Collection context
Summary
Background
- Scope and content:
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The collection includes tract maps, correspondence regarding the real estate development (including correspondence between engineer Clarence P. Day and Paul G. Hoffman), newspaper articles, lists of sale prices, advertisements for the El Mirador subdivision, etc. There is also information concerning the operation of the El Mirador Ranch, primarily during the 1940s and 1950s. These documents include the bills, primarily from local Pasadena vendors, incurred by the ranch. Additionally, there are miscellaneous documents pertaining to the Hoffman family who owned the property from 1911 until the lots were sold off for residential use.
- Biographical / historical:
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El Mirador Ranch was purchased from the Galagher family by George and Eleanor Hoffman in 1911. George Hoffman invented the Hoffman valve and the Thermador heater and served as president of the American Radiator Company. Due to the Great Depression and George’s death in 1932, the family struggled to keep the ranch. One of the Hoffman’s sons, James Hoffman, founder of Calavo (the California Avocado Growers’ Association), managed the family ranch. From 1914 to 1929, he operated the El Mirador Dairy on the property as well as planted avocado trees. The most well-known member of the family was Paul G. Hoffman (1891-1974), son of George and brother of James, who, in the early 1940s, took ownership of the El Mirador Ranch to maintain family ownership of the ranch. Paul was the president of the Studebaker Corporation from 1935 to 1948 and administered the Marshall Plan in 1948-1950. He served as president of the Ford Foundation from 1950 to 1953 and held many government positions, including the first administrator of the United Nations Development Programme from 1966 to 1972. Paul was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Nixon on June 21, 1974.
Access and use
- Restrictions:
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The collection is open to the public for research. Use is restricted by rules intended to protect and preserve the materials in good condition for the future. For additional information, please contact Pasadena Museum of History.
- Terms of access:
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Use of the materials is governed by all applicable copyright law. Pasadena Museum of History reserves the right to restrict any materials from reproduction at any time. Property rights reside with Pasadena Museum of History. Literary rights are retained by the creators of the records and their heirs. The Museum’s physical ownership of the materials in its collection does not imply ownership of copyright. It is the user’s responsibility to resolve any copyright issues related to the use and distribution of reproduced materials. For permission to reproduce or to publish, please contact Pasadena Museum of History.
- Preferred citation:
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El Mirador Ranch Collection. Pasadena Museum of History
- Location of this collection:
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470 West Walnut StreetPasadena, CA 91103-3594, US
- Contact:
- 626.577.1660