George Kerr lived in Japan and Formosa before World
War II. As a Lieutenant in the United States Naval Reserve he organized
and directed research and publication of materials to be used by Civil
Affairs officers after an anticipated invasion of the island. He returned
to Formosa in 1945 as an Assistant Naval Attache, escorting the first Chinese
Governor-General to the Japanese surrender at Taipei. He later returned
as a Foreign Service Staff Officer and Vice-Consul, remaining at Taipei
until the massacre of 1947.
He has lectured in Japanese History at the University of Washington,
Stanford University and the University of California at Berkeley. He is
the author of Okinawa: The History of an Island People (1958)
and of many articles concerning Japan, Okinawa and Formosa.
He died on Aug. 27, 1992 at age of 81 in Honolulu, Hawaii.
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