Collection Guide
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Save San Francisco Bay Association Records
BANC MSS 87/29 c
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Table of contents
Language of Material:
English
Contributing Institution:
The Bancroft Library
Title: Save San Francisco Bay Association records
Creator:
Save San Francisco Bay Association
Identifier/Call Number: BANC MSS 87/29 c
Physical Description:
62 linear feet
(48 cartons, 2 boxes, 2 cardfile boxes, 2 oversize folders)
Date (inclusive): 1953-2004
Date (bulk): 1961-1990
Abstract: The records of the Save the San Francisco Bay Association document the work of the organization committed to preserving the
San Francisco Bay as a natural resource. Based in Berkeley, California, the association was founded in 1961 by Esther Gulick,
Catherine Kerr, and Sylvia McLaughlin. The collection covers the early history and development of the Association and includes
Board of Director's meeting minutes, legal documents, reports, studies, newsletters, field reports, and the files of the Citizens'
Alliance, a coalition formed by the association in 1969. The Alliance of local environmental organizations lobbied against
legislation that would allow development with an adverse impact on the Bay's ecology.
Language of Material: Collection materials are in English
Physical Location: Many of the Bancroft Library collections are stored offsite and advance notice may be required for use. For current information
on the location of these materials, please consult the library's online catalog.
Collection is open for research.
Copyright has not been assigned to The Bancroft Library. All requests for permission to publish or reproduce must be submitted
in writing to the Head of Public Services, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-6000. Permission
for publication is given on behalf of The Bancroft Library as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include
or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the reader. Copyright restrictions also apply
to digital representations of the original materials. Use of digital files is restricted to research and educational purposes.
[Identification of item], Save San Francisco Bay Association Records, BANC MSS 87/29 c, The Bancroft Library, University of
California, Berkeley.
There are no alternate forms of this collection.
Save San Francisco Bay Association, 1961-1986: oral history transcript, BANC MSS 88/117 c
Sylvia McLaughlin papers, BANC MSS 2005/181 c
Sound recordings have been transferred to the Microforms Collection of The Bancroft Library. Maps have been transferred to
the Water Resources Library.
The Save San Francisco Bay Association Records were given to The Bancroft Library by the Association on August 26, 1986. Additions
were made on September 14, 1987, January 17, 1992, January 16, 2004, and April 20, 2004.
Future additions are expected.
Processed by Ameetha Palanki in 1988. Additions processed by Teresa Maria Mora in 2006. Additions processed by Lara Michels
and Bancroft Library interns in 2017.
The Save San Francisco Bay Association, also known as Save the Bay, was founded by Esther Gulick, Katherine Kerr, and Sylvia
McLaughlin in 1961. The three East Bay residents were concerned about discussions to fill in the Bay (effectively turning
it into a river) in order to gain more land for population growth. The Association was founded to "protect open water, improve
recreation opportunities, support wildlife conservation, beautify the shoreline, and promote resource planning." The group
mobilized thousands of members to stop bay fill and in 1965 won a legislative moratorium against placing fill in the Bay,
the McAteer-Petris Act.
The Act also established the Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC) to plan protection of the Bay, regulate shoreline
development, and ensure public access. BCDC was made a permanent regulatory agency in 1969 and continues to regulate bayshore
development today (2006).
Save the Bay continues to monitor civic agencies to insure that they serve the public interests in maintaining San Francisco
Bay as a natural resource. The Association also serves as a source of information and education regarding the Bay. Through
monthly newsletters, special reports, public forums and conferences, the Association provides up-to-date news on legislation,
commercial development, and legal issues surrounding the Bay. Save the Bay also provides an arena for public participation
in decisions affecting Bay management and conservation.
The Association has initiated numerous legal actions against corporations and the legislature to prevent excessive bay fill,
protect wildlife, and improve water quality and recreational access. The Association has often engaged in such legal action
in cooperation with other environmental organizations such as the Sierra Club.
More information on the Association, its purpose, and history, can be found on its website (http://www.savesfbay.org).
Scope and Content of Collection
The records of the Save the San Francisco Bay Association document the work of the organization committed to preserving the
San Francisco Bay as a natural resource. Based in Berkeley, California, the association was founded in 1961 by Esther Gulick,
Catherine Kerr, and Sylvia McLaughlin. The collection covers the early history and development of the Association and includes
Board of Director's meeting minutes, legal documents, reports, studies, newsletters, field reports, and the files of the Citizens'
Alliance, a coalition formed by the association in 1969. The Alliance of local environmental organizations lobbied against
legislation that would allow development with an adverse impact on the Bay's ecology.
The collection has been divided into three series: Organizational Records; Reference Files; and Legal Files. The collection
primarily covers the early history and development of the Association during the 1960s and the 1970s. Researchers wishing
to familiarize themselves with the Association might begin by reading through the Association's newsletters and Board meeting
minutes that are included in the Organizational records series. The Organizational records also contain reports from field
coordinators who monitored the Bay for any activities that endangered the wildlife or prohibited public access.
The Reference files make up the bulk of the collection and include information and correspondence relating to topics of interest
to the Association. It appears that files were kept communally and correspondence to and from various directors and staff
of the organization have been inter-filed by subject.
The collection also contains a group of records from the Citizens' Alliance to Save San Francisco Bay. The Citizens' Alliance
was a coalition of various Bay Area environmental organizations formed in 1969 to lobby against legislation that would allow
development in the Bay region that might have an adverse impact on the Bay's ecology or on preserving recreational use of
the Bay. Found in the Reference series, the Citizens' Alliance records include subject files, correspondence and administrative
materials.
Also found in the Reference series are records relating to the Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC). The BCDC
was founded in 1965, partly due to the work of Save the Bay, to plan protection of the Bay, regulate shoreline development,
and ensure public access. The collection includes a complete set of the BCDC Bay Plan as well as minutes, reports, and public
statements issued by the Commission.
The bulk of the legal files appear to have been created by Board member, Barry Bunshoft. Mr. Bunshoft and the various law
firms he was associated with appear to have served as Save the Bay's legal counsel for a period of years. A good portion of
these records pertain to the legal suit waged by the Association against the City of Albany. They contain affidavits, statements,
and correspondence between legal counsel and city officials regarding proposed development of sections of the Bay under Albany's
jurisdiction. Legal files also contain research on decisions in relevant cases in which the Association was not directly involved.
The 2016 additions to the SSFBA records include materials on the organization's conferences, project files relating to the
organizations work and interest in the expansion of the San Francisco International Airport's runways, a range of Bay Conservation
and Development Commission files, including historical materials and records from the 1990s, and some audio-visual items.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
McLaughlin, Sylvia
Gulick, Esther
Kerr, Catherine Mary Spaulding, 1911-
Save San Francisco Bay Association
San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission
Save San Francisco Bay Association
Conservation of natural resources--California--San Francisco Bay
Water--Pollution--San Francisco Bay
Nature conservation--California--San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay (Calif.)