VISIT TO COASTAL JAPAN

Complete Record: This color, silent home movie from the 1940s offers a glimpse into post-WWII Japan through the lens of a U.S. officer stationed there in 1945-46. Col. Arthur “Art" Paul Thayer Jr. was a member of the First Cavalry Division and the Sixth Army. After the defeat of Japan he was part of the U.S. Occupation forces, led by General Douglas A. MacArthur. The film features footage of Colonel Thayer traveling around the Hiroshima area by boat, and presumably car and train with his wife, Lucille Anne Meyer, and their daughter, Lucille Collette "Tardy" Thayer. The film shows the Atomic Bomb Dome and offers numerous views of the surrounding countryside, nature, watersides, and farming villages. While some of the footage is heat damaged and so of poor quality, the majority remains viewable. 00:00 Pearl divers, probably Mikimoto, Japan. A man in grey sails a boat with two divers (probably women) in white They jump into the water (00:18). They dive to catch oysters in nets/sieves and then throw it into floating buckets/barrels (00:20). Views of water from the sailing boat (00:38). They sail past other boats (00:44). Greenery (01:04). Farmers transport bamboo logs, wearing Sugegasa hats (01:07). People walking across a bridge (01:20). POV from a boat sailing past, presumably, a huge floating crane or loading tower at a military dock (01:34). Boat sails through water and past different sailboats and small ships (01:43). Views of a small seaside village (02:12). Boat sails past rock formations and other boats (02:19). The Atomic Bomb Dome (now also known as Hiroshima Peace Memorial) in Hiroshima, Japan (03:04). Views of US Army stationed personnel and family members, possibly including Col. Arthur “Art" Paul Thayer Jr. and his wife Lucille Anne Meyer (03:12). Views of the Japanese countryside from a moving vehicle, featuring small houses, greenery, and smoke clouds (03:22). Presumably footage of Thayer's wife Lucille Anne Meyer and their daughter Lucille Collette "Tardy" Thayer (03:57). Low-light, out-of-focus footage, possibly of smoke clouds (04:06). Footage of Lucille Anne Meyer and daughter Lucille Collette "Tardy" Thayer (04:22). Low-light, out-of-focus footage, possibly of smoke clouds from an active volcano (04:38). Views of Lucille Anne hiking (04:45). A village entrance wooden gate (04:54). Japanese countryside greenery and foggy skies (05:03). Farmers working in their fields (05:46). Japanese countryside greenery and foggy/cloudy skies (06:15). Footage of Lucille Anne and “Tardy” (06:23). Lush greenery (06:37). A small body of water (06.45). Lucille Anne and “Tardy” standing by the water (06:51). Views of water from a moving vehicle (06:59). Views of the countryside from a moving vehicle (07:26). Views of water from a moving vehicle (07:33). Footage of an area crowded with Japanese civilians (08:31) including a Japanese man in an Imperial Japanese Army uniform, and a woman with a baby on her back. Aboard a moving steam train as it heads up the coast (08:46). Japanese children waving at the camera (08:53). Susa train station in the western part of Hiroshima Prefecture (09:01). Scenic viewpoint (09:09). Lucille Anne stands with another white woman and two uniformed Japanese men (09:22). Views of housing and trees (09:29). Water (09:36). Lucille Anne, the second white woman, and the two uniformed Japanese men walk across a bridge (09:44). Views of the Japanese countryside from a moving vehicle (09:50). Stationed US soldiers’ family members seen on a train station (11:06). A Japanese woman with two children (11:17). A crowd of children, primarily Japanese (11:24). People walking in a public square (11:31). Views of the Japanese countryside from a moving vehicle (11:45). People waiting at a train station platform (12:23). A train leaves the station (12:30). Various traditional Japanese architectural structures (12:36). Women and Army officers walk from a train station to a parked car (13:03). A U.S. Army change of command ceremony (?)(13:18).