The silver community center is one of the last remaining buildings at Manzanar. It how houses the visitor center.

Manzanar's population reached a peak of more than 10,000.

The camp covered 540 acres and was surrounded by a barbed-wire fence and eight watchtowers. It had 36 residential blocks with 14 barracks each. Each block had a mess hall, a recreation hall, two communal bathhouses, and a laundry room.. Most of the buildings were flimsily constructed of wood frame, board, and tarpaper. Dust blew in through cracks in the walls and floor. Heat could not be conserved for winter, nor coolness provided in summer. In contrast to the spectacular beauty which surrounded the camp, living conditions could only be described of as really bad. Privacy was not possible for anyone or any family.