Japanese-American Flower Growers in El Cerrito

Before World War II, if San Franciscans wanted roses for their valentines or peonies for a party, they most likely ordered them from a Japanese-American flower grower in El Cerrito or Richmond.

The site of Hana Gardens Senior Living Center, at 10860 San Pablo Avenue, was home to one such business, Contra Costa Florist. Opened in 1934 by Hikojiro and Tomi Mabuchi, the shop proved a great success, while its charming architecture became a landmark on the city’s main thoroughfare.

On December 7, 1941, imperial Japanese forces attacked the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor. A formal declaration of war followed. In El Cerrito as elsewhere, ethnically Japanese residents became targets of prejudice, suspicion, and ever-stricter government surveillance. Finally, in mid-1942, the U.S. government ordered the mass internment of Japanese and Japanese-American residents of the west coat.

Along with roughly 120,000 others, the Mabuchis were detained, forced to abandon their property and livelihoods, and incarcerated in a camp far from home.

The images in this gallery depict a permanent exhibit at Hana Gardens that commemorates the floral industry as well as the broader history of the Japanese-American community in our city. To learn more, please also see our collection of articles and resources about the history of Japanese-Americans in El Cerrito.