Marker Text
Father Kano (1899-1988) was the son of a prominent family in Japan. He studied agriculture at the Imperial University in Tokyo. Kano’s family hosted William Jennings Bryan, who convinced Hiram to continue his education at the University of Nebraska. He graduated with a master’s degree in agricultural economics in 1918 and farmed near Litchfield, Nebraska, for six years.
Kano served as president of the Japanese Americanization Society in Nebraska. He strived for racial justice, fairness, and equality, testifying before committees of the 1919-1920 Nebraska Constitutional Convention and the 1921 Nebraska Legislature when efforts were made to prevent Japanese from owning land. Kano served as counselor, minister, teacher, translator, and agricultural advisor to the Japanese.
Following the December 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, Father Kano was arrested and held in internment camps until 1944. While in the camps, he assisted in education and morale efforts to improve the lives of the imprisoned. After the war, Kano returned to Nebraska. He and his wife taught citizenship classes, enabling 24 Japanese immigrants in Lincoln County to become U.S. citizens on September 8, 1953.
Location
Episcopal Church of Our Savior, North Platte, NE. View the marker’s location HERE.