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Foreign Minister of Japan presents Commendation to Japan-America Society of NH



Japanese Consul General Tsutomu Himeno presents the Foreign Minister's Commendation to JASNH vice president Sawako Gardner (right, on stage) and Peter Bowman, JASNH Board member and Charles B. Doleac, JASNH president. The Ceremony took place at Wentworth By the Sea Hotel where in 1905 the Japanese peace conference delegation hosted an appreciation banquet the night before the Portsmouth Peace Treaty was signed at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard.



Press release (July 28, 2014) issued by the Consulate General of Japan in Boston:

Beginning in 1994 and in many subsequent years, the Society organized the Portsmouth Peace Treaty Forum.  In 2005, as part of the year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Portsmouth Peace Treaty organized by JASNH, the Society created an exhibit now displayed in the Portsmouth Historical Society Museum, created a website that is a scholarly resource for information about the Portsmouth Peace Treaty negotiations, devised the Portsmouth Peace Treaty Trail, together with maps to key sites in the history of the Peace Treaty negotiations, and sponsored a Teacher’s Guide to the Portsmouth Peace Treaty for grades 4-12.

In 2010, a bill initiated by the Japan-America Society of New Hampshire was passed by the New Hampshire Legislature and signed into law by the Governor  making Sept. 5--the day that the Portsmouth Peace Treaty was signed in 1905--Portsmouth Peace Treaty Day throughout the state.  Also on Sept. 5 every year, the Society ensures that bells are rung throughout the city as an acknowledgement of the important role that the people of Portsmouth played in facilitating the negotiations in the summer of 1905.  In 2013, in collaboration with the City of Portsmouth, the Japan-America Society installed an historic marker to the Peace Treaty in the center of the city. In addition, the Society has been an active participant in the Portsmouth-Nichinan Sister City relationship and in the creation of the Portsmouth Peace Treaty Living Memorial of cherry trees planted around the state.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan decided to award the Foreign Minister’s Commendation to the Japan-America Society of New Hampshire to show its support for the activities of the Society, and in recognition of the many years of service that the Society has performed on behalf of promoting Japan-U.S. exchange and furthering mutual understanding between the countries.

On receiving news of the Commendation, Japan America Society of NH president, Charles B. Doleac commented, “We are honored that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs commends the efforts of the Japan-America Society of NH to strengthen the tradition of citizen diplomacy in New Hampshire. People-to-people efforts, like those demonstrated in Portsmouth during the Treaty proceedings of 1905, are still the most important foundations for peace we have.”



For a month's view Calendar, click here.

The Japan-America Society is the 501c3 nonprofit that supports the efforts of the Portsmouth Peace Treaty Forum. To join, click here.

© Richard Haynes
Haynes Images

For information about ordering fine art prints of this Treaty Centennial symbol, and other commemorative items, click here.


For information about the Russia Society of New Hampshire, write to
PO Box 177
Concord NH 03302-0177

For a Russian-language description of the Treaty exhibit click here.

For the Russian-language Library of Congress description of the Treaty of Portsmouth, click here.

 

 News and Links

To learn nore, the following books are available:

Heroes & Friends: Behind the Scenes of the Treaty of Portsmouth by Michiko Nakanishi

There Are No Victors Here: A Local Perspective on the Treaty of Portsmouth by Peter E. Randall

Also available:

An Uncommon Commitment to Peace Exhibit Catalogue published by the Japan-America Society of NH

Blessed Are the Peacemakers: The Service of Thanksgiving for the Portsmouth Treaty, September 5, 1905 by Marina Grot Turkevich Naumann

Original 1905 newsreel footage on DVD

Treaty of Portsmouth 1905-2005 book of reproduction historical postcards.

The Portsmouth Peace Process: Guide for Teachers by Northeast Cultural Coop

Portsmouth Peace Treaty Trail

For hours, directions, details on the Portsmouth Historical Society museum where the Portsmouth Peace Treaty exhibit is displayed, click here.

For hours, directions, details on Strawbery Banke Museum and the Shapiro House, owned by one of the founders of Temple Israel who figured in the Treaty citizen diplomacy, click here.

For information about Portsmouth Naval Shipyard and Building 86 where the formal negotiations were held. click here.

For more information about Wentworth By the Sea Hotel, where both delegations stayed, click here.

For more information about Green Acre Bahai School and Sarah Farmer's commitment to the peace process, click here.

The Portsmouth Public Library maintains an micorfilm archive of local newspapers and an index of the relevant Treaty reporting and other related materials. The archive of original newspapers, photographs and other documents is maintained by the Portsmouth Athenaeum.

 

 


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