Finding aid for the Southern Pacific Milling Company. MVC062
Finding aid prepared by Krystell Jimenez, 2021.
This finding aid was made possible in part through funding from the County of Ventura and the Heritage Fund at the Ventura
County Community Foundation
Museum of Ventura County
March 2021
100 East Main Street
Ventura, CA 93001
library@venturamuseum.org
Contributing Institution:
Museum of Ventura County
Title: Southern Pacific Milling Company records
Identifier/Call Number: MVC062
Physical Description:
9.45 Cubic Feet
8 boxes (7 cartons, 1 legal document box)
Date (inclusive): 1887-1988
Abstract: The Southern Pacific Milling Company (SP Milling) was primarily a milling and quarrying company that had operations in several
locations throughout California's central coast, with major operations in El Rio and in Ventura. The company was active from
around 1886 to 1995. In the 1950s the company took over the business of the Santa Barbara Mill and Lumber Company. In the
1960s, SP Milling and a subsidiary became more involved in the quarrying, concrete and gravel businesses. This collection
includes company records for SP Milling related to company policies, fire prevention, equipment maintenance, land holdings,
and other company business. Materials include meeting minutes, valuation and appraisal reports, operating manual, by-laws,
stock certificates, correspondence, employee health and welfare reports, photographs of various sites and equipment, aerial
shots of land, employees' files, and tax records.
Physical Location: Stored off-site and advance notice required for timely retrieval. Please contact the Research Library reference desk prior
to your visit library@venturamuseum.org
Language of Material: Materials are in English.
Conditions Governing Access
COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE: Open for research. Certain employee records may be restricted. All requests to access materials
must be made in advance by contacting the Research Library staff via email: library@venturamuseum.org
Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use
Property rights to the physical object belong to the Museum of Ventura County. Literary rights, including copyright, have
not been determined. Contact the Research Library for further information: library@venturamuseum.org
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Southern Pacific Milling Company, (Collection MVC062), Museum of Ventura County, Research Library,
Ventura, California.
Provenance/Source of Acquisition
Ronald Clemore; gift; 1997.
Processing Information
Processed by Krystell Jimenez, 2021.
Our collections are processed using MPLP methods so that we can prioritize access for users and identify potential priorities
for more detailed processing. If while using our collections you think there is something that should be added or amended
in the finding aid, we welcome your input. You can notify staff in the reading room or send us an email at library@venturamuseum.org.
Be sure to include the collection number and name and the box number you were working with in your email.
Biographical / Historical
The Southern Pacific Milling Company (SP Milling) was primarily a milling and quarrying company that had operations in several
locations throughout California's central coast, with major operations in El Rio and in Ventura. The company was active from
around 1886 to 1995. SP Milling had grain warehouses in Santa Paula, Salinas, San Luis Obispo, Lompoc, Paso Robles, and Guadalupe,
among other locations. In the 1950s the company took over the business of the Santa Barbara Mill and Lumber Company. In the
1960s, SP Milling and a subsidiary became more involved in the quarrying, concrete and gravel businesses. The company largely
produced rock and sand, and had concrete services in San Luis Obispo and northern Santa Barbara county. The main plant was
in Ventura County in the El Rio area.
Scope and Contents
This collection includes company records for SP Milling related to company policies, fire prevention, equipment maintenance,
land holdings, and other company business. Materials include meeting minutes, valuation and appraisal reports, operating manual,
by-laws, stock certificates, correspondence, employee health and welfare reports, photographs of various sites and equipment,
aerial shots of land, employees' files, and tax records.
Organization and Arrangement
This collection is organized at the collection level and has box-level description. The photographs are in original order.
Separated Materials
There was a white and maroon trucker hat that was originally with the collection. It has been transferred to the object collection.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Grain trade
Lumber trade
Concrete products industry
Sand and gravel -- mines and mining
Box 1
Correspondence, employee files, and other records
1954-1988
Scope and Contents
This box contains employee files regarding disability and medical leave; the company's time reporting policies for drivers;
maintenance records; fire prevention measures; the company's tax records; job training materials; the contents of a binder
containing records of deeds and parcels of land; various correspondence; and health and welfare reports for different classes
of employees. The disability and medical leave records are restricted.
Box 2
Meeting minutes ledgers
1949 August 29 - 1956 May 8
Scope and Contents
This box contains meeting minutes for the board of directors and shareholders, including volumes 3-8.
Box 3
Meeting minute books and reports
1946-1949, 1956-1959
Scope and Contents
This box contains meeting minutes for the board of directors and shareholders for the period 1956-1959, including volumes
9-12; minutes for a special meeting in which the Santa Barbara Mill and Lumber Company was dissolved and its holdings transferred
to the Southern Pacific Milling Company; and a valuation report and appraisal of building, machinery and equipment for the
Santa Barbara Mill and Lumber Company.
Box 4
Appraisals, manual, indexes, and stock certificates
1887-1906, 1931-1963
Scope and Contents
This box contains a volume titled "Appraisement. Southern Pacific Milling Company. Volume 1 (Camarillo, Santa Barbara, Goleta,
Lompoc, La Salle, Guadalupe) General Appraisal Company", dated 1953; an operating manual with materials dated 1957-1963; a
set of indexes for meeting minutes, bonds and shareholders addresses, and names; the company's by-laws from 1947; an abstract
of title book for Santa Barbara from the Wright Abstract Company, circa 1903; two stock certificate books, dated 1887-1906;
unidentified ledger of transactions and income, 1935-1942.
Box 5
By-laws and meeting minute books
1889-1931, 1946-1953
Scope and Contents
This box contains the by-laws and meeting minutes for the Salinas Valley Lumber Company, dated 1889-1915; a volume containing
minutes, by-laws, transfer records, and an index and an appraisal report for the Santa Barbara Mill and Lumber Company, dated
1946-1953; minutes for a special directors meeting during which the Santa Barbara Mill and Lumber Company was dissolved and
its holding transferred to the Southern Pacific Milling Company, dated 1953; and 3 meeting minute books for the Southern Pacific
Milling Company, dated 1920-1931 and 1946-1947.
Box 6
Capital assets ledger
1923-1974
Scope and Contents
This box contains the contents of ledger titled "Transfer of Capital Assets Written off at Various Times." The volume was
originally 10 inches thick. The original front and back cover are included in the box.
Box 7
Photographs of company sites and assets
circa 1950 - 1984
Scope and Contents
This box contains photographs and notes of various sites operated by the company, as well as equipment, staff, and aerial
shots of land.
Box 8
Meeting minutes books
1931 July -1948 May
Scope and Contents
This box contains meeting minutes and by-laws for the Southern Pacific Milling Company. Two of the volumes note that the company
was formerly the California Pacific Development Corporation.