Judo in the United States however, the lecture had little effect on mainstream judo growth. The first American to actually study judo was Prof. Ladd from Yale University, in 1889. He trained at the Kodokan in Japan for about ten years; by 1908 about 13 Americans were training there. In 1919, Prof. John Dewey of Columbia University came to visit Prof. Ladd and Master Kano, many years later he took his knowledge back to Columbia and began the first U.S. college judo program. While some students were training in Japan there was some action in the U.S. Perhaps one of the most important figures in
Judo in the United States the naval academy. Judo suddenly had its first strong roots in the United States. Yoshiaki decided to return to Japan, but other Japanese Judo participants followed his example. The judo concentration was mainly centered in Washington before World War II, but several centers existed on the west coast, including Tokugoro Ito's dojo in Los Angeles, which was founded in 1910. Judo first entered the Western United States when Dr. T Ito began teaching Judo in Denver in the 1930s. During World War II Judo was banned in many areas due to the Japanese fear; however, a boom followed the war.