Snow Country Prison Japanese American Memorial — United Tribes Technical College
The Snow Country Prison Japanese American Memorial, a memorial honoring more than 1,800 Japanese Americans incarcerated at the former Fort Lincoln internment camp during World War II, opened in 2024 on the campus of United Tribes Technical College in Bismarck, North Dakota; designed by MASS Design Group with lighting design by Tillett Lighting Design Associates.
| Venue | United Tribes Technical College |
|---|---|
| Project type | Installation |
| Status | Completed |
| Year completed | 2024 |
| Technologies | kintsugi-inspired memorial wall, site lighting |
Credits
| Firm | Role | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MASS Design Group | Architecture | |
| MASS Design Group | Interpretive Planning | |
| tillett-lighting-design-associates | Lighting Design |
Description
The memorial honors the Issei and Nisei incarcerated at Fort Lincoln during WWII and the solidarity between Japanese and Native American communities on the shared site, now home to United Tribes Technical College. The design draws on kintsugi, the Japanese practice of mending broken pottery with gold-dusted lacquer, and incorporates a memorial wall listing the names of those imprisoned alongside a drum circle shaped like a medicine wheel.