There is a house on Lemon Street in Riverside with a Riverside City Landmark (#23), a California State Historical Landmark (#1060), and a National Historic Landmark. The house was the home of the Harada family. Sumi Harada, a remarkable woman, was the family member who resided in the home the longest and an amazing woman to feature during Women’s History Month.
Jukichi and Ken Harada and their young son, Masa Atsu, settled in Riverside in 1905, to find work and raise their family. Within a few years, the Haradas managed several rooming houses and operated the Washington Restaurant. By 1912 Jukichi and Ken had five children, four of whom were born in Riverside. After their son, Tadao died of diphtheria at the age of five, the family sought a less crowded residence.
In December 1915, Jukichi purchased a house on Lemon Street between Third and Fourth Street but placed the names of three of his children, Mine, Sumi, and Yoshizo, on the deed. These children, all born in the United States and thus American citizens, were nine, five, and three years old at the time. The story behind this decision and the subsequent court case before the Riverside Superior Court is a story of its own. The sixth and youngest child, Harold, was born in the front bedroom of the house on Lemon Street…