Gila

GILA RIVER

Official name: Rivers Relocation Center Location: Pinal County, Arizona
Coordinates: 33.07° N, 111.89° W SIZE OF CAMP: 17,000 acres
Opening date: July 20, 1942 Peak population: 13,348
Date of peak: December 30, 1942 Closing date: November 10, 1945

Rivers Relocation Center, more widely known as “Gila River,” was located in Rivers, Arizona. Gila River was one of two War Relocation Authority (WRA) camps located on American Indian Reservations, both of which were in Arizona. In total, over 16,000 Japanese Americans lived at the camp, the majority of whom were from California. Those incarcerated at Gila River worked in agriculture, war production, and for the WRA staff positions in support positions for administrators or in the mess hall, schools, or hospitals. The camp’s baseball team, the Gila River Eagles, were especially well-known. Additionally, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt’s visit to Gila River in April 1943 was widely reported in the press.