Dates

• Existence: 1924-

Biographical History

Masao (Art) Nerio (1924- ) is a Japanese American, former Brigham Young University student (1943-1945), business/real estate investor, and former owner of a southern California airport.

Masao Nerio is the eldest son of Japanese immigrants, Koichi and Toyo Nerio. During World War II, the Nerio family was interned at the Rohwer War Relocation Center in Arkansas, but Masao was able to attend BYU between 1943 and 1945. Brigham Young University was one of the few colleges that accepted Japanese Americans during the war, and Masao was one of seven Japanese American BYU students at that time.

After the war years, the Nerio family farm was still intact. Masao worked in the early morning hours to bring produce such as chives or red leaf lettuce to supermarket buyers. In 1947, the Nerio family bought the now closed Meadowlark Airport in Huntington Beach, California. Masao actively managed Meadowlark for nearly two decades (1970-1989). He still resides in Huntington Beach, California.

Citation:

Letter to President Samuelson, Jan 17, 2013 (Japanese American; Brigham Young University 1943-1945; current residence, Huntington Beach, CA)

Ancestry.com, U.S. Public Records Index Vol.1, viewed Feb 12, 2013 (Art Nerio; b. 1924)

Cal State Fullerton, News: In the Community, "Family Legacy to Support Building of OC Agricultural and Nikkei Heritage Museum" (May 8 2003), viewed Feb. 12, 2013 (Japanese emigrants; Meadowlark Airport, Huntington Beach, CA)

E-mail from Patricia Nerio, Oct. 20, 2019 (Masao (Art) Nerio; managed Meadowlark Airport, 1970-1989; eldest son of Japanese immigrants; student at BYU during World War II, 1943-1945; during World War II interned in Rohwer, Arkansas; Nerio family purchased Meadowlark Airport in Huntington Beach, California in 1947; Art Nerio managed and operated airport, 1970-1989; resides in Huntington Beach, California)

Found in 1 Collection or Record: