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M'LL {O()/J z... N.IL . '/k...' 1I1A.A MEMORANDUM TO: . Melvin 1. Smi th FROM: Kent Powell MTE: September 4, 1985 RE: TOPAZ WAR RELOCATION CAMP On August 21~ I was in Millard County for a meeting with the . Chamber of Commerce about the Historic Preservation Certified Local Government program. I drove to Delta am photographed the (see attached proof sheet) Topaz War Relocation Canp marker in the park and at the camp site which is 15 miles northwest of Delta. Eight miles of the road is gravel. As you will note~ the marker in the park does give directions to the camp site. There are 2 directional signs on the road to Topaz pl aced at intersections so that travelers can stay on the right road. Being familiar with Topaz and Sutherl am I did not have allY trouble getting to the camp, though I can imagine people that are less familiar with tre area might. For example there is no road sign to tell you that you are in Sutherl and. There is no sign at the canp i tse 1f except the monument which is located about 75-100 yards off the road. The drive out took about a ha lf hour am I spent mere than an hour just walking around the camp site looking at the foundations and other remains. The si te does sean to have great tourist potent i ale The drive out could be accompanied by a cassette tape narrating the background of the Japanese excavation am the process of their move to Utah. At the camp it seans that the cassette and a tour booklet could be used for a walking tour of the site to describe the buildings, events amd activities that took place. Since the buildings from Topaz are scattered all over southern Utah it may be possible to acqu ire sane and have them mewed back to the camp si teo However, the si tes could be marked and without the buildings it would be an unforgettable ex~rience to sense the isolation, hear the wind blowing~ and contemplate the rreaning of such a pl ace. In terms of long range pl anning by Mi 11 crd County and for the state it seans that public acquisition should be .given serious consideration. As one of only 10 such camps in the United States it does have great historical value, and · has already become something of a shrine for many Japanese. I do not know what the visitation rate would be, but it seans that for the travelers who elected to visit the Topaz site, it would add at least a half days tirre if they were already in the Delta area, and considerably more if they were not. It seems that with the effort to increase international tourism that the camp would have appeal to Japanese tourists am perhaps European tourists whose lives were so much affected by World War II. 4, .