After the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1942, more than 10,000 Japanese and Japanese Americans were interned at Heart Mountain, near Cody. Some were pregnant mothers or women with infants and toddlers.
Raising a baby in an internment camp had unique challenges. Medical care for new mothers and babies at Heart Mountain was on par with the care available outside the camp. But some mothers were depressed by the prospect of giving birth while interned.
Diapers had to be washed in a shared central laundry and in winter they often froze before they could be hung up indoors to dry. While parents and older children were issued army cots, there was a shortage of cribs for babies. Toddlers had to be watched constantly to prevent them from burning themselves on the coal fired stoves used for heating. The mess halls distributed formula and baby food, but children aged two years old and up were expected to eat with the adults. Often young children objected to the food served in the mess halls.
Learn more about the mothers and babies of Heart Mountain in the Susan McKay papers at UW’s American Heritage Center.
For more information, visit the American Heritage Center site.