Takahashi
Excellent condition
Vintage
1 3/4" length
I love this Takahashi bird and story behind each bird.  The story behind these birds is indeed a piece of history.
Yoneguma Takahashi was born in the US in 1909. His wife, Kiyoka was born in 1918 and moved to Japan when she was 3 with her Mother. While she was in Japan she studied art in high school and college and could speak both English and Japanese. She moved back to the US and married Yoneguma in 1937. They had 3 children by the time 1941 came around. They lived the typical American life, but things changed on Dec 7, 1941. FDR issued an executive order 9066, which mandated the forced internment and relocation of many families that were of German, Italian and Japanese descent. These families were forced into camps.
Yoneguma and Kiyoka lived a total of 3 1/2 years in the camp. It was during this time that they created these beautiful Takahashi birds. These birds were originally made of salvaged scraps of wood from wooden egg crates. The wire feet were made of screen wire from the window screens at the camp.
When the internment camps were finally closed, they were given bus tickets and shipped back to their place of origin with no home, no money and no jobs.
It was at this time that they decided to make life work for the family. They took these birds that they created in the camps and made a business from them for a total of over forty years.
This bird is not from the camp itself, but it is one of the later birds that was created while Yoneguma and Kiyoka finally was able to live the true American dream.
With this Takahashi (Eastern) Blue Bird you will own a piece of history that should never be forgotten - "Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it"