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Japanese Packing Plant 800 - 118th Ave NE
The Japanese Packing Plant was built in 1933 in the Midlakes area to serve as a cooperative storage shed for Japanese-American farmers to store produce for shipment via railroad. The building's cargo bays were located just a few feet from two sets of railroad tracks. The produce stored in the building included peas, lettuce, tomatoes, cauliflower, and other vegetables and fruits. The produce was packed in ice and shipped to the East Coast. The packing plant was built by the Bellevue Vegetable Growers Association, an association with a membership of 60 Japanese-American farmers. The plant was operated by three year-round full-time employees, a business manager, bookkeeper, and floor manager, as well as 20 seasonal workers. Mutsuo Hashiguchi was the floor manager at the plant. After the Japanese-Americans were sent to internment camps during World War II, the shed was abandoned. It was not used as a cooperative storage shed again. The produce shed relates to the study unit themes of agriculture, manufacturing/industry, and ethnic heritage because of its association with Bellevue's Japanese-American farmers. It is significant as the last remaining building that was associated with the Japanese-American farmers who established many small farms in the Bellevue area during the 1920s and 1930s. |