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SCHS Presents: Taste of Japantown

A Taste of Japantown
December 20, 2016: Social Hour 6 PM, Presentation 7 PM
For our annual Taste of History December event, Sacramento County Historical Society presents A Taste of Japantown, a culinary examination of a vanished Sacramento neighborhood, featuring food, speakers, and sharing of Sacramento mealtime traditions.

Sacramento's Japanese-American community emerged in the 1890s and flourished through the early 20th Century, in a busy neighborhood centered on M Street, today known as Capitol Avenue, between the State Capitol and the Sacramento River. In a series of dramatic reversals, the neighborhood was lost after the dual shocks of internment during World War II and the destruction of the neighborhood by redevelopment. This community proved their resilience by carrying their communities and traditions to new neighborhoods. The food traditions of Japantown included grocery and specialty food stores, restaurants, foods associated with community gatherings and special occasions, the foods served around the family table, recipes borne of necessity, hardship and rationing during internment, the importance of rice as a California crop and dietary staple, and even stories of bootleg sake production during Prohibition.

To guide us on this journey to Japantown, SCHS Vice-President William Burg will provide a slide show of historic photos planned for use in an upcoming exhibit about Japantown scheduled to open at the California History Museum in 2017. Priscilla Ouchida, Sacramento native and former executive director of the national Japanese-American Citizens League, will share stories of Wakano Ura, a restaurant founded by her grandfather that featured both Chinese and Japanese recipes during its 90 year history. CSUS history professor Jeffrey Dym will show his short film A Neighborhood LostSacramentos Japantown.

Sacramento County Historical Society will provide appetizers and desserts from Oto's Marketplace, including traditional items like those found in Sacramento's Japantown in addition to more contemporary selections.

Because space and seating are very limited, this event will be restricted to current members of Sacramento County Historical Society, but non-members may attend for a ticket price of $10.