A Group Portrait of Tsuzurikata Kyoshitsu Presented by Gakuyukai; Vancouver, BC

This item contains a textual record.

The image shows two rows of men and women in costumes posing on a stage flanked by two flower bouquets. The caption on the front reads, "Tsuzurikata Kyoshitsu Presented by Gakuyukai, Oct 21, 1939".

In the front row from left to right is unidentified, Harry Shota Kondo, Matsuye Kono, unidentified, Roy Kumano, Ikuo Ozawa, Kazuko Sanmiya, Matt Matsui, Bonnie Higashi (nee Kubota) and Miyeko Nishimura (nee Matsuoka).

In the back row from left to right is Toshio Bando, Rinko Nakashima (nee Nakatani), Michiko Nabata, Yoshiro Noguchi (nee Mitsuki), Miyako Tani (nee Okumura), Frank Nakamura, Alice Watanabe, unidentified, Kimi Nasu (nee Saito), Chizo Kurisu and Hajime Jimmy Horiuchi.

Mytssu Sasaki was born on September 9, 1919 on Powell Street in Vancouver, BC. Mytssu's father, Ichiji Sasaki, built one of the biggest bathhouses, the Matsuno-yu at 318 Powell Street in July 1916. It cost $4,600 to build and was elaborate and popular. From 1917-24, he operated the Cordova rooms at 52 Cordova Street and the Union Rooms at 410 Union Street. Then in 1924, he started the Maruichi Restaurant (meshiya) on the 300 block of Powell Street with his wife, Sugae. It mostly served single men who were fishermen and loggers. In 1928, he started the Ichiriki restaurant on Cordova and Dunlevy Streets catering to a higher class clientele. During that time, he brought the first sushi chef from Japan, Mr K Morita. The Sasaki family lived in the three story home that housed the restaurant.

The digital copies of the records were acquired by the Landscapes of Injustice Research Collective between 2014 and 2018.

This record was digitized in full.