Esther H. Klotz papers
Finding aid prepared by Celeste Navas, Student Processing Assistant.
Special Collections & University Archives
The UCR Library
P.O. Box 5900
University of California
Riverside, California 92517-5900
Phone: 951-827-3233
Fax: 951-827-4673
Email: specialcollections@ucr.edu
URL: http://library.ucr.edu/libraries/special-collections-university-archives
© 2017
The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.
Descriptive Summary
Title: Esther H. Klotz papers
Date (inclusive): 1834-1991, undated
Collection Number: MS 255
Creator:
Klotz, Esther
Extent:
7.04 linear feet
(11 boxes)
Repository:
Rivera Library. Special Collections Department.
Abstract: Esther H. Klotz was a lifelong Riverside County resident, who was very involved in local historical preservation efforts and
in researching and writing about Riverside and the surrounding area. The Esther H. Klotz papers contain research notes, correspondence,
publications, and other material pertaining to the city and county of Riverside as well as to the local history and development
of various other cities in Southern California. This notably includes research related to her co-authored book with Joan H.
Hall,
Adobes, Bungalows and Mansions of Riverside, California, which has been published in multiple editions. Also included in the collection are personal correspondence, notebooks and
other records related to Klotz and her husband, Leo J. Klotz.
Languages: The collection is in English.
Access
This collection is open for research.
Publication Rights
Copyright for a portion of materials in the collection has been assigned to the University of California, Riverside Libraries,
Special Collections & University Archives. Additional materials in these collections may be protected by the U.S. Copyright
Law (Title 17, U.S.C.). Please contact Special Collections & University Archives for more information.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], [date if possible]. Esther H. Klotz papers (MS 255). Special Collections & University Archives,
University of California, Riverside.
Acquisition Information
Gift of the estate of Esther Klotz, 2001.
Processing History
Initial processing was done by Joanne Pease-Simpson and Rhonda L. Neugebauer, Library Staff, from 2010-2011. The finding aid
was edited and updated by Eric Milenkiewicz, Archives Assistant, in 2012, and the collection was reprocessed by Celeste Navas,
Student Processing Assistant, in 2017.
Biographical Note
Esther Hamilton was born in Hemet, California on Christmas Day, 1910, and graduated in 1928 from Hemet High School. She attended
Riverside City College, and then the University of California, Berkeley. Her grandparents had moved to Southern California
in the boom of 1887; her grandfather, Isaac Martin, was an early citrus grower in the small town of Highgrove, California.
Her father, Charles Hamilton, was the first city clerk of the newly-formed City of Hemet, as well as an important grower of
citrus in its early days in the area. In later years he was a fruit buyer.
At the age of 19, she married Leo J. Klotz, Ph.D., a researcher at the California Citrus Experiment Station and later a professor
of plant pathology at the University of California, Riverside. Esther became interested in local history and beacme an avid
and meticulous researcher and writer in her own right. She collected data on both Riverside City and County, as well as other
Southern California cities, eventually resulting in several books. In 1972, she wrote
Riverside and the Day the Bank Broke: A History of the City, 1890-1907, which chronicled the scandal leading to the downfall of the Orange Growers Bank. Her love of art, history, and the Mission
Inn led her to publish
The Mission Inn: Its History and Artifacts in 1981. In 1985, she collaborated with Joan H. Hall on a book documenting historic homes in Riverside,California,
Adobes, Bungalows and Mansions of Riverside, California, which quickly sold out. A revised edition was later published by Hall. Klotz, Hall, and historian/author Harry Lawton also
collaborated on a pamphlet in 1989, called "History of Citrus in the Riverside Area."
Passionate about the preservation of the area's historic buildings and resources, she served on many boards. During the 1960s
and 1970s she served as a founding member and chair of the Friends of the Mission Inn; as a member of the Riverside Pioneer
Historical Society of Southern California (later renamed the Riverside Historical Society); the Riverside County Historical
Commission; the Mission Inn Artifacts Committee; and the Friends of the Library of the University of California, Riverside.
She also served as an advisor to the Jensen-Alvarado Ranch Associates and was a founding member in 1963 of the Riverside Museum
Associates, serving as co-editor of its newsletter: the
Report of the Riverside Museum Associates. After helping persuade the City of Riverside to form a special civic board devoted to the preservation of historic resources,
she was appointed by the city council to act as the first chair of the resulting Cultural Heritage Board. She was an active
member of several other local historical societies, most notably, The Old Riverside Foundation. She was named Riverside County
Historian of the Year in 1983.
Esther H. Klotz died on August 2, 2000 at 89 years of age and is interred at Riverside's historic Evergreen Mausoleum. She
was survived by a son, Jerome; a daughter, Eunice Riemer; and several grandchildren.
