The son of Sicilian immigrants, Sam Million speaks extensively about his parents and their struggles as immigrants in a new country. He enlisted in the Army in October of 1946, and by early 1948 was assigned to Sugamo Prison in Tokyo, where those Japanese accused of war crimes were imprisoned. He spent six months on suicide watch over General Hideki Tojo, the former Japanese Prime Minister.
Interview Links
Abstract
Feature Excerpt
Japanese Marine Cigarettes
Interview Session 01 (Audio)
Army veteran who was stationed at Sugamo Prison guarding Japanese war criminals in 1947: Early Life
Interview Session 02 (Audio)
Army veteran who was stationed at Sugamo Prison guarding Japanese war criminals in 1947: War Years
Interview Session 03 (Audio)
Army veteran who was stationed at Sugamo Prison guarding Japanese war criminals in 1947: General Tojo's Dentures
Transcript
Photos
Caption
Joseph Million circa 1900 while living in Brooklyn, New York.
Where:
Brooklyn, New York
When:
1900
Ownership:
Narrator’s photo
Caption
Joseph Million circa 1900 while living in Brooklyn, New York.
Where:
Brooklyn, New York
When:
circa 1900
Ownership:
Narrator’s photo
Caption
Sam Million, age three, circa 1929. The family lived in Auburn, Illinois at the time.
Where:
Auburn, Illinois
When:
circa 1929
Ownership:
Narrator’s photo
Caption
Betty Jo and Sam Million (twins) circa 1934. Springfield, Illinois.
Where:
Springfield, Illinois.
When:
circa 1934
Ownership:
May be restricted. Patrons desiring to use this photograph should contact the ALPL Audio-Visual Curator.
Caption
Million family portrait in 1933. Front row, left to right: Marie, Mom, Pop, Betty, Rose. Back row, left to right: Frances, Santina, John, Margaret, Lena.
Where:
Unknown
When:
1933
Ownership:
Narrator’s photo
Caption
Joseph Million in 1940 while he served as a delegate to the Illinois State Republican Convention.
Where:
Unknown
When:
1940
Ownership:
May be restricted. Patrons desiring to use this photograph should contact the ALPL Audio-Visual Curator.
Caption
Joseph Million circa 1940 in Springfield, Illinois at 1000 N. Fifth Street.
Where:
Springfield, Illinois
When:
circa 1940
Ownership:
Narrator’s photo
Caption
Sam Million as he appeared in his Lanphier High School class yearbook.
Where:
Unknown
When:
Unknown
Ownership:
Public domain
Caption
Sam served as the treasurer for his sophomore class at Lanphier High School
Where:
Unknown
When:
Unknown
Ownership:
Public domain
Caption
Sam Million on his wedding day, October 7th, 1950. Sam with his parents Katherine and Joseph Million. Sam married Joan Hadley at the United Methodist Church in Springfield, Illinois.
Where:
United Methodist Church in Springfield, Illinois
When:
October 7th, 1950
Ownership:
Narrator’s photo
Caption
Katherine Million circa 1969-1970. She was living at her daughter Margaret’s house at the time.
Where:
Unknown
When:
circa 1969-1970
Ownership:
Narrator’s photo
Caption
Katherine Million with one of Pete’s children in circa 1969-1970.
Where:
Unknown
When:
circa 1969-1970
Ownership:
Narrator’s photo
Caption
Private Sam Million, circa September 1947 at Sugamo Prison.
Where:
Sugamo Prison
When:
September 1947
Ownership:
Public domain
Caption
Sam Million, Johnny Green, unknown soldier and Donald Faivre, taken at Camp Sugamo Prison circa September 1947.
Where:
Camp Sugamo Prison
When:
circa September 1947
Ownership:
Narrator’s photo
Caption
Sam Million in 1947 at Quonset Hut, Sugamo Prison.
Where:
Quonset Hut, Sugamo Prison
When:
1947
Ownership:
Narrator’s photo
Caption
Sam Million in 1947 at Quonset Hut, Sugamo Prison.
Where:
Quonset Hut, Sugamo Prison
When:
1947
Ownership:
Narrator’s photo
Caption
Sam Million, Berg, Lester Wahlen, and Carmen Ahart at Sugamo Prison in October 1947.
Where:
Sugamo Prison
When:
October 1947
Ownership:
(Narrator’s photo)
Caption
Sam Million in 1947 at Sugamo Prison.
Where:
Sugamo Prison
When:
1947
Ownership:
Narrator’s photo
Caption
Red Cross Club on Christmas Eve, 1947. Sam Million is flanked by the Phillip twins.
Where:
Unknown
When:
Christmas Eve, 1947
Ownership:
Narrator’s photo
Caption
Ice Rink in Tokyo, Japan in November 1947. Pictured left to right are Sam Million, Clemont Robbins and Harry Dunn.
Where:
Ice Rink in Tokyo, Japan
When:
November 1947
Ownership:
Narrator’s photo
Caption
Million in Hawaii en route to Japan in February 1947.
Where:
Hawaii
When:
February 1947
Ownership:
(Narrator’s photo)
Caption
Camp Stoneman, California. Million with James Sullivan Campbell, in January 1947.
Where:
Camp Stoneman, California
When:
January 1947.
Ownership:
(Narrator’s photo)
Caption
Million looks through the bars of the entrance to Sugamo Prison.
Where:
Sugamo Prison
When:
Unknown
Ownership:
(Narrator’s photo)
Caption
General Hideki Tojo about to board bus at Sugamo Prison on his way to trial. Tojo can be seen through the prison bars, being escorted by American MPs sometime in 1947.
Where:
Sugamo Prison
When:
1947
Ownership:
Narrator’s photo
Caption
Reverse of the photo of Tojo boarding a bus at Sugamo Prison. Signature of Yoshijiro Umeza and Mamoru Shigemitsu in English and Japanese.
Where:
Unknown
When:
Unknown
Ownership:
Narrator’s photo
Caption
Intricate drawing of a Japanese geisha drawn by one of the prisoners and given to Sam Million. The pen used was made of feathers while the ink was made of crushed berries.
Where:
Unknown
When:
Unknown
Ownership:
Public domain
Caption
A Japanese ‘red ball’ silk flag which Sam Million had signed by the war high ranking war criminals being held at Sugamo prison while he served as a jailor there. The prisoners consisted of a Japanese war cabinet of 25 men.
Where:
Unknown
When:
Unknown
Ownership:
Public domain
Caption
Flag Provenance, page 1.
Where:
Unknown
When:
Unknown
Ownership:
Narrator’s document
Caption
Flag Provenance, page 2.
Where:
Unknown
When:
Unknown
Ownership:
Narrator’s document
Caption
Flag Provenance, page 3.
Where:
Unknown
When:
Unknown
Ownership:
Narrator’s document
Caption
Flag Provenance, page 4.
Where:
Unknown
When:
Unknown
Ownership:
Narrator’s document
Caption
A Sugamo Reunion was held in St Louis Missouri in the 1990s. Sam Million with Clemont Robbins and Harry Dunn.
Where:
St Louis Missouri
When:
1990s
Ownership:
Narrator’s photo
Caption
Sam Million on the day of the interview in October, 2009
Where:
Unknown
When:
October, 2009
Ownership:
Public domain