Granada War Relocation Center Land, Property
The WRA purchased the properties that it consolidated into the 16-square-mile Granada War Relocation Center after a process of condemnation that paid local farmers pennies on the dollar for 10,500 acres on the south bank of the Arkansas River. In addition, the Santa Fe Railroad ran through the entire six-mile length of the combined properties, adding to the land’s value. Amache was the only relocation center established on all private land acquired for the WRA.
After the $4.2 million dollar Granada War Relocation Center closed on October 15, 1945, most of the center’s buildings and contents were sold and removed. The fifteen square miles used for agriculture and animal husbandry – along with the canals that provide for irrigation – were sold to local farming interests. The one-square-mile barracks area (“Amache”) was sold to the Town of Granada for $2,500. The buildings on the property were declared surplus by the government and came under the purview of the War Assets Department. The price for these properties was determined by deducting 80% from their estimated fair market value. Of the 556 original Amache buildings, only 98 were sold and moved off-site to various locations throughout the region. Otero County School District 11 bought over three dozen buildings and the University of Denver bought more than a dozen for classrooms, offices, and utility buildings.
In 1993, then-Granada High School social studies teacher John Hopper gave his class an assignment to look into the history of the abandoned WWII site just down the road. This research and interest grew and eventually led to the establishment of the Amache Preservation Society, which has acted as the caretaker, steward, and advocate of Amache’s preservation and history ever since.
Since 2005, Dr. Bonnie Clark, DU Professor of Anthropology, has been working with the many communities associated with Amache on a collaborative research project designed to the highest standards of archaeological research while meeting community needs and goals. The project objectives were created in collaboration with the many communities including the Japanese American community, especially former Amache internees and their families. The project is geared so that DU provides needed expertise while at the same time creating a forum for training students, not just in anthropology, but in the important history of Amache and internment. Their archaeological research was critical to Amache achieving National Historic Site status in 2022.
In October 2023, the town of Granada officially conveyed the Amache property to the National Park Service. The Town of Granada Mayor, Argie Thrall, and Title Officer, Dee Melgosa, signed the closing papers. The NPS staff will start working out of the Amache museum and learning from the APS students.
The National Park Service is continuing to involved partners and stakeholders such as University of Denver, Amache Alliance, and the Amache Preservation Society to continue the preservation and interpretation. The APS and DU Amache Project research work is being used by the National Park Service for future management planning.