Herbert S. Isonaga Papers
Scope and Contents
The Herbert S. Isonaga papers are divided into four series: 442nd Regimental Combat Team, Clippings, Personal, and Varisty Victory Volunteers. The majority of the collection falls under the Varsity Victory Volunteers (VVV) Series, which includes a variety of materials collected by Herbert Isogana throughout the years, as well as records and correspondence relating to official VVV activities such as the Varsity Victory Volunteers Scholarship.
Dates
- Creation: 1947-2009
- Creation: Majority of material found within 1992 - 2002
Copyright Notice
Copyright is retained by the authors of items in this collection, their descendants, or the repository if copyright has been signed over, as stipulated by United States copyright law. It is the responsibility of the user to determine any copyright restrictions, obtain written permission, and pay any fees necessary for the reproduction or proposed use of the materials.
Literary Rights Notice
All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Archives. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the University of Hawaii Library as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must be obtained by the researcher.
Restrictions
Material with personal information may be redacted by the Archives staff. Some fragile items may need to be handled by the staff only. Use of audiovisual material may require the production of listening or viewing copies.
Biographical / Historical
Herbert Isonaga was born in 1921 in Koloa, Kauai. His parents, Tokuichi and Kazuyo Isonaga, owned Isonaga Store in Koloa. Herbert attended Koloa School and Kauai High School where he was elected senior class president. After graduating, he spent some time in Oregon to help on his uncle's strawberry farm and also attended university there. He returned to Hawaii in 1941 to become a student at the University of Hawaii and work part-time for the Honolulu Star-Bulletin. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Herbert participated in the discussions and planning of the Varsity Victory Volunteers (VVV), and he joined the VVV to be a part of the war effort. The VVV was attached to the 34th Combat Engineers Regiment at Schofield Barracks. Work crews were organized among the 169 men, and Herbert volunteered for the kitchen crew. When the army issued a call for nisei volunteers, a majority of the VVV, including Herbert, enlisted in the 442nd Regimental Combat Team. At Camp Shelby, Herbert was assigned to the antitank platoon of Headquarters Company, 2nd Battalion. After several months of training, Herbert shipped out to Italy. In Europe, Herbert saw combat as part of the antitank platoon and fulfilled additional duties such as hauling rations and ammunition and assisting in bringing wounded to the aid station. After the end of the war in Europe, Herbert was recruited for the Military Intelligence Service (MIS), but before he could attend MIS Language School Japan surrendered and he was released from service and returned to Hawaii. He continued his college education at the University of Hawaii with GI Bill benefits and after graduation opened a bookstore near the university. Later he ran Herbie's Drive-in, and after selling that business he went into real estate. He married Sue Kobatake in 1949 and the couple had three children. Herbert passed away on April 1st, 2009.
Extent
0.75 Linear Feet (1 6-inch record box, 1 3-inch record box)
Language
English
Arrangement
The collection arrived in an unorganized state. Some papers divided into unlabeled folders or envelopes while others remained loose in the box, but no deliberate order was apparent for any of the content. Therefore the papers were rearranged into subject based series and divided into subseries and folders.
Repository Information
Japanese American Veterans Collection University of Hawaii at Manoa 2550 McCarthy Mall Honolulu, HI 96822 Email: archives@hawaii.edu Phone: (808) 596-3767 URL: http://libweb.hawaii.edu/libdept/archives/mss/aja/index.htm
Physical Description
Most of the materials are in good condition. Some papers are discolored due to acid damage or rust, and a few are fragile or brittle.
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the University of Hawaii at Manoa Libraries Repository