At the Nikkei National Museum & Cultural Centre, we’re lucky to receive visits from families, researchers, authors, and artists from all over the world, looking to learn more about Japanese Canadian history or to contribute their own stories.
We recently welcomed illustrator and picture book author, Eriko Ishikawa, from Japan. Eriko is the granddaughter of Fuji Ishikawa and grand-niece of Harry Miyasaki, manager of the Vancouver Asahi baseball team. Along with being the team’s manager, Harry was also a skilled tailor. Eriko viewed one of Harry’s custom tailored suit jackets in our collection that was created for Haruko Maikawa in October of 1944. The jacket is marked with the tag, “Tailored by Harry’s clothes”.
Eriko also shared several family photographs with us from her own collection. Her grandmother Fuji, or Bessie, Ishikawa (nee Miyasaki) was born in Canada and moved to Japan as a young woman. After marrying, she longed to return to Canada but both Japan and Canada refused to issue her a passport. Eriko is currently working on a picture book version of “Bessie’s Story” from this research trip that will explore Fuji’s childhood in Canada, to be published by publisher Alice-kan in early 2026.
During her research in Canada, Eriko was able to walk briefly in her grandmother’s footsteps. Eriko also visited the Vancouver Japanese Language School where Bessie would have attended, and went to Toronto to visit the grave of Bessie’s brother, Harry Miyasaki with Harry’s granddaughter, Kristina.
Eriko graciously gifted us with a copy of her picture book, ボタ山で あそんだころ (When I Played at Bota Mountain), which is based on the Mitsui Miike Coal Mine explosion. This book, featuring a new illustration by Eriko inside the cover, will be added to our library for all visitors to read.
Explore more books from our library at nikkeimuseum.org. To make an appointment for research or reading, contact the archives at [email protected].
