Reflections on Ogasawara: Remote Islands with American and Japanese Identities

Ōhira Kyōko, who also goes by the English name Edith Washington, is an Ōbeikei resident of Chichijima.

Kyōko looks through an old photo album from the prewar and wartime years.

Children on Chichijima display Japanese flags to celebrate the reversion of the Ogasawara Islands on June 26, 1968. (© Jiji)

Rance Ōhira’s bar Yankee Town is just a short walk from the town center.

Rance mixes a drink at the bar.

After living in the United States and serving in the US military, Rance returned to Chichijima in 1994.