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INVENTORY OF THE DOMINGUEZ LAND CORPORATION,
1911-1950, bulk 1912-1927
Consult repository.
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Table of contents
Title: Dominguez Land Corporation Collection,
Dates: 1911-1950,
Collection Number: Consult repository.
Creator:
Dominguez Land Corporation
Extent:
35 boxes
[17.5 linear ft]
Repository: California State University, Dominguez Hills
Archives and Special Collections
Archives & Special Collection
University Library, Room G-145
1000 E. Victoria Street
Carson, California 90747
Phone: (310) 243-3013
URL: http://www.csudh.edu/archives/csudh/index.html
Abstract:
Records of the Dominguez Land Company (1911-1941). Included in the collection are contracts and grant deeds
detailing the sale of land throughout the city of Torrance, CA, as well as related correspondence and legal
documentation. Also includes documentation of the history of the Dominguez Land Corporation, and details of
its sale to Remco-Real Estate Management Company in 1941.
Language: Collection material is in English
There are no access restrictions on this collection.
All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Director of Archives
and Special Collections. Permission for publication is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical
materials and not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.
[Title of item], Dominguez Land Corporation Collection, Courtesy of the Department of Archives and Special Collections. University
Library. California State University, Dominguez Hills
The collection was donated by Remco-Real Estate Management Company in 2009.
The collection was processed by Erin Kurinsky and Kim Cameron, 2010.
The Dominguez Land Company was originally formed in 1911 under the leadership of Jared Sidney Torrance,
who was company president. Original stockholders included Merris Hellman, Joseph F. Sartori, John S. Cravens,
Dr. W. Jarvis Barlow, and Torrance. In 1911, they purchased 2,792 acres of land (at $350 per acre) from the
Dominguez Estate Company and 730 acres from the Del Amo Estate Company (each owned by the daughters of Manuel
Dominguez). That land was broken up into lots and sold off, eventually forming the city of Torrance, CA. In
1912, the Dominguez Land Company incorporated and became known as the Dominguez Land Corporation.
Torrance was originally envisioned as a town where residence, business, and industrial lands coexisted.
Workers in the town's factories and businesses could find a home close to their place of employment. Jared
Torrance believed that a man who enjoyed his work and owned his own home would remain in the community and
contribute to the community. This philosophy of mixed development is evident in the variety of land contracts
sold by The Dominguez Land Company, which included contracts for business, industrial, and residential property.
In 1921, oil was discovered in Torrance, and the Dominguez Land Company soon began offering oil land for sale.
In 1922, the Dominguez Land Corporation formed a lease agreement with the Standard Oil Company, allowing the
Standard Oil Company sole rights to drill for oil in the city of Torrance. In 1926, the Dominguez Land Company
also sold a large portion of oil land to the Chanslor-Canfield Midway Oil Company.
By 1941, the Dominguez Land Corporation had liquidated much of its assets. The remains of the company,
including office furniture, records, and any future assets which may be found, were purchased by Remco-Real Estate
Management Company, a company founded in 1927 by former Dominguez Land Corporation president, Donald Findley.
This collection documents the sale of individual plots of land in the city of Torrance, CA. The collection
is organized according to contract numbers assigned to each sale by the Dominguez Land Corporation, which they
have termed "agreements". Each agreement contains either a contract for the sale of land (residential,
business, industrial, oil, or undeveloped land, though later documents are simply noted as "sales contracts"
without delineating the type of land being sold) or a grant deed for land, though usually both documents are
found in each agreement. The sales contracts include details on mortgage arrangements and restrictions on
building (for unimproved properties), as well as ledgers detailing payments made on the property. Each
agreement may also contain correspondence relating to the agreement (both hand-written and typed), as well as
company memos (generally orders to draw up grant deeds). Finally, additional legal documents, such as
quitclaim deeds and affidavits, may be included in the agreements.
Within the second series, there are four subseries included. The first subseries includes other land
agreements, including the lease agreement between the Dominguez Land Corporation and the Standard Oil Company
and the sales agreement between the Dominguez Land Corporation and the Chanslor-Canfield Midway Oil Company,
as well as a sales contract with the Pacific Electric Railway Company. Another subseries includes the
By-Laws and Articles of Incorporation for both the Dominguez Land Company and the Dominguez Land Corporation.
A third subseries details the dissolution and sale of the Dominguez Land Corporation to Remco-Real Estate
Management Co., and a fourth subseries includes stockholder and bond holder information on the Dominguez Land
Corporation.
Arrangement
Arranged in two series:
- Series I. Agreements, 1912-1927
- Series II. Corporate Documents, 1911-1950
Commercial real estate--California--Torrance.
Contracts for deeds--California--Torrance.
Deeds--California--Torrance.
Industrial real estate--California--Torrance.
Land grants--California--Torrance.
Oil and gas leases--California--Torrance.
Real estate business--California--Torrance--History.
Real estate development--California--Torrance--History.
Real estate transactions.
Residential real estate--California--Torrance.
Chanslor-Canfield Midway Oil Company
Dominguez Land Company
Dominguez Land Corporation
Remco-Real Estate Management Co.
Standard Oil Company (Library of Congress)
Title Insurance and Trust Company (1893-1968)(Library of Congress)
Torrance (Calif.)