They were created by the Japanese-Americans who were confined at Manzanar War Relocation Center in the 1940s. It’s estimated that there were, at one point, more than 100 gardens inside the fences and underneath the guard towers at this 814-acre site in eastern California’s Owens Valley. The men and women held there built the gardens between the rows of barracks, outside the mess halls, and along the firebreaks, as a way to improve living conditions and add beauty and hope to the desolate prison landscape.

The gardens also created communal spaces for those interned at the center. They were places for children to play and for families to gather.

The most common gardens were small plots outside of the barracks apartments, typically near the entrances. The first such garden began on April 19, 1942, less than a month after the camp opened. It was the design of Southern California landscaper William Katsuki, who created the garden outside his barracks in Block 24. By October 1942, there were so many gardens throughout Manzanar that the Manzanar Free Press held a garden contest, which is believed to have spurred even more gardens.

After Manzanar closed in 1945, many of the gardens were bulldozed or buried along with most of the other buildings at the center. Debris, sand, and silt covered the ponds, and vegetation grew over the site.

When the National Park Service conducted an archaeological survey in 1993, only a few of the biggest gardens were still visible.