East to West: A Site Overview

What is East to West: The Story of Japanese Settlement in Southern Alberta?

The site provides access to primary historical sources focusing on Japanese settlement in Southern Alberta. The project highlights a group of Japanese settlers who came to the Raymond, Alberta area at the turn of the century. The Hironaka family provides us an opportunity to explore one family's experience as they journeyed East to West, from their homeland in Japan to build a new life for themselves in Canada.

What can I expect to find here?

The site contains many historical photographs and original stories. The site also includes the re-creation of a special commemorative publication undertaken jointly by the Nikka Yuko Japanese Garden Society and the Sir Alexander Galt Museum. The original "Photo Album" was removed from public view to preserve it from further deterioration caused by extensive visitor use. Original comments and a 'family history' by Florence Hironaka, daughter of one of the area's early Japanese pioneers, provides a 'first-hand' account of what settlement in Southern Alberta was like for the newcomers.

How do I move around the site?

The site is designed to be research friendly. We encourage you to explore the site enjoying the photographs and reading the text. The site is organized to allow you to get the information you want in the way you want. There is no 'right' way to work your way through the site; although if you started here, you did the right thing! We do suggest that visitors new to the site and/or subject matter should read the Hironaka family history to help put the site's images and documents into context.

Navigation Guide

Clicking on this image will take you back to the last page you viewed if you are in a photo album. If you are somewhere else in the site and don't see this image use your web browser's 'back' button to return to the previously viewed page.

Clicking on this image will take you to the next document in the photo album.

Next Clicking on the word "Next," if it is a different color than the main body of the text, will move you to the next document.

Return Clicking on the word "Return," if it is a different color than the main body of the text, will take you back to the previous page.

Home Clicking on the word "Home," if it is a different color than the main body of the text, will take you back to the site's introduction/index page.

Clicking on the leaf image will take you to the SchoolNet Digital Collections Site.

The site also contains a textual index of the images, from this page you can read all the text for the site's pictures. Each entry has a link to the full page (the number of the entry is a link to the page) and the 'T.V.' icon after each entry links to a small, fast-loading thumbnail image.

There is also a 'contact sheet' showing thumbnail images of all the photographs in the site. Clicking on any image will take you to the corresponding page.

How can I use East to West for Teaching purposes?

Encourage students to explore the site and make their own comments on using a primary source and how it is different from a secondary source. Explore three advantages and disadvantages of using a primary source to study history. Compare how the information is presented in this site to a text book or library book about the same topic. Explore why it is important to read and study primary sources when examining people and a time period?

Have the students find different ways to access information from the site. Listed below are three suggested ways, but there are more. Challenge the students to be creative with the site.

A. Contact sheet: Use these thumbnails of all the photos used in the site to link to the original pages for further details about the photo.

B. Search by using the index link: The index of images is in a text-based index this allows you to be able to bring up a thumbnail to go through the text or can link straight to the page. (Here you will find text and full images).

C. You can navigate the site using a traditional method, i.e., by turning each page of the site like a photo album. We do suggest reading the Hironaka Family history.

Explore how people record their own history. Areas you may wish to explore:

What were some of the important events they recorded? How were these events recorded and by whom?

Who is found in the pictures?

Why are these events recorded? What does indicate about the Japanese community in Lethbridge and surrounding area?

What type of relationships may the people in the photos have had? How did you conclude this?

Relationships - What does the photo tell you about relationships between the Japanese community and the larger community in Southern Alberta? The Japanese community within itself?

From the pictures, do you think the relationships between the Japanese community and the Lethbridge community grew/developed over time and in what ways? What evidence can be extracted from the photos to show how Japanese culture and society can still be felt in the Lethbridge community?

"A Brief History 1907-1988," written by Robert Hironaka and Florence Senda (Hironaka), tells the story of her family’s settlement. How is it different from a secondary source written about Japanese settlement? Areas to look into are, e.g., motivation for coming, family relationships, and early settlement.

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