, CA, on 09/27/1945. Kenneth, however, had some sort of illness, perhaps tuberculosis, and he was sent to the Hillcrest Sanitarium in La Crescenta, CA, on 10/25/1945. He had likely been hospitalized within the camp prior to being released. (See Ancestry.com, Source Information Ancestry.com. U.S., Final Accountability Rosters of Evacuees at Relocation Centers, 1942-1946 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013., accessed 06/15/2023.)

The 1950 US Census recorded that Kenneth Nishimoto was an "inmate" of the La Vina Sanatorium in Altadena, CA, being treated for tuberculosis. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation United States of America, Bureau of the Census; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790-2007; Record Group Number: 29; Residence Date: 1950; Home in 1950: Altadena, Los Angeles, California; Roll: 3979; Sheet Number: 8; Enumeration District: 19-1, accessed 06/15/2023.)

In 1953, Nishimoto lived with his wife and mother at 72 Yale Street in Pasadena, CA. He received US citizenship on 09/11/1953 in the US District Court at Los Angeles. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation The National Archives in Washington, DC; Washington, DC; Naturalization Index Cards of the U.S. District Court For the Southern District of California, Central Division (Los Angeles), 1915-1976 (M1525); Microfilm Serial: M1525; Microfilm Roll: 82, accessed 06/15/2023.)

The architect passed away in Los Angeles County, CA, on 10/31/1992. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Place: Los Angeles; Date: 31 Oct 1992; Social Security: 564181915 Source Information: California, U.S., Death Index, 1940-1997 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2000, accessed 06/15/2023.)

Parents

His father was Ryoyu Nishimoto (born c. 1881 in Japan), his mother, Yaye Nishimoto (born 11/15/1885 in Japan). In 1920, the US Census documented that Ryoyu worked in the import-export business, as a "shipping man." The 1930 US Census indicated that Ryoyu and Yaye Nishimoto migrated to the US in 1913. and had "alien" status in that year. Ryoyu was a stock-and-bond salesman at the time.

Yaye Nishimoto traveled aboard the M.S. Mexico Maru between Yokohama, Japan, and San Francisco, between 01/17/1953 and 01/30/1953. In 1953, she lived at 72 Yale Street in Pasadena, CA. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation The National Archives at Washington, D.C.; Washington, D.C.; Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving At San Francisco, California; NAI Number: 4498993; Record Group Title: Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, 1787-2004; Record Group Number: 85, accessed 06/15/2023.)

His younger brother was Michikata Nishimoto (born c. 1910 in Tokyo, Japan).

Spouse

He wed Kay Eatsu Nishimoto (born 04/16/1913).

Los Angeles County marriage records indicated that a Masao Nishimoto married Miyuki Yamane on 08/17/1933. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation California Department of Public Health, courtesy of www.vitalsearch-worldwide.com. Digital Images, accessed 06/15/2023.)

Children

They had at least one child, Diane Nishimoto (born 06/12/1943 in the Gila River Internment Camp, near Sacanton, AZ)

Biographical Notes

His World War II draft registration card listed Nishimoto as "Oriental" with a "sallow" complexion, brown eyes and black hair. He stood 5-feet, 5-inches tall and weighed about 125 pounds at age 32. This document also noted that Nishimoto had a "scar on his abdomen." (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; Wwii Draft Registration Cards For California, 10/16/1940-03/31/1947; Record Group: Records of the Selective Service System, 147; Box: 1318, accessed 06/15/2023.)

SSN: 564181915.