Amache National Historic Site

10/19/2026

We want to hear from YOU!

The National Park Service invites you to comment on the initial management concepts and development priorities for Amache National Historic Site. We are working on a general management plan that will guide future resource preservation, interpretation, visitor access, and long-term operations. The public comment period opens today, October 19th, and runs through December 3rd. Visit the Amache project page on the NPS Planning, Environment, and Public Comment (PEPC) to review a newsletter describing the plans and leave a written comment. https://parkplanning.nps.gov/projectHome.cfm?projectID=135384

The National Park Service is hosting five public meetings in November where staff will explain the planning process, present initial concepts, describe how to submit comments, and answer questions. Please join us at the meeting most convenient for you.

November 6th, 12pm MST; Virtual meeting
November 9th, 6 pm MST; Granada Community Center, Granada, CO
November 12th, 6 pm MST; Tri-State/Denver Buddhist Temple, Denver, CO
November 17th, 6 pm PST; Enmanji Buddhist Temple Memorial Hall, Sebastopol, CA
November 19th, 6 pm PST; Gardena Valley Japanese Cultural Institute, Gardena, CA

More information about the meetings is available on the PEPC project site.

News Release: https://www.nps.gov/amch/learn/news/national-park-service-seeks-public-input-on-future-of-amache-national-historic-site.htm

NPS Photo/J. Ellis

10/16/2026

We are so excited to announce Jenn O'Neill as the new site manager for Amache National Historic Site!

Jenn has worked for the National Park Service for more than a decade, most recently serving for five years as the Partnerships Program Manager at Grand Canyon National Park. In that role, she supported the park’s philanthropic partners, including Grand Canyon Conservancy and the National Park Foundation, and other community-based, resource advocacy, and intergovernmental partner organizations.

“I am extremely excited to start my next career chapter working with the dedicated NPS team and deeply committed partner community at Amache,” said O’Neill. “My experience combining partnerships and planning is something I feel I can put to good use in this new position. The local community of Granada, Amache’s descendant community, university partners and the Amache Alliance worked tirelessly to help establish Amache as a national historic site, and I am eager to arrive on the High Plains and begin supporting a very talented team as we carry that good work forward.”

Full news release: https://www.nps.gov/amch/learn/news/national-park-service-selects-jenn-o-neill-as-site-manager-of-amache-national-historic-site.htm

NPS Photo
Image description: A female park ranger standing in front of a bush in front of a building.

10/09/2026

The barracks at Amache did a poor job keeping the element out. As the green wood used to construct them dried, it left gaps in the walls allowing dust to blow inside. Many of the barracks had brick floors that were laid directly on the sandy soils, allowing ants to build mounds through the space between bricks and onto the floor.

Earlier this week, rangers witnessed some of this when they found ant hills in the reconstructed barrack.

NPS Photo/J. Ellis

10/02/2026

Update 10/2: Roads are open but in rough condition. They may still be muddy and soft in some places. Please use caution while driving through the site.

ROAD CLOSURE 10/1/26

Heavy rains have caused poor road conditions throughout the park. All roads in the park are closed until further notice.

10/01/2026

ROAD CLOSURE 10/1/26

Heavy rains have caused poor road conditions throughout the park. All roads in the park are closed until further notice.

09/21/2026

WWII Across America's National Parks: Amache National Historic Site

Private First Class Kiyoshi Muranaga volunteered to serve in the 442nd RCT in May 1943 while his family was incarcerated at Amache. Amache, formally the Granada Relocation Center, was the smallest of the ten War Relocation Authority incarceration sites. At its peak, it held nearly 7,500 people. Located in rural southeastern Colorado, it was the state’s tenth largest population center at the time.

In February of 1943, President Roosevelt activated the 442nd Regimental Combat Team. The 442nd was a segregated unit of the US Military for Japanese American men. Alongside the 100th Infantry Battalion, another Japanese American unit, they fought in the European theater during WWII. For its size and length of service, the 442nd remains the most decorated unit in US Military history.

On June 26, 1944, his first day in action in Italy, Muranaga laid down his life in an act of extraordinary heroism. His troop encountered strong enemy forces and heavy casualties. Despite this, he singlehandedly manned a mortar in an attempt to disable the enemy weapons. He fired three shots before he was killed but successfully forced the enemy troops to retreat. For his bravery and sacrifice, he was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, the Army's second-highest decoration. Decades later, the award was upgraded to a Medal of Honor. Learn more about Private First Class Muranaga's acts of heroisms here: https://goforbroke.org/medal-honor-recipients/kiyoshi-k-muranaga/

While the 442nd RCT fought against the German troops in Europe, a different kind of battle was happening on the coast of Cape Hatteras National Seashore

Presentation of the Distinguished Service Cross was posthumously made to Pfc. Kiyoshi Muranaga at one o'clock Saturday, April 21, 1945, War Relocation Authority photographs: Japanese-American evacuation and resettlement, WRA no. I-862, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley.

09/03/2026

At it's peak, Amache was Colorado's 10th largest population center. Area that was previously farmland was occupied by thousands of Japanese Americans, seemingly overnight.

The first wave of people not helping with finishing construction arrived on September 3rd, 1942. By September 18th, over 4,500 resided at the site. By the end of October, Amache reached its peak population with over 7,500 Japanese Americans living on the one square-mile facility.

Photo courtesy of the Amache Preservation Society

08/25/2026

Happy Birthday, National Park Service!

For 110 years, the National Park Service has worked to preserve some of the most important places and stories in our nation. These places are fundamental parts of our national identity and help us understand who we are as a country.

At Amache National Historic Site, we preserve, protect, and interpret the history and landscape where Japanese Americans were incarcerated by the US government during World War II. We honor the lived experience of incarcerees and encourage reflection on the importance of maintaining national values in times of crisis.

NPS Photo

08/24/2026

World War II Across America’s National Parks: An Introduction

As we celebrate the 250th anniversary of our nation, we embrace the story of America from our founding to today. National parks help preserve many chapters of that story, including one of the most defining events of the 20th century: World War II. Sixteen million Americans served under arms, more than 400,000 were killed, and countless millions more supported the war effort at home. The war touched every part of American society, and little was left unchanged—including national parks.

For the next 16 weeks, leading up to the 85th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, the National Park Service will take you across the country to explore America's experience in World War II through the lens of national parks. These sites preserve different parts of America's wartime story, including both triumphs and tragedies. This list of parks is by no means exclusive, nor are the stories that will be shared. They represent just a fraction of the war's impact on our parks and the nation, with many of those impacts still felt today.

To follow the series, use . Each Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, a new park will share its story and point you to the next stop in the journey.

The series begins here at .

Image Caption: WWII enlisted visit Grand Canyon National Park.
Image Credit: NPS/Emily Welch

08/15/2026

Nearly 10,000 passed through Amache between 1942 and 1945. While all of their stories have some similarities, the full experience was different for every single person who passed through the gates.

Thomas Shigekuni arrived at Amache at the age of 13. Even at such a young age, he recognized the injustices he and other Japanese Americans faced. His experience at Amache shaped the rest of his life, as he continued to fight for justice, service, and community. He was one of the early advocate for preserving Amache.

You can learn more about Thomas Shigekuni here: https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/thomas-shigekuni.htm