Guide to the Works Progress Administration Collection on Orange County, California, 1935-1939
Processed by Laura Clark Brown; machine-readable finding aid created by
Brooke Dykman Dockter
Special Collections and Archives
The UCI Libraries
P.O. Box 19557
University of California
Irvine, California 92623-9557
Phone: (949) 824-3947
Fax: (949) 824-2472
Email: spcoll@uci.edu
URL: http://www.lib.uci.edu/rrsc/speccoll.html
© 1997
The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.
Note
Social Sciences --Anthropology
--Archaeology
History
--History, California --History, Los Angeles Area
Geographical (by Place) --California --Los Angeles Area
Guide to the Works Progress Administration Collection on Orange County, California, 1935-1939
Collection number: MS-R 10
Special Collections and Archives
The UCI Libraries
University of California
Irvine, California
Contact Information
- Special Collections and Archives
- The UCI Libraries
- P.O. Box 19557
- University of California
- Irvine, California 92623-9557
- Phone: (949) 824-3947
- Fax: (949) 824-2472
- Email: spcoll@uci.edu
- URL: http://www.lib.uci.edu/rrsc/speccoll.html
- Processed by:
- Laura Clark Brown
- Date Completed:
- October 1997
- Encoded by:
- Brooke Dykman Dockter
© 1997. The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.
Descriptive Summary
Title: Works Progress Administration Collection on Orange County, California,
Date (inclusive): 1935-1939
Collection number: MS-R010
Creator:
Works Progress Administration
Extent:
Number of containers: 15 document boxes, 3 record cartons and 1 oversize folder
Linear feet: 15.75
Repository:
University of California, Irvine. Library. Special Collections and Archives.
Irvine, California 92623-9557
Abstract: The collection is comprised of reports from the historical and anthropological projects
completed by the Works Progress Administration in Orange County, California from 1935 to
1939. The projects' reports reveal factual information on local history and
anthropological research on Native Americans. Most reports are original or first carbon
typescripts; they are illustrated with original photographs and sketches.
Language:
English.
Administrative Information
Access
Collection is open for research
Publication Rights
Property rights reside with Rancho Santiago College. Literary rights are retained by the
creators of the records and their heirs. For permissions to reproduce or to publish,
please contact the Head of Special Collections and University Archives.
Preferred Citation
Works Progress Administration Collection on Orange County, California. MS-R 10.
Special Collections and Archives, The UCI Libraries, Irvine, California.
Acquisition Information
Placed on permanent deposit by Rancho Santiago College in 1989.
Processing History
Processed by Laura Clark Brown in 1997.
Organizational History
President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in
1935 as a part of his New Deal to curtail the Depression's effects on the United States.
The WPA attempted to provide the unemployed with jobs that allowed individuals to
preserve skills or talents.
The Federal Writers' Project (FWP), one branch of the WPA, provided work for over 6,600
unemployed writers, journalists, editors and researchers throughout the United States.
Directed by Henry G. Alsberg in Washington, the FWP concentrated its efforts on the
American Guide Series, comprised of travel guides for every state and for
numerous municipalities and regions. The guides contained material on regional and state
history, architecture, geography and commerce. Other FWP writers worked on smaller local
projects, including ethnic studies, folklore collections, nature studies and local
history.
California's FWP produced
California: A Guide to the Golden State, as well
as guides to San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, Santa Barbara, Monterey and Death
Valley. In Orange County, the FWP created "A History of Orange County, California"
(1936). Less than fifty years old at the time, Orange County had many living early
settlers who contributed information to the historical compilation.
The WPA in Orange County also employed anthropologists and archeologists who excavated
several sites and compiled reports and lists of artifacts related primarily to Native
Americans in the region.
When the United States entered World War II, the Depression and with it the New Deal came
to an end. The new war economy resulted in low unemployment and eliminated the time and
money formerly available for the types of projects undertaken by the WPA.
