George A. Butler (1911.9～1974.2)

 George Butler was born in San Francisco and grew up in the shipyard town of Vallejo, California.  He entered college in at the beginning of the world-wide Depression in 1929 at the College of the Pacific in Stockton, CA.   After years of working and study he eventually earned a master’s degree in zoology with an interest in marine animals in 1936.  Recently married he took a teaching position at a high school in Northern California.  George entered the US Army in 1942.  At that time, the Army was in desperate need of doctors. Because of his science background, he had nearly all the prerequisites for medical school and attended medical school for the duration of the war. Recalled to the US Army for the Korean War, he spent March 1951 to April 1952 in Japan. Dr. Butler was the the Surgeon for the 578th Combat Engineering Battalion at Camp Matsushima, Japan. After his Army service, he was a public health doctor in Southern California.  He later took a position at Sonoma State Hospital  in Northern California and eventually became Superintendent and Medical Director.  He died of a heart attack in February of 1974 at the age of 62. During his time in Japan he developed a deep appreciation for all things Japanese. He collected pottery, prints, and locally made furniture while in Japan. At his home, he developed a large Japanese garden in his home with a small tea house / art studio and grew and tended over 200 bonsai trees.

Website Curator: Alan Butler　(1949～)

I was born in Southern California.  My family relocated to Berkeley, California while my father was serving in Japan and Korea. I grew up in Santa Rosa,Northern California in a house with many Japanese accents. I studied Fine Arts and Architecture in college. I joined an architectural firm in Santa Rosa, California and became a firm principal in 1995.  The focus of my work was architecture for colleges and other institutions of higher education with a strong emphasis on college library design. I retired in 2018.  I continue to take many photographs, sketch architecture, and maintain the Miyagi 1951 website and exhibits.