Henry William O'Melveny Collection: Finding Aid mssOM
Brooke M. Black
The Huntington Library
October 2020
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, California 91108
Business Number: (626) 405-2191
reference@huntington.org
Note
Finding aid last updated by Melissa Haley, 26 September 2023.
Contributing Institution:
The Huntington Library
Title: Henry William O'Melveny collection
Creator:
O'Melveny, H. W. (Henry William), 1859-1941
Identifier/Call Number: mssOM
Physical Description:
58 Linear Feet
(53 boxes, 52 volumes, 4 rolls, 2 objects)
Date (inclusive): 1885-1940
Abstract: Papers belonging to Henry William O'Melveny, founder of the Los Angeles law firm that would become O'Melveny and Myers.
Language of Material: Materials are in English.
Conditions Governing Access
Open for use by qualified researchers and by appointment. Please contact Reader Services at the Huntington Library for more
information.
Conditions Governing Use
The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from or publish images of this material,
nor does it charge fees for such activities. The responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and
obtaining necessary permissions rests with the researcher.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item]. Henry William O'Melveny collection, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of John O'Melveny, 1954.
Biographical / Historical
Henry William O'Melveny (1859-1941) was born in Illinois; when he was 10 years old, his family moved to Los Angeles, California.
He graduated from the University of California at Berkeley in 1879. For two years he served as Deputy District Attorney and
in 1885 he founded the firm Graves and O'Melveny with Jackson A. Graves. The firm would undergo a total of nine name changes,
always including the name O'Melveny, before becoming O'Melveny and Myers in 1939. O'Melveny held several civic positions including
President of the Los Angeles Civil Service Commission and from 1908 to 1910, and he was also a member of the Los Angeles Public
Library Board. He was President of the Dominguez Water Company and Vice-President of the Los Angeles Trust and Savings Bank.
O'Melveny married Marie Antoinette Schilling in 1887; they had three children, Stuart, Donald, and John. In 2000, O'Melveny
and Myers was the third largest law firm in Los Angeles and are now considered the oldest firm in the city.
Scope and Contents
A collection of material related to Henry William O'Melveny and his various law firms. The collection includes correspondence,
business files, financial documents, business volumes and journals. Significant persons and businesses in the collection include,
among others: Arcadia Bandini; the Dominguez family; Jackson A. Graves; American National Red Cross; Graves, O'Melveny and
Shankland; Miller and Lux; O'Melveny and Myers, and Pacific Light and Power Corporation (Los Angeles, Calif.).
Processing Information
Processed by Huntington Library staff. In 2020, Brooke M. Black created a finding aid.
General
Individual call numbers included in the collection: mssOM 1-1827.
Related Materials
The Huntington Library also holds the papers of O'Melveny's first partner Jackson A. Graves (mssGraves).
Arrangement
Arranged in the following series: Correspondence; Business Files; Journals; Miscellaneous.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Hydroelectric power-plants -- California
Land titles -- California -- Los Angeles County
Law firms -- California -- Los Angeles
Lawyers -- California -- Correspondence
Lawyers -- California -- Los Angeles -- Archives
Real property -- California -- Los Angeles
World War, 1914-1918 -- War work
Los Angeles (Calif.) -- History -- 19th century -- Sources
Los Angeles (Calif.) -- History -- 20th century -- Sources
Business papers -- California -- 19th century
Business papers -- California -- 20th century
Journals (accounts) -- California -- 19th century
Journals (accounts) -- California -- 20th century
Legal files -- California -- 19th century
Legal files -- California -- 20th century
Letters (correspondence) -- California -- 19th century
Letters (correspondence) -- California -- 20th century
Bandini, Arcadia, 1825-1912
Dominguez family
Graves, J. A. (Jackson Alpheus), 1852-1933
American National Red Cross
Graves, O'Melveny and Shankland
Miller & Lux
O'Melveny & Myers
Pacific Light and Power Corporation (Los Angeles, Calif.)
Box 19, Box 20
War correspondence and letters of recommendation
1917-1918
Box 23
Red Cross and Miscellaneous
Box 24
Army rec. camps and Liberty loan
Box 25, Box 26
Arcadia Bandini de Baker and Mrs. Johnson
Box 27, Box 28
Mentone Power Co. and Rancho Verde title papers
Box 35
Kerckhoff/Pacific Light and Power, San Luis Rey, water and land rights
Box 36
Income taxes and Arcadia Bandini de Baker
Box 37
Mrs. Francis, H. W. O'Melveny, and Fresno City Water Co.
Box 39
Callaghan estate, Sierra Power, Garnier
Box 40
Miller & Lux v. Kern River Co., Mrs. Francis, O'Melveny, and San Joaquin Power Co.
Box 41
Industrial realty, personal matters, R. F. S. Dodson and others
Box 42
Chino Land & Water Co., Francis, O'Melveny, Dolge/San Gabriel Wine, water locations, and Santa Barbara
Box 44
Baker tax receipts
1899-1911
Box 45
Francis: tax receipts, street assessments
Box 46
H. W. O'Melveny, Coulter estate, G. M. Dominguez, Dolores Bandini de Johnson, and Dolores B. de Ward
1910-1922
Box 47
H. W. O'Melveny: diary, notes, notes on Kent, notes on Blackstone, journal, "Solitude"
1874-1940
Box 48
Graves & O'Melveny: Lawyer's commonplace book, ledger, and check stubs; O'Melveny: check stubs, statement of account, cancelled
checks; receipts on building contracts, 12th & Figueroa (S-219)
1885-1919
Box 49
Baker, Francis and Dominguez accounts
1900-1902
Box 50
Stuart O'Melveny and Mrs. O'Melveny cancelled checks
Box 52
Business papers, receipts, certificates, and diplomas
Scope and Contents
Oversize box.
Volume 52
Chains of title for various properties up through 1922
Box 53
War correspondence, letters of recommendation,
1917-1918
Object 1
"Baker Tax Receipts"
Scope and Contents
A tin box with the name stenciled on the front.
Roll 1, Roll 2, Roll 3, Roll 4
Scrolls, maps of Beverly Hills, Dominguez properties, plans of O'Melveny residence