Scope and Content
The collection is comprised of reports from the Historical and Anthropological projects
completed by the Works Progress Administration in Orange County, California from 1935 to
1939. The projects' reports reveal factual information on local history and
anthropological research on Native Americans. Most reports are original or first carbon
typescripts; they illustrated with original photographs and sketches.
The collection is organized into three series: History of Orange County, Anthropological
Project, and Duplicate Originals and Photocopies. Original reports are in the first two
series, and duplicates and copies of these originals are in the third series.
The "History of Orange County, California" project attempted to document local history
from 1769 to 1889 and emphasized the era before the County was formally established in
1889. The WPA produced 27 volumes of reports on such topics as historic adobe buildings,
architecture, agriculture, water supply, irrigation, natural resources, commerce,
transportation, cities and towns, government, notable lawsuits, education, religion,
sports and recreation, biography, and the partition of Rancho Santiago de Santa Ana (the
Spanish land grant that now contains the communities of Orange, Villa Park, Santa Ana,
Tustin, Costa Mesa, and part of Newport Beach). Many historical reports were based on
secondary sources, but some writers used primary sources as well.
An indexed guide to the reports has been cataloged (SpCol Ref. F868.O8 U551936) and is
available in Special Collections. The arrangement of the reports within the series is
based on the index, which is a rough alphabetical order by title. The detailed index
should be used together with this guide to navigate through the collection.
The Anthropology project consists of 23 volumes of reports on excavations of Orange
County archaeological sites; it includes lists and sketches of artifacts and photographs
of the excavations. It concludes with a summary monograph,
A Study of Primitive
Man in Orange County and Its Coastal Areas,
by Gladys E. Ashby and John W.
Winterbourne. The anthropological reports are organized into two subseries: Excavation
Reports and Artifacts and Native Americans.
Series Description
1. History of Orange County, California
Scope and Content Note
Series 1 is comprised of 27 reports on a variety of local history topics researched and
written from 1935 to 1936. The reports focus on the period 1769 to 1889, prior to Orange
County's formal establishment, and each report documents its subject in three named
periods within that date range: the Indian Period (pre-1769), the Spanish-Mexican Period
(ca. 1769-1848), and the American Period (ca. 1848-1889). The reports are typescripts
with sketches, photographs and maps inserted within the text. The series also contains a
chronological list of significant events in Orange County history. Reports are arranged
in a loose alphabetical order by title based on the order in the cataloged index
mentioned in the Scope and Content above.
2. Anthropological Project
Scope and Content Note
Series 2 is comprised of typescript reports dating from 1935 to 1939. They document
anthropological and archeological work conducted in Orange County by the WPA and contain
photographs and sketches of artifacts and excavation sites. Each report includes field
notes, lists of artifacts gathered, and summary information based on the field research.
The series is organized in two subseries, each arranged chronologically.
2.1. Excavation Reports.
Scope and Content Note
Arranged chronologically by excavation date, the reports include daily field notes and
photographs of each Orange County excavation site.
2.2. Artifacts and Native Americans.
Scope and Content Note
Arranged chronologically by the date of the report, these reports list and index
artifacts recovered from the sites, provide sketches of those artifacts, survey Native
American campsites, and summarize the project's research in
A Study of Primitive
Man in Orange County and Its Coastal Areas.
3. Duplicate Originals and Photocopies
Scope and Content Note
Duplicate originals and photocopies of some of the reports in Series 1 and 2 were also
placed on deposit; there is no new information in the series. Duplicates and copies are
housed separately, following the same arrangement as the original reports. Several of the
duplicate originals are incomplete, primarily lacking the illustrated materials, and the
quality of the photocopies is often poor, particularly in the illustrations. The reports
in Series 1 and 2 are complete and have been prepared for researcher use, and there
should be no need to use the duplicates in most cases.
