Granada sits about 19 miles east of Lamar, just across the line separating Kansas and Colorado. Irrigated farming dominates the scene, but this town is most remembered as a Japanese relocation camp during World War II. Shortly after Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, the U.S. government ordered all West-Coast Japanese-Americans to be relocated to inland camps. Known then as Amache, the camp here served as a holding center for 7,600 Japanese-Americans from 1942 until 1945.
At one time the relocation camp contained 30 blocks of residential barracks, each with its own mess hall, laundry and shower rooms. Children attended school while adults worked on a farm growing crops such as alfalfa and corn. Most detainees remained until the war ended. Today grass grows over the barracks foundations - a small memorial and the camp cemetery are all that remain of this black mark on American's much-touted freedom.
These days Granada is home to about 560 residents. Local farms yield succulent melons as well as onions and peppers. A gas station and restaurant are open in town and additional travel amenities including a visitors' center are located in neighboring Lamar. The nearby XY Ranch is an excellent state-run area that's popular for pheasant hunting. |
