Peek in the Park: Shells from Mr. Noji

Arthur and Edith Kleinkopf maintained relationships with students and families they met and worked with at Minidoka throughout the years. In the foreword of Freedom and Education at Minidoka: The Diary of the Superintendent Arthur Kleinkopf, Kurt Kleinkopf mentions how excited his grandmother was when she received letters from her students after the war. We also see these relationships through a set of shells given to the Kleinkopfs by Mr. Noji, whose son was serving in the South Pacific, likely as an interpreter for military intelligence. The box top reads “Sea shells sent to Mr. Noji from his soldier son in New Guinea.”

The Kleinkopf family has donated these shells and other items to Minidoka National Historic Site’s museum collection.

These shells show us that the relationships between incarcerees and site staff went beyond surface level interactions and that the friendships formed had lasting effects on everyone.

Learn more about the tensions, pressures, and daily life of working at Minidoka by purchasing Freedom and Education at Minidoka: The Diary of the Superintendent Arthur Kleinkopf at our online shop, or check out our Day of Remembrance presentation recorded at The Community Library here.