Container List
1. History of Orange County, California
Box 2, Folder 6
Don Juan Forster v. Pío Pico (court transcripts)
Box 4, Folder 1-4
Historical and Unusual Trees
Box 5, Folder 10-12
Partition of Rancho Santiago de Santa Ana
Box 6, Folder 12
Santa Ana Public Library History, to 1936
Box 6, Folder 12
Historic Flags of California, 1769-1847
Box 6, Folder 12
Rise and Fall of the Grape Industry
Box 7, Folder 1
County Division and Organization
Box 7, Folder 1
Commission to Organize Orange County
Box 7, Folder 2
Formation of Early Oranges
Box 7, Folder 2
Great Real Estate Boom of the Eighties
Box 7, Folder 2
Squatters in Orange County
Box 7, Folder 5-7
Transcript on Appeal,
Anaheim Water Company v. Semi-Tropic Water Company
Box 7, Folder 10-11
Chronological Index of Important Events in Southern California with Special Reference to Orange County
2. Anthropological Project
Box 9, Folder 4
Rancherías: Bonita Mesa, San Joaquín Gun Club, and Corona del Mar (1938)
Box 9, Folder 8
San Joaquín Home Ranch (1938)
2.2. Artifacts and Native Americans
Box 10, Folder 1
Material [artifacts] turned over from State Emergency Relief Administration (SERA) (1935)
Box 10, Folder 2
List of artifacts found in Moro Canyon (1937)
Box 10, Folder 3
Drawings of Indian Artifacts: Bone, Ceremonial, Decorative, Household, Hunting, and Indian Art (1937)
Box 10, Folder 4
Index to Artifacts (1937-1938)
Box 10, Folder 6
Asphalted (Tarred) Artifacts
Box 10, Folder 7
Life, Customs and Peculiar Artifacts of the Southwest Coast Indians and Orange County Indians (1935)
Box 10, Folder 8
Preliminary Survey of Indian Camp Sites on Irvine Property (1935)
Box 10, Folder 9
Birds, Fish, Plants, Fruit and Shells (1936)
Box 10, Folder 11
A Study of Primitive Man in Orange County and Its Coastal Areas
(1939)
3. Duplicate Originals and Photocopies
Box 10, Folder 11
History of Orange County, California
Box 12, Folder 22-23
Partition of Rancho Santiago de Santa Ana
Box 12, Folder 26-30
Pioneer Tales, Volumes I-II
Box 13, Folder 4-5
San Joaquin Home Ranch (2 copies)
Box 14, Folder 1-2
Drawings of Indian Artifacts
Box 14, Folder 3
Asphalted (Tarred) Artifacts
Box 14, Folder 4
List of artifacts found in Moro Canyon
Box 14, Folder 6
Birds, Fish, Plants, Fruit and Shells
Box 14, Folder 7-8
A Study of Primitive Man and Its Coastal Areas (2 copies)
Box 11, Folder 1-8
Photographs from Anthropological Project (unidentified)
Box 11, Folder 1-8
History of Orange County, California
Box 15, Folder 7-9
Don Juan Forster v. Pio Pico (court transcripts), Volumes I-III
Box 15, Folder 15
Historical and Unusual Trees
Box 16, Folder 5-6
Partition of Rancho Santiago de Santa Ana
Box 16, Folder 9-15
Pioneer Tales, Volumes I-II
Box 16, Folder 22
Chronological Index of Important Events in Southern California with Special Reference to Orange County
Box 17, Folder 1-3
Three Coastal Rancherías (3 copies)
Box 17, Folder 5-8
San Joaquin Home Ranch (2 copies)
Box 18, Folder 1
Material [artifacts] turned over from SERA
Box 18, Folder 2-3
List of artifacts found in Moro Canyon (2 copies)
Box 18, Folder 4
Drawings of Indian Artifacts: Bone, Ceremonial, Decorative, Household, Hunting, and Indian Art
Box 18, Folder 6
Asphalted (Tarred) Artifacts
Box 18, Folder 7
Life, Customs and Peculiar Artifacts of the S.W. Coast Indians and Orange County Indians
Box 18, Folder 8
Preliminary Survey of Indian Camp Sites on Irvine Property
Box 18, Folder 9
Birds, Fish, Plants, Fruit and Shells
Box 18, Folder 11
A Study of Primitive Man and Its Coastal Areas