Collection Scope and Contents
The Esther H. Klotz papers consists primarily of research materials documenting the founding and development of the city and
county of Riverside, California. The collection focuses on local history, as well as historic buildings and landscapes created
in the city of Riverside and surrounding areas in the early days of development. These include residential homes, military
bases, the citrus industry, housing developments, universities, and museums. Research material regarding the book she co-authored
with Joan H. Hall,
Adobes, Bungalows and Mansions of Riverside, California (1985) is also included.
The collection also contains some personal papers regarding members of the Klotz and Hamilton families, including notebooks,
correspondence, vital records, and photographs belong to Klotz and her husband Leo.
Collection Arrangement
The collection is arranged into three series as follows:
- Series 1. Research and publications, 1834-1989
- Series 2. Personal papers, 1910-1991
- Series 3. Oversize materials, 1890-1989, undated
Indexing Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the
library's online public access catalog.
Subjects
Klotz, Leo Joseph, 1895-1984
Adobe houses
Historic buildings
Riverside (Calif.)
Riverside County (Calif.)
Genres and Forms of Materials
Correspondence
Publications
Research notes
Series 1. Research and publications
1834-1989
1960-1980
Series Scope and Contents
This series consists of materials related to Klotz's research on the history of Southern California, most notably the Riverside
area. Materials in the series include Klotz's manuscripts for her books,
Adobes, Bungalows, and Mansions of Riverside and
Through the Doors of the Mission Inn; newspaper clippings, brochures, and research materials.
Major topics covered in the series consist of areas on which Klotz frequently focused her historical research, including historical
buildings, local history and development, water and weather issues, local societies and organizations, and social life and
customs.
Series Arrangement
This series is arranged topically by folder title.
Box 1, Folder 1
Manuscript draft of
Adobes Bungalows, and Mansions of Riverside, California
1984
Box 1, Folder 2
Manuscript Drafts and Handwritten Notes
undated
Box 1, Folder 3
Articles about
Adobes, Bungalows, and Mansions of Riverside,
California
1985
Box 1, Folder 4
Photographs used for
Adobes, Bungalows, and Mansions of Riverside, California
1985
Box 1, Folder 5
Las Flores Adobe
1967-1968
Box 1, Folder 6
California Adobes
1834-1973
Box 1, Folders 7-8
Draft for
Through the Doors of the Mission Inn
undated
Box 1, Folder 9
Mission Inn
1988-1990
Scope and Contents
Folder includes news clippings and a magazine feature
Box 1, Folders 10-11, Box 2, Folder 1
Friends of the Mission Inn
1970-1990
Scope and Contents
Folder includes correspondence, minutes, and newsletters
Box 2, Folders 2-3
Riverside Art Museum
1968-1992
Box 2, Folder 4
Riverside Art Association
1953-1986
Box 2, Folders 5-6
Riverside Museum Associates Newsletters
1968-1987
Box 2, Folder 7
Riverside Opera Association and Municipal Museum
undated
Box 2, Folder 8
Arts and Antiques
1963-1988, undated
Box 2, Folders 9-10
Art Shows and Exhibitions in California Museums
1918-1991
Box 3, Folder 1, Flat-File-Folder 1
Riverside County Maps
1923-1970
Box 3, Folder 2, Flat-File-Folder 2
Riverside City Maps
1905-1985
Box 3, Folder 3
Historical Notes on Riverside
1975
Box 3, Folder 4
Riverside County Historical Commission
1986-1988
Box 3, Folder 5
Riverside County Historical Newsletters
1977-1988
Box 3, Folder 6
Historical Alessandro
1953-1960
Box 3, Folders 7-8
A History of Citrus in the Riverside Area
1926-1968
Box 3, Folder 9
UC Riverside Campus Club
1943-1986
Box 3, Folder 10
Historic Churches of Riverside
1955-1991
Box 3, Folder 11
Historic Buildings in Riverside
1966-1970
Box 3, Folder 13
Riverside County City Names
1952, undated
Box 3, Folder 14
Coachella Valley Communities
1958-1971
Box 3, Folders 15-16
March Airforce Base/ Camp Haan
1918-1989
Box 3, Folder 17
Murrieta Hot Springs
1990
Box 3, Folder 18
Jensen Alvarado Ranch Historic Park Association
1985-1989
Box 4, Folders 1-2
Pomona Area History
1885-1978
Box 4, Folder 3
Imperial Valley Hotel Worth History
1973, undated
Box 4, Folder 4
Eastern Sierra and Death Valley Bodie
1961-1973
Box 4, Folder 5
Orange County/Tustin
1918
Box 4, Folders 6-7
San Bernardino City/County History
1956-1967
Flat-File-Folder 3
Maps of San Bernardino County
undated
Box 4, Folder 8
San Diego Area History
1868-1986
Box 4, Folder 9
Santa Barbara Area
1930-1967
Box 4, Folder 10
History of the San Gorgonio Pass
1915-1986
Scope and Contents
Includes newspaper clippings and other materials related to the filming of the Willie Boy movie in 1968.
