News & Stories

With 2025 drawing to a close, I find myself reflecting on the incredible journey we have undertaken together to preserve the deep significance of Minidoka National Historic Site and the lessons and legacy of a gross violation of constitutional rights in our nation's history. Your unwavering support has been the cornerstone of our success, and I am deeply grateful.

Left to right: Michael Boren, Acting DOI Secretary for Policy, Management, and Budget, K aren Hirai Olen, Survivor, Minidoka concentration camp, Jeremy Chase, Tourism & Marketing Administrator, Idaho Commerce, Robyn Achilles, Executive Director, Friends of Minidoka, Keith Yamaguchi, President, Nisei Veterans Committee, Brianna Bowhay, Project Manager, Southern Idaho National Parks, National Park Service, Janet Keegan, Board member, Friends of Minidoka and Minidoka descendant,

Photo: Buses preparing to depart Minidoka, Courtesy of the National Archives, photo no. 210-CMB-V2-1944 By Micah Hetherington, Friends of Minidoka Granuate Research Fellow On October 28, 1945, Minidoka officially closed as a concentration camp for people of Japanese ancestry. Throughout incarceration, people who fit strict qualifications of release and perceptions of loyalty were able to move out of camp for work or school. Japanese Americans could not move back to the West C

Visitors creating ikebana floral arrangements after a site tour with the park ranger By Micah Hetherington, Friends of Minidoka Graduate Research Fellow This summer, Friends of Minidoka worked with National Park Service staff to engage with park visitors and educate them on historically relevant art forms: ikebana, senryū poetry, and sumi-e painting. Through these visitor engagement activities, Friends of Minidoka heightened our visibility with the public and gave people spac

Online Store Book Highlight by Emma Rosales, Friends of Minidoka Undergraduate Summer Intern Listening to Trees: George Nakashima, Woodworker, by Holly Thompson and illustrated by Toshiki Nakamura, can be purchased from Friends of Minidoka’s online store . Take a walk through the incredible journey of Minidoka camp survivor George Nakashima in this vivid and poetic picture book. It tells the story of a resilient second-generation (Nisei) woodworker who channeled his life’s wo

Friends of Minidoka would like to better understand how our community engages with stories of civil liberties, social justice, and our shared American history through an anonymous survey. This information will assist us in the development of educational programming, communication, and outreach. The survey should take you about 10-15 minutes to complete. The anonymous survey is administered by Audience Audit on our behalf. We would deeply appreciate your participation. As a th

Friends of Minidoka and Minidoka National Historic Site hosted a special volunteer day at Minidoka NHS. With the help of volunteers from Boise Cascade and Clearwater Analytics as well as summer interns, over 1,500 native seedlings were planted around the replica Military Honor Roll and near the Visitor Center. Natural Resources staff researched historic photos to replicate the planting by those incarcerated at Minidoka over 80 years ago. Thank you to our volunteers for their

By Shannon Reagan, Beyond the Barbed Wire Project Manager Lawyer, Jailer, Ally, Foe , the fourth book by University of North Carolina law...

Produced by Idaho Public Television In World War II, 44 Japanese American men at Minidoka resisted government conscription into the U.S....