Cemetery

Located in Old Terry Community. (from I-10 turn on FM-1135 South, go approx. 2 mile to Southern Pacific tracks. Go additional 0.5 mile, turn right, go approx.1/4 mile to rice canal. Crawl through fence on left side of road and walk down rice canal right bank to cemetery. There is a way to drive in from FM-1135 if the gate is not locked. This should only be used in dry conditions. Picture

There are at least 20 graves in the Kishi Colony cemetery, begun primarily for the Japanese colony, although there are at least two non-Japanese buried there. Inscriptions on several of the gravestones are etched in Japanese characters and include the name of the emperor and the year of his reign. Kichimatsu Kishi and Tokuzo Hirasaki inscribed the Japanese lettering on the stones. Hirasaki and his wife Toki assisted Frances Reid, Orange County Historical Commission chairman and Stan Garrison in listing and interpreting the inscriptions on the stones.

Several of the graves in the cemetery are for infants or very young children. The first to be buried in the cemetery was T. Toba, a young colonist who was killed May 1, 1910 when he fell off a mule-drawn disk-harrow. Taro Kiishi recalled that on a trip back to Japan after the accident, his father visited the parents of the young man.

“I heard my father, K. Kishi, tell of his visit to Mr. Toba’s parents in Japan after the accident,” recalled Taro Kishi, “He was told by the mother that before the cable message of her son’s death arrived, she felt there was message from the victim. She said that she saw him vividly in a dream wherein he appeared and kept repeating he was so sorry. Perhaps he knew he would not be able to fulfill his dream of being of help to his old folks, and hence, projected himself to his mother’s consciousness.”

Copied, by Toki Hirasaki, Tokuzo Hirasaki, Frances Reid, Stan Garrison; April 13, 1979.

On some of the older headstones, the year of the Emperor's rule is written. This is a Japanese custom. Additional information from the Hirasaki's is in parenthesis.

KISHI CEMETERY
Located in Old Terry Community. (from I-10 turn on FM-1135 South, go approx. 2 mile to Southern Pacific tracks. Go additional 0.5 mile, turn right, go approx.1/4 mile to rice canal. Crawl through fence on left side of road and walk down rice canal right bank to cemetery. There is a way to drive in from FM-1135 if the gate is not locked. This should only be used in dry conditions. Picture There are at least 20 graves in the Kishi Colony cemetery, begun primarily for the Japanese colony, although there are at least two non-Japanese buried there. Inscriptions on several of the gravestones are etched in Japanese characters and include the name of the emperor and the year of his reign. Kichimatsu Kishi and Tokuzo Hirasaki inscribed the Japanese lettering on the stones. Hirasaki and his wife Toki assisted Frances Reid, Orange County Historical Commission chairman and Stan Garrison in listing and interpreting the inscriptions on the stones. Several of the graves in the cemetery are for infants or very young children. The first to be buried in the cemetery was T. Toba, a young colonist who was killed May 1, 1910 when he fell off a mule-drawn disk-harrow. Taro Kiishi recalled that on a trip back to Japan after the accident, his father visited the parents of the young man. “I heard my father, K. Kishi, tell of his visit to Mr. Toba’s parents in Japan after the accident,” recalled Taro Kishi, “He was told by the mother that before the cable message of her son’s death arrived, she felt there was message from the victim. She said that she saw him vividly in a dream wherein he appeared and kept repeating he was so sorry. Perhaps he knew he would not be able to fulfill his dream of being of help to his old folks, and hence, projected himself to his mother’s consciousness.” Copied, by Toki Hirasaki, Tokuzo Hirasaki, Frances Reid, Stan Garrison; April 13, 1979. On some of the older headstones, the year of the Emperor's rule is written. This is a Japanese custom. Additional information from the Hirasaki's is in parenthesis.
Rev.F.A. BURTON May 19, 1847 Mar.25, 1919	ALODIE WINFREE Sept.6, 1879 Nov.4, 1902
DONNIE WINFREE Sept.13, 1875 Dec.15, 1902	Inf. son of D.& A. WINFREE 1901--1901
SATARO KONDO July 15, 1874 Aug.16, 1966	FUMI KONDO Dec.17, 1881 July 18, 1944
KIYO KONDO No. 11, 1923 No.4, 1934	RISABURO OGAWARA (Husband of TSURU OGAWARA) D. May 29, 1914, age 32 (Drowned in creek,1914 flood)
TSURU OGAWARA (wife of RISABURO OGAWARA) 1912 A.D.	J. TURNER (child of Joe Turner, negro employee on farm) (unable to read headstone)
T. TOBA D. May 10,1910 A.D age 24 (Farm Accident) EMPEROR MEIJI 43-1910	Japanese letters on headstone K. KAMADA Age 30 Jan.23, 1913 EMPEROR TAISHO 3
Japanese letters on headstone KAZUKO OKUMA March 26, 1922 Jan.4, 1927	Japanese letters on headstone ETSUKO KISHI (Baby girl of Tora Kishi, nephew of K. Kishi)
Japanese letters on headstone ICHIRO KISHI (Baby boy of Tora Kishi, nephew of K. Kishi)	Japanese letters on headstone OTSUKI, HARUMI No.2, 1921 EMPEROR TAISHO 11
FUJI KISHI Oct. 6, 1877 Mar.2, 1951	KICHIMATSU KISHI (Father of Mrs. Toki Hirasaki) Jan.7, 1872 July 15, 1956
Japanese letters on headstone DR. HACHITARO KISHI (Killed in auto accident) 1936	Japanese letters on headstone ASAKO KISHI (Newborn daughter of Dr. Kishi) Died after 1923
Japanese letters on headstone SAMUEL KISHI (Son of Dr. Kishi) Age 3 years, Feb.14.	Japanese letters on headstone MASAKICHI ABE (Was a carpenter) D. Feb.4, 1916
Unable to read headstone ROBERT CHRISTIAN TANAMACHI (New born, died ca. 1928)	Unmarked grave by persimmon tree (Mexican employee on farm, died about 1916)
TOKUZO HIRASAKI July 4,1895 June 7, 1980	TOKI HIRASAKI Dec. 15, 1906 Dec. 2, 1981
TARO KISHI Jan. 4, 1903 July 24, 1993	ELIZABETH C. KISHI Jan. 5, 1913 Jan. 4, 1984
References Frances Reid, “Kishi Japanese Cemetery,” Las Sabinas, The Official Quarterly Publication of the Orange County Historical Society, Vol. V, Fall 1979, Book 3. Frances Reid, “The Kishi Colony,” Las Sabinas, The Official Quarterly Publication of the Orange County Historical Society, Vol. VIX, 1983, Book 1.