Japanese Experience in Alberta National Historic Event

Raymond, Alberta
Group of Okinawan residents of Hardieville, Alberta. 1924 © Tamayose, Art / Library and Archives Canada | Bibliothèque et Archives Canada / PA-117747
Japanese residents of Hardieville, AB 1924
© Tamayose, Art / Library and Archives Canada | Bibliothèque et Archives Canada / PA-117747
[Dedication of Buddhist Church - Rev. Nakatomi is seated in middle with rectangular cloth.]. 1932, Raymond AB © Art Tamayose / Library and Archives Canada | Bibliothèque et Archives Canada / PA-117749Group of Okinawan residents of Hardieville, Alberta. 1924 © Tamayose, Art / Library and Archives Canada | Bibliothèque et Archives Canada / PA-117747
Address : 10 Broadway North, Raymond, Alberta

Recognition Statute: Historic Sites and Monuments Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. H-4)
Designation Date: 2007-06-08

Other Name(s):
  • Japanese Experience in Alberta  (Designation Name)
Research Report Number: 2006-041

Importance: Continuous witness to the migration and settlement of the Japanese in Canada from their arrival through their forced relocation and the post-war reconstruction of their community and culture

Plaque(s)


Existing plaque:  10 Broadway North, Raymond, Alberta

At the turn of the 20th century, Japanese immigrants laid the foundations of a community that would be strengthened by the arrival of Japanese Canadians forcibly removed from the West Coast by the federal government during the Second World War. Together, they contributed to the rebuilding of the nation’s Japanese community and its culture following the war. A pillar of social and cultural life for the Japanese of Alberta, the Raymond Church played a key role in the reconstruction of the Buddhist Church of Canada during this period and became a symbol of continuity and perseverance for three generations of Japanese Canadians.