Members of the 10th Battalion pose for a portrait. Masumi Mitsui is seated on the far left in the middle row. The man seated on the ground on the right is his friend Kumakichi Oura, who would be killed in action.
Despite efforts early in the war to organize Japanese-Canadian volunteers, Prime Minister Robert Borden would not accept an all-Japanese battalion. Gradually the men were able to enlist individually in Alberta due to low quota numbers and their own perseverance.
The 192nd Battalion went to France in November 1916 to reinforce the 10th Battalion. All Japanese volunteers would see action in the Battle of Vimy Ridge.
