The Taro was a small fishing vessel owned and operated by Henry Nakayama, a Japanese American man living on Terminal Island. Its name was displayed on the side of the vessel, in both English and Japanese characters.
History[]
Following the funeral of Masayo Furuya, Henry went out fishing on the Taro. When he came back from his catch, he was low-balled on the haul by the local cannery operator, Stan Grichuk. Grichuk later tried to burn the Taro with kerosene and matches, only to be thwarted by a malevolent spirit who first blew out the matches and blew him into the harbor water, killing him. ("A Sparrow in a Swallow’s Nest")
After Henry and his wife Asako were released from the Colinas de Oro War Relocation Center internment camp, Henry spoke of how this boat would need a lot of maintenance, given how long they were interned. They returned home, however, to find that the entire neighborhood of Terminal Island had been razed by the U.S. government. ("Come and Get Me")
Being a bachelor when he first acquired the boat, Henry named it Taro, meaning "first-born son." The calm that he felt when out on the water in it was the same that he felt when holding baby Chester Nakayama for the first time. ("Into the Afterlife")