Jump to Content

Collection Guide
Collection Title:
Collection Number:
Get Items:
Committee for Simon Rodia's Towers in Watts Records
LSC.1388  
View entire collection guide What's This?
Search this collection
Collection Details
 
Table of contents What's This?
  • Conditions Governing Access
  • Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
  • Conditions Governing Use
  • Preferred Citation
  • Provenance/Source of Acquisition
  • Processing Information
  • UCLA Catalog Record ID
  • Biography
  • Scope and Content
  • Organization and Arrangement

  • Contributing Institution: UCLA Library Special Collections
    Title: Committee for Simon Rodia's Towers in Watts records
    Creator: Committee for Simon Rodia's Towers in Watts.
    Identifier/Call Number: LSC.1388
    Physical Description: 25 Linear Feet (25 boxes and 7 oversize boxes)
    Date (inclusive): 1954-1997
    Abstract: The Towers in the Watts area of Los Angeles, nine major sculptures of structural steel covered with mortar, were built by Simon Rodia. He called the towers "Nuestro Pueblo," and built them without the use of machine equipment or scaffolding. In 1954, Rodia deeded his property to a neighbor, and after the Los Angeles City Department of Building and Safety ordered the structure demolished, The Committee for Simon Rodia's Towers in Watts collected signatures and money, and devised an engineering test that proved the Towers' safety (1959). In 1975, the Committee gave the Towers to the city, and in 1978 they were deeded to the state, which undertook restoration work. In 1985, restoration responsibilities were given to the Los Angeles City Cultural Affairs Department, and the Towers are now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The collection contains materials generated by the Committee for Simon Rodia's Towers in Watts relating to the effort to save the Towers, a selected bibliography of articles about the Towers, photographs and pictures, legal documents, audiotapes, films, slides, videotape, transcripts of interviews with Simon Rodia and others, and material regarding the Watts riots and the community response to the Towers.
    Physical Location: Stored off-site. All requests to access special collections material must be made in advance using the request button located on this page.
    Language of Material: Materials are in English.

    Conditions Governing Access

    Open for research. All requests to access special collections materials must be made in advance using the request button located on this page.

    Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

    CONTAINS AUDIOVISUAL MATERIALS: This collection contains both processed and unprocessed audiovisual materials. For information about the access status of the material that you are looking for, refer to the Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements note at the series and file levels. All requests to access processed audiovisual materials must be made in advance using the request button located on this page.

    Conditions Governing Use

    Copyright to portions of this collection has been assigned to the UCLA Library Special Collections. The library can grant permission to publish for materials to which it holds the copyright. All requests for permission to publish must be submitted in writing to Library Special Collections. Credit shall be given as follows: The Regents of the University of California on behalf of the UCLA Library Special Collections.

    Preferred Citation

    [Identification of item], Committee for Simon Rodia's Towers in Watts records (Collection 1388). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, University of California, Los Angeles.

    Provenance/Source of Acquisition

    • Gift of William Cartwright, 1984.
    • Gift of J. Bud Goldstone, 1992.
    • Gift of Norma Ashley-David, 1992.
    • Gift of Herbert Kahn, 1997.
    • Gift of Jeanne Smith Morgan, 1997.

    Processing Information

    Collections are processed to a variety of levels depending on the work necessary to make them usable, their perceived user interest and research value, availability of staff and resources, and competing priorities. Library Special Collections provides a standard level of preservation and access for all collections and, when time and resources permit, conducts more intensive processing. These materials have been arranged and described according to national and local standards and best practices.
    Processed by UCLA Library Special Collections staff, date unknown.
    Encoded by ByteManagers using OAC finding aid conversion service specifications. Encoding supervision and revision by Caroline Cubé. Edited by Josh Fiala, April 2004.

    UCLA Catalog Record ID

    UCLA Catalog Record ID: 4232899 

    Biography

    The Towers built in the Watts area of Los Angeles, nine major sculptures of structural steel covered with mortar, are the work of one person, Simon Rodia; born Sabato Rodia in Rivatoli, Italy in 1879, his family immigrated to the U.S. in the 1890s and settled in Pennsylvania, and Rodia found work in rock quarries and as a tile setter after moving to the West Coast; purchased property in 1921 and by himself began building what he called Nuestro Pueblo, without the use of machine equipment or scaffolding; in 1954 Rodia deeded his property to a neighbor, and after the Los Angeles City Department of Building and Safety ordered the structure demolished, The Committee for Simon Rodia's Towers in Watts collected signatures and money, devising an engineering test that proved the Towers' safety in 1959; in 1975 the Committee gave the Towers to the city, and in 1978 they were deeded to the state, which undertook restoration work; in 1985 restoration responsibilities were given to the Los Angeles City Cultural Affairs Department; the Towers are now listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and are the location of cultural programs.

    Scope and Content

    Collection contains correspondence, plans and drawings, newspaper and magazine clippings, pictures, and internal and other papers generated by the Committee relating to the effort to save the Towers. Also contains selected bibliography of articles about the Towers, photographs and pictures, and legal documents relating to the Watts property, among them a copy of Simon Rodia's will, announcements of Building and Safety Commission hearings, copies of grant deeds that were drawn up to continue financial support to the Towers, and an insurance policy. Also contains audiotapes, films, slides, videotape, transcripts of interviews with Simon Rodia and others, and material regarding the Watts riots and the community response to the Towers.

    Organization and Arrangement

    Arranged in the following series:
    • Background (Box 1).
    • Correspondence (Box 1).
    • Minutes, proceedings, etc. (Box 2).
    • Printed material (Box 2).
    • Miscellaneous (Box 2).
    • Ashley-David (Boxes 3-4).
    • Goldstone (Boxes 5-6).

    Subjects and Indexing Terms

    Committee for Simon Rodia's Towers in Watts--Archives.
    Rodia, Simon, 1879-1965.
    Simon Rodia's Towers (Los Angeles, Calif.).