Box 5, Folder 1, Flat-File-Folder 4
Box 5, Folder 2
List of Photographs of Riverside at the Huntington Library
undated
Box 5, Folder 3
Notes on Buildings in Riverside
1985-1986
Box 5, Folder 4
Notes and Newsclippings on the Destruction of Houses on Lemon and Olivewood Street, Riverside
1986
Box 5, Folder 5
Notes on William Collier House Relocation and City Presentation and Code Enforcement Issues
1980-1988
Box 5, Folder 6
Southern California Historical Information
1939-1974
Box 5, Folder 7, Flat-File-Folder 5
California Maps
1854-1963
Flat-File-Folder 6
Maps of Los Angeles and Surrounding Areas
1911-1950, undated
Box 5, Folder 8
Photograph of University Club, Redlands
undated
Scope and Contents
Includes photo of Harry Buttrick (sp?), O. G. C. A. Foreman
Box 5, Folder 9
Acquisition of the YMCA by the Riverside Art Association
undated
Scope and Contents
Primarily newspaper clippings
Box 5, Folder 10
Autoracing in Corona
1966
Box 5, Folder 11
Architect Herman Ruhnau
1966
Box 5, Folder 12
Bridges in Riverside
1967, undated
Box 5, Folder 13
California Architects and Architecture
1966-1986
Box 5, Folder 14, Flat-File-Folder 7
City of Riverside Redevelopment Plans for Downtown Riverside
1982-1986
Box 5, Folder 15, Flat-File-Folder 8
Downtown Riverside development and demolition
1964-1981
Box 5, Folder 16
Croquet and Badminton articles
1989
Box 5, Folder 17
Downtown Renaissance/Concerned Citizens of Riverside
1886-1989
Box 5, Folder 18
El Rivino Country Club's Women's Gold Medallion Golf Tournament booklet
1964
Box 6, Folder 1
25th Anniversary Riverside Art Alliance at Hays Pattee
1990
Box 6, Folder 2
Brochures from UC Riverside and UC system
1943-1986
Box 6, Folder 3
Casa Blanca area
1967-1976
Box 6, Folder 4
Cheri Jo Bates murder
1966-1972
Box 6, Folder 5
Chinese Pavilion Week
1987
Box 6, Folder 6, Flat-File-Folder 9
City of Riverside development
1917-1988
Box 6, Folder 7
Excerpt of "Riverside" brochure
undated
Box 6, Folder 8, Flat-File-Folder 10
Fairmont Park
1960-1984
Scope and Contents
Folder include notes, photographs, and news clippings
Box 6, Folder 9
"Home and Gardens in Riverside"
1943
Box 6, Folder 10
Hotels in the City/County of Riverside and the Southland
1896-1989
Box 6, Folder 11
Japanese in Riverside
1969-1974, undated
Box 6, Folder 12
Mining in the Holcomb Valley
1969-1970
Box 6, Folder 13, Flat-File-Folder 11
Newsclippings on Crime in Riverside
1970-1972
Box 6, Folders 14-15
Old Riverside Foundation
1979-1989
Box 6, Folder 16
Photographs of victorian homes in Riverside
circa 1943, 1967
Box 6, Folder 17
Photographs of Riverside Parent Navel Orange Tree
1973, undated
Box 6, Folder 18
Photographs, a Riverside school and a office of southern Sierra Power Company
circa 1900, 1913
Box 6, Folder 19, Flat-File-Folder 12
Prospect Area Association
1982
Scope and Contents
Materials related to city attempt to modify a neighborhood
Box 6, Folder 20
Race relations in Riverside
1962, 1966-1967
Box 6, Folder 21, Flat-File-Folder 13
Race relations in Riverside
1965-1966
Scope and Contents
Newspaper clippings related to the burning of Lowell School and school integration program.
Box 6, Folder 22
Race relations in Riverside
1970-1980
Scope and Contents
Clippings related to prominent black individuals and families in Riverside.
