Descendants learn more about Carolina’s first Japanese graduate
More than a century after his 1918 graduation, 13 members of Kameichi Kato’s family visited his alma mater.
Tucked among the usual sports wins and academic accomplishments in the 1918 Yackety Yack is a notable first. Senior Kameichi Kato was the first Japanese student to complete a regular four-year course at Carolina.
This October, more than a century after Kato’s graduation, 13 members of his family traveled to North Carolina to visit the university that meant so much to him.
(Submitted photo)
Building bridges at Carolina
A native of Hiroshima, Kato traveled to America as an adult. Documents from Wilson Library indicate that he likely moved to the U.S. in the early 1900s and was admitted to the University in 1914. Four years later, Kato graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree and a certificate in economics.
In 1917, Kato co-founded the Epsilon Phi Delta fraternity, created “for the purpose of studying Japanese-American relations in order to increase understanding and friendship between their nations,” according to The Tar Heel.
Kato was associate editor of Carolina’s University Magazine and wrote several articles discussing relations between the U.S. and Japan. “Friendship between nations as well as individuals will never be permanent, unless it is built upon a mutual understanding,” Kato wrote. “Let us first know each other, and decide for ourselves whether we shall be friends or enemies.”
North Carolina is where he met his future wife, Toshio Sato, 1920 valedictorian and the first international graduate of Elon College in 1920. In October, Elon dedicated the Toshio Sato Commons in her honor, the impetus for the Kato family’s visit to both schools.
“Visiting my grandparents’ alma mater[s] had long been a distant dream,” said Masako Kakuta, Kato’s granddaughter. “The kindness and hospitality extended to us will be remembered and passed down as part of the Kato family’s history for generations to come.”
(Submitted photo)
Connections in the community
In Chapel Hill, the family members toured campus and viewed archival documents from Kato’s time at Carolina.
“We were…fascinated by the yearbooks and newspaper articles related to Kameichi, which gave us a vivid picture of his life in North Carolina,” said Yusuke Kato, Kato’s grandson and physics professor at the University of Tokyo. “Our visit to Chapel Hill was truly a memorable experience for all of us.”
Kato worked in New York in the early 1920s. The couple married in Japan in 1922, moved there in 1930 and had four children. Kato worked in the fur trade before co-founding a successful fur business of his own.
The family reportedly lost everything during World War II. Following the death of her husband in 1949, Toshio served as a translator and worked at U.S. Army and Air Force bases in Japan until 1960. She died in 1968 at 71.
(Submitted photo)
A lasting legacy
Kato’s story highlights the longstanding importance of international collaboration at UNC-Chapel Hill, said Heather Ward, associate provost for global affairs.
“We know that Carolina is the nation’s oldest public university and among the best in the U.S. and in the world,” Ward said, “but it’s less well known that students fr
om around the globe have sought out a Carolina education for some 130 years.”
The 13 family members included four grandchildren, five great-grandchildren, two great-great grandchildren and a couple of the descendants’ spouses.
“We do not know what led him, coming from Hiroshima, to choose [this] esteemed institution,” granddaughter Kakuta said. “However, through this visit, I was able to experience firsthand the wonderful environment of the school and the warmth of everyone I met. This has reaffirmed my belief that my grandfather made the right choice, and I am certain that he, too, enjoyed a fulfilling student life surrounded by such kindness.”
