When
I was a child growing up in East Los Angeles the “Fish man” as we
called him would come by in his truck every Wednesday. My grandma Jingu
(mom’s mom) lived with us. She would go out to the truck with her small
coin purse and the fish man would open the back of the truck where there
were fresh fish lying on beds of ice. There was a scale and paper to
wrap the fish. On Wednesdays for dinner we’d have fresh fish and gohan
(hot steamed rice). Often a big plate of sashimi. Grandma was in heaven!
Down the street from us lived Sachiko and Satoshi Kojima. They were
older than me but we knew them because on Sundays we would all get a
ride together to go to church together in Little Tokyo. Their father was
one of the many “fish men” that delivered fish to Japanese communities
after the war.
We attended today’s event at the Japanese American National Museum Annex Democracy center in Little Tokyo. The event was called “Fish Truck Family Reunion.” I posted recently here how the Fishman used to deliver fish in his truck to our neighborhood in the late 1950’s and ‘60’s in east Los Angeles. The event today featured stories of how over forty years, Japanese Anericans owned fish trucks and delivered fresh seafood, rice, and other Japanese goods to homes across the Southland. They also provided a valuable community service by bringing a taste of home six days a week to Nikkei throughout the greater los angeles area *(nikkei-people of japanese descent livng outside Japan)
This special event featured testimonies from the families of half a dozen former fish truck operators, with rare photographs and home movies.
fishman order sheets for New Years day Oshogatsu feast
I was able to see photos of our fish man “Mr. Goto” that sold fish every Wednesday to my grandmother.
I was able me to see a picture of my friend Sachiko Kojima who lived on my street and was another fish peddlers daughter.
Sachiko and her boyfriend (featured in Cruising J-town exhibit)
Sachiko talking about life as a fishman's daughter
They showed an interview with Sachiko talking about her remembrances of her dad’s hard work and long days delivering fish and Japanese specialty items to grateful homemakers in the days when there werent markets easily accessible. Imagine having a truck with fresh fish coming to your street once a week.
At the end of this event they photographed all the family members of the original fish peddlers together.
the family members through the generations of the fishmen
They developed an association so they could work together and each have their own designated area of Los Angeles to sell. Their days started early driving to San Pedro in the beginning to buy fresh fish. They each bought their own trucks.Their day would end late and then they would have to clean the truck before the next days delivery. They also sold 100 lb. bags of rice and various canned Japanese specialty food items. In those early years of 1950's and 60's there were not the Japanese specialty markets we have today and many if not most nisei homemakers did not have cars. The convenience of the home delivery fishmen was invaluable. The family members spoke of how there was a common thread amongst the fish peddlers. Their father's enjoyed their customers and wanted to please them. They took special orders for the New Year's feasts for the Japanese homes. Days before they would start delivering specialty orders for the Oshogatsu New Years feast. On New Year's morning they would make special deliveries so the homemakers would have fresh "sashimi" bought on that day. The fishermen were the people's people as their daughters described. They liked to talk and visit with their customers. One woman whose father passed away in 2024 at age 100 said every night my dad would have a glass of "Crown Royal Whiskey" and a cigar. I think that was his secret to living a long life!
A wonderful nostalgic day of childhood memories of the fish men who brought us fish straight to our doorstep.
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