The Rohwer Heritage Site located in Tillar, Desha County, Arkansas is a crucial piece of American history that whispers tales from World War II. Once home to more than 8,000 Japanese Americans forcibly removed from their homes, this site stands as an eerie testament to one of the darkest chapters of American history.

Picture over 500 acres encircled by a menacing chain of barbed wire, guarded round-the-clock by armed forces. Rohwer was operational for nearly four years, making it one of the longest-standing internment camps during World War II. The echoes of its past still resound in the wind that swirls across its desolate plains, carrying with it the cries and murmurs of a time when fear overshadowed reason.

Between 1942 and 1945, Rohwer housed a thriving community comprised primarily of school-age children who attended their classes within the confines of the camp. These young minds were subject to an unusual form of education, one shaped by the hard realities of forced incarceration.

The memorial cemetery at Rohwer is among only three existing Japanese American confinement site memorials in the United States. Each headstone stands as a silent sentinel, bearing witness to the lives lived and lost within these barbed wires. The stories they tell are poignant, heart-wrenching, and integral to understanding this significant chapter of American history.

The Rohwer Relocation Center Memorial Cemetery is located in Desha County, southeastern Arkansas. Nestled 65 miles southeast of Pine Bluff on the Great Road National Scenic Byway, it rests at an elevation of 140 feet, approximately 110 miles southeast of Little Rock and 11 miles north of McGehee.

This solitary monument stands as a stark reminder of the past. A place where history whispers its secrets in hushed tones, where echoes of anguish still linger in the air, and where each headstone tells a story that must never be forgotten.