Montrose Cemetery, on the city’s North Side, was among the first (if not the first) of Chicago area cemeteries to accept the remains of people of Japanese ancestry for interment. To ensure community members would have a final place of rest, in 1935 the Japanese Mutual Aid Society began purchasing a number of plots in the cemetery’s northwest corner.

In 1937, the Society built the Japanese Mausoleum and in 1938 held its first community Memorial Day commemoration, which continues to this day.

Members of Chicago Nisei Post #1183 of the American Legion at the 78th annual Chicago Nikkei Memorial Day commemoration in the Japanese section of Montrose Cemetery, Chicago, IL.