Early family history dates back to the seventh century when Fujiwara Kamatari (614-669) was a member of Emperor Tenchi's (626-671) court, during the Asuka period. The next historically recognized figure was Fujiwara Hidehara (1122-1187) who helped Shogun Yoshitsune Minamoto in a battle, which had been dramatized in Kabuki theater over the years.
In the fifteenth century, Zenchiku Ujinobu (1414-1499?) wrote the Noh (classical dance) play, Kumasaka. The title character, Kumasaka no Chohan, the infamous bandit, may have been an ancestor in name but not in blood. According to history, Kumasaka Chohan was killed by the hand of Ushiwaka Maru, at that time a youth of 15 or 16. Ushiwaka Maru later would be known as Yoshitsune Minamoto. Ironically, Fujiwara Hidehara, whose descendants would become Kumasaka's, befriended and helped Shogun Yoshitsune Minamoto in battle.
Descendants of Fujiwara Hidehara were Sato Shoji Motohara and his two sons, Sato Saburo Tsubunobu and Sato Shiro Tadanobu. A childless couple by the name of Kumasaka persuaded Sato Sazaemon, the son of Sato Shiro Tadanobu, to be adopted to preserve their family name. To honor him for sacrificing the Sato name, it became the practice of the Kumasaka's to include the Japanese character "Sa" in the first name of the first born son of each generation. Thus today, the heir to the Kumasaka family estate is named Satoshi.
With the new adopted name, Kumasaka, Sato Sazaemon was identified as the first generation.
Following the rules of primogeniture, history records Kumasaka Sazaemon as the seventh generation and Kumasaka Satoji as the eighth. Satoji's children, comprising the ninth generation, included Sashichi Satoji, the eldest son; Saroku, the second son, and Sahei, the third son.
Sashichi's offspring were his only son, Sataro, and four daughters; Toma, Kiyo, Sen and Mase. Sataro (1863-1954) was the visionary force behind the Kumasaka family's immigration to the United States. It was his dream and desire for members of his family to set-up permanent residence in the United States, contrasting the dreams of the sojourner, characteristic of most of the other Issei immigrants. The other line of Kumasaka's in Seattle resulted from the immigration of Satoru and Yuji Kumasaka, Saroku's two oldest sons.
As a young man, Sataro was sent to Tokyo to study the silkworm trade, sericulture. He then returned to his village in Fukushima-ken as a teacher and local expert. The family house still stands in Kubouchi, Omori-mura, Shinobu-gun, Fukushima-ken. During his years in Tokyo, he was introduced and converted to the Christian faith.
Utilizing his amazing foresight and planning ability, Sataro organized work parties to develop and complete many village-oriented projects. They included constructing schools and a church, and establishing a day care center which served both children and the elderly; this enabled husbands and wives to work, providing for their financial security.
One winter, he organized a work group to convert an abandoned gold mine into an ice storage facility. This supplied a reserve of ice for summer use, On another occasion, Sataro bought a nearby mountain for its vast forest. With a small down payment and a 25-year loan, the villagers were allowed to participate in the ownership, thereby assuring themselves of a constant supply of wood. Quiet and soft-spoken, his accomplishments spoke for themselves.
Because of his diligent work for the welfare of the village, Sataro received the great admiration and respect of his fellow villagers despite the unpopularity of being a Christian. In later years, he was honored by the Japanese government as a prominent community leader and by the National Christian Council as an outstanding layman. Embodying his strong sense of family and compassion for his fellow man, his deep religious commitment was a motivating force behind his dreams and plans, both in Japan and in the United States.
In 1880, Sataro married Kin Sasaki (1864-1932). As his wife, Kin shared his dreams and plans. Where as Sataro was quiet and reserved, she was a jovial, cheerful woman. It was apparent Shichiro (SK) inherited his hearty laugh and fun-loving, good-natured personality from his mother, Kin. Born into a wealthy family who made their fortune in sake and miso production, Kin was a unique woman. It was probably her wealth which gave her such a generous disposition. She never turned an uninvited relative or stranger away; with eleven children and several live-in servants, this made dinner time very "isogashi".
During the holidays, such as New Year's and Obon, it was customary to present servants with gifts. Often, Kin would give "tanmono" to her servants. Tanmono is specially woven clothing material used to make kimonos.
On a particular day when all the men had gone to town to attend a meeting, the neighbor's house had caught fire, spreading towards the Kumasaka home. After Kin found a safe place for her invalid mother-in-law, she returned to fight the threatening fire. At the time, wandering on a nearby hill, a group of beggars saw the heavy smoke. Realizing the Kumasaka house was in danger of burning, they ran down to help. Thanks to them, the house was saved. Their assistance was no accident; in the past, whenever beggars appeared at her door, they were never turned away.
After becoming a widow, Sataro's younger sister, Mrs. Kiyo Ogata, came to live at Kubouchi with her children. Kin lovingly cared for the children as if they were her own. Kiyo's two boys, Tadajiro and Hiroji, were about the same age as Jiuji and Shichiro. Tadajiro and Shichiro would later become partners in a transfer company in Seattle. Because the house was so close to the school, nieces and nephews often spent the night during inclement weather. The children walked to school from there the next day.
Kin never came to the United States to visit her immigrant family. When she passed away in 1936, at the age of 68, some beggars came to pay their last respects. They walked to the house with incense in their hands; as they were poor and ostracized, this was an act unheard of in those days. They had returned, mourning for the woman whose large hands had always given them generous handfuls of rice.
In 1907, the initial year of the Gentlemen's Agreement between Japan and the United States, Sataro and Kin's second son, Shoji (1884-1950), immigrated to the United States. He was the first in a succession of seven of Sataro and Kin's offspring who would come to the United States, five taking-up permanent residence.
Following Shoji, Katsu (1895), his younger sister and the sixth child, immigrated in 1915; Tosa (1897-1974), the youngest daughter and seventh child, in 1919;
Jiuji (1900), the sixth son and ninth child in 1919; and Shichiro
(1902-1974), the seventh son and youngest child in 1920. The oldest son, Tasuku, visited the United States, staying temporarily from 1916 to 1926. He returned to Japan to assume his responsibilities as the eldest son which included taking care of the ancestral home. Tosaburo, the third son, came to the United States in 1915. He married and settled in Fresno, California. There, he worked as a Presbyterian minister. Because of fragile health, he moved up to Seattle to be near his family.
Later, he returned to Japan and due to his ill health, died at the early age of 40. Following in his footsteps, his son, Nobuo, became a minister also.
The first time Sataro visited his immigrant family was in 1918, to survey the progress of those (Tasaku, Shoji, Katsu and Tosa) who already had arrived, making arrangements for his two youngest sons, Jiuji and Shichiro. He returned to the United States in 1927 and 1930.
He was proud of his American family and the progress they had achieved. Believing there was always strength in numbers, Sataro expressed his hope to his family that they would always remain close, helping each other in times of need.
Shoji, the eldest of the family in the United States, seeing this as his personal responsibility, periodically organized picnics and din-ners. On each occasion, photographs were taken and sent to Japan. After World War II, because of the dislocations caused by internment, the family became scattered throughout the country.
In the summer of 1953, by chance, relatives from the east, midwest and California planned their vacations in Seattle. Hastily, a family reunion was planned, and a picnic was held at Lincoln Park.
The deep concern for close family ties, as taught by Sataro to his children, has been passed down from generation to genera-tion. The altruistic bond shared between the cousins is the finest legacy Sataro and Kin could have bequeathed.
