Circa 1904, rice farmer Seito Saibara, wearing straw hat, standing beside his 600-foot deep water well on his farm in Webster. .UTSA Special Collection-Institute of Texan Cultures
The Houston Chronicle recognized JASH member George Hirosaki in an article honoring the rich history of Japanese-Texas immigration and rice production.
The article goes on to acknowledge the influential Japanese families who built Texas’s booming rice economy in the early 1900s, including the Koyabayashi’s, Saibara’s, and Mr. Hirosaki’s own grandfather, Kishimatsu Kishi.
Owing to the efforts of these families and others who immigrated along the Gulf Coast, Texas boasted a multi-million-dollar industry that cultivated the rice that fed people around the world. Holding strong until the Great Depression and rising racial tensions, the Japanese-Texas rice market eventually collapsed.
Looking back, Mr. Hirosaki, a researcher and professor at Rice University, sees the fields that once held a legacy of rice cultivation as they nourish Texas’ cattle and livestock.
Courtesy of Rice University