In the 70's I read a book that made a huge impression on me. It was Farewell to Manzanar by Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston. She was one of the Japanese who were in internment camps -- she and her family were at Manzanar (north of Lone Pine on Hwy 395).
Today it is a National Historic Site and open to the public. It was quite moving driving through the site, realizing that the Japanese who were relocated here lost everything when they moved here, then again after the war when the camp was closed and they had to relocate once again.
This monument was erected in 1943 by the Manzanar Japanese who were living here. It was designed and built by them, and funded by a 15-cent donation from each family in the camp. The Japanese characters read "Soul Consoling Tower." It was, and is, considered to be a sacred place at the camp.
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