Delaplane, Kristin

May 14, 1995

Abstract: Information for this story comes from the Vacaville Museum and Vacaville Heritage Council First of two parts In 1885 the Japanese government officially allowed emigration. In 1887 the first Japanese arrived in Vacaville, willing to work for very low wages. By 1896 there were 30 Japanese in Vacaville. Arichika Ikeda was born in 1864 in Niigata, Japan and was educated in medicine and agriculture. When he came to Vacaville, he worked as a farm hand and cook and was then responsible for organizing the Japanese farm workers in the 1890s. He also organized a church group among the Japanese Christians and in 1897 a Japanese Methodist Church was built in Vacaville and the minister and his wife taught school in the church as well.