Ventura County historian Charles F. Outland was born in Santa Paula on August 30, 1910. Due to his keen interest in local history, Outland began collecting books and historical materials and later became actively involved in the Ventura County Historical Society. He worked as editor of the Ventura County Historical Society Quarterly, oversaw the society's publications and authored several articles and books. Outland's most well-known book Man-Made Disaster (1963) remains one of the most respected historical works on the St. Francis Dam disaster of 1928. This collection comprises materials and books collected by Outland, mainly on Ventura County history. Materials include photographs, negatives, audio tapes, correspondence, research files and notes, photocopies of primary source materials, and ephemera.

Ventura County historian Charles F. Outland was born in Santa Paula on August 30, 1910. He grew up in an agricultural family in Santa Paula. He attended Whittier College and Boston University. He returned to Ventura County after college and married Harriet Roberts in 1933.

11.55 Cubic Feet (9 boxes)

Property rights to the physical object belong to the Museum of Ventura County. Literary rights, including copyright, are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright and pursue the copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where the museum does not hold the copyright.

COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE: Open for research. All requests to access materials must be made in advance by contacting the Research Library staff at library@venturamuseum.org.