The Tanforan Assembly Center was created to temporarily detain nearly 8,000 Japanese Americans, mostly from the San Francisco Bay Area, under the auspices of Executive Order 9066.

[1] The Tanforan Assembly Center began operation in late April 1942, the first stop for thousands who were forced to relocate and undergo internment during World War II.

[3]: 349  Frank L. Davis served as the director of Tanforan Assembly Center, overseeing five departments (Administration, Works and Maintenance, Finance and Records, Mess and Lodging, and Service).

These were detainees appointed to help the Caucasian administrators by representing their groups of five to ten barracks or a single stall building; their primary responsibilities were to relay complaints from and order supplies for their residents.

[8]: 9  The internal police were tasked with searching people and baggage during induction to ensure that no contraband items were being smuggled and maintaining the safety of the detainees.

Initially, the force consisted mainly of young detained men who failed to impress: "[They] took advantage of their position to eat wherever they chose and to get into any place that they wanted.

[9]: 69  Sites "close to home" were chosen so that detainees could settle last-minute financial matters, minimize travel distances, and grow acclimated to group living.

He purchased poison at a local drugstore and ingested it at the Army recruiting station; he was treated, then returned to Tanforan, then was sent to Arizona as a "troublemaker".

[9]: 83 At Tanforan, Japanese-American detainees were housed in stalls previously used as horse stables, in the grandstand, or in temporary barracks quickly built in the infield.

[9]: 73 Because the infield barracks were still being constructed, the first detainees were housed in converted horse stalls, hastily updated for humans with minimal cleaning and amenities, as evidenced by the insects and dung trapped in whitewashed surfaces.

[8]: 5  Larger families were assigned to the newly built barracks, although with dividers reaching only 3⁄4 of the way to the ceiling, privacy was minimal, and the hasty construction showed in gaps that let in the prevailing winds.

[6] The first meals were Army "A" and "B" rations[8]: 5  and showed little cultural consideration; rather than fish and rice, the first mess manager ordered chili con carne and sauerkraut.

[8]: 26  By August, 19 individual mess halls had been built, each staffed by detainees who prepared and served the meals under Caucasian supervision; the grandstand kitchen was converted into a cooking school and bakeshop.

Aside from living quarters converted from horse stalls, the rainy spring weather meant that internees had to slog through muddy lanes, and the accumulated manure and poorly drained sewage gave the center an offensive stench.

[8]: 3  Food poisoning incidents were common; in one case, the busy pace of nighttime latrine use led the guards to suspect that a rebellion was being plotted.

[8]: 39  The latrines themselves were built with limited privacy features; half-walls separated toilets and communal sinks and showers, forcing detainees to build makeshift tubs and dividers.

[12] Dr. Kazue Togasaki was detained for a month at the Tanforan Assembly Center, and while there she delivered fifty babies and led an all-Japanese-American medical team.

[12] Other detained physicians on the medical center staff included Dr. Eugenia Fujita, serving as the pediatrician, and Dr. Benjamin Kondo, cardiologist.

[3]: 202  On May 31, a baby was born prematurely and died while being transferred to the County Hospital due to the delays from clearing site administrative procedures.

[15] Other notable artists detained at Tanforan included George and Hisako Hibi and UC Berkeley professor Chiura Obata and his family.

[3]: 208  Shortly after being detained, Obata proposed to start an art school, which was granted by the administrators and taught by sixteen artists, including Okubo and the Hibis.

[11] The library at Tanforan started with 50 books, and grew to 4,000 donated volumes under the leadership of librarian Kyoko Hoshiga, who had attended Mills College.

[18] Taro Katayama was chief editor of the Totalizer, heading a staff that included Jim Yamada, Lillian Ota, and Charles Kikuchi,[12] whose diary detailing life at Tanforan would be published in 1973.