Box 7, Folder 1
Riverside's Chinatown
1893-1978
Scope and Contents
Photocopies of newspaper clippings
Box 7, Folder 2
Riverside City Hospital
1905-1915, 1971
Flat-File-Folder 15
Newspapers on growth in Riverside
1961& undated
Box 7, Folder 3
Riverside County Parks and Recreation
1953-1977
Box 7, Folder 4
Riverside Daily Press news clippings
1887
Flat-File-Folder 16
Riverside Enterprise - 50th Anniversary Edition
1943
Box 7, Folder 5
Riverside Press Special Editon of County Incorporation
1893-1943
Box 7, Folder 6
Riverside Redevelopment Report
1989
Scope and Contents
Folder contains handwritten notes, pamphlets, and correspondence
Box 7, Folder 7, Flat-File-Folder 17
Riverside University
1967-1975
Box 7, Folder 8, Flat-File-Folder 18
Redevelopment plans for Downtown Riverside
1966-1971
Box 7, Folder 9, Flat-File-Folder 19
Roger Williams Bank embezzlement
1969
Box 7, Folder 10
Suburban development in Riverside
1967 & 1994
Box 7, Folder 11
"Teaching Days in Riverside, 1914-1918"
undated
Box 7, Folder 12, Flat-File-Folder 20
The Fire at the Riverside Hotel
1973
Box 7, Folder 13, Flat-File-Folder 21
Water Supply in Riverside
1949-1970
Scope and Contents
1955 Annual Report and news clippings
Flat-File-Folder 22
Weather and flooding in Riverside
1968-1989
Box 7, Folder 14
Various biographical and geographical notes
Flat-File-Folder 23
California Historical Courier - Helen Hunt Jackson
1986
Box 7, Folder 15
Daniel C. Twogood notes
1884, undated
Box 7, Folder 16
Doug Shacketon and the Mission Inn
1984-1985
Box 7, Folder 17
Eliza and Luther Tibbets notes
1927-1975
Box 7, Folder 18
Emil Rosenthal Notes
1968-1971
Box 7, Folder 19
E.R. Skelley family
1967-1972
Box 7, Folder 20
George Wharton James - "Joaquin Miller the Poet of Peace" with notes
1977
Box 7, Folder 22
Ingersoll's annals of San Bernardino
undated
Box 7, Folder 23
James S. Sherman Institute
1972, undated
Box 7, Folder 24, Flat-File-Folder 24
Samuel Cary Evans family history
circa 1970
Box 7, Folder 25
Tin Mines and Arthur Holden
1968-1976
Box 7, Folder 26
Melba Dunlap's supervisoral campaign
1984-1986
Box 8, Folder 1
M.H. Sherman, Sherman Library, Corona del Mar booklets
1971-1976
Box 8, Folder 2
Roe, Price and Hoskyn family histories
1846-1943, undated
Series 2. Personal papers
1910-1991
1943-1985
Series Scope and Contents
This series contains personal records of Esther Klotz. These include awards, correspondence, photographs, and living expenses.
Also includes items related to Leo Klotz, including: published academic articles by Leo and his death records and obituaries.
Series Arrangement
This series is arranged topically by folder title.
Box 8, Folder 3
Klotz's notebook for art classes
1950
Box 8, Folder 4
Klotz home in Riverside, California record
1954-1955, 1994, undated
Box 8, Folder 5
Klotz Newport Beach House records
1953-1968
Box 8, Folder 6
Driver's license and passports
1960-1985
Box 8, Folders 7-8
Health Information
1959-1989
Box 9, Folder 9
Household expenditures
1971-1980
Box 8, Folder 10
Photographs of Klotz family and obituaries
1910-1979
Box 9, Folder 1
Personal purchases and receipts
undated
Box 9, Folder 3
Correspondence with Mine Okubo
1943
Box 9, Folder 4
Correspondence with the UC Riverside Foundation and Riverside Art Museum
undated
Box 9, Folder 5
Engagement announcement for Esther Hamilton to Leo Klotz
undated
Box 9, Folders 6-7
Leo Klotz death information
1985
Box 9, Folder 8
Leo Klotz - History of Plant Pathology
1948-1985
Box 9, Folder 9
Leo Klotz - Academic Articles
1931-1986
Box 9, Folder 10
Leo Klotz - Memorial Fund
1984-1991
Box 9, Folder 11
Leo Klotz - Obituaries and memorial publications
1984-1986
Series 3. Oversize materials
1890-1989, undated
Series Scope and Contents
This series contains oversized items related to Klotz' research, including books, scrapbooks, and notebooks.
Series Arrangement
The series is arranged topically.
Box 10, Item 1
A Colony for California
1971
Scope and Contents
Book includes a piece of paper with notes and extensive notes and marginalia within the book.
Box 10, Item 2
Scrapbook
1943-1976
Scope and Contents
Scrapbook of newspaper clippings documenting history of Riverside.
Box 10, Item 3
Photo of the office of Southern Sierra Power Company
1913
Scope and Contents
Photo glued to board. The back side of the board includes notes and description from Esther Klotz.
Box 11, Item 1
An Illustrated History of Southern California
1890
Scope and Contents
Chicago: Lewis Publishing Company, 1890. Book includes some marginalia and a page of notes from Esther Klotz.
Box 11, Item 2
Landmarks of Riverside
1964
Scope and Contents
Signed by author Tom Patterson. Some marginalia from Esther Klotz. Press-Enterprise Co., 1964.
Box 11, Item 3
California Mission Scrapbook
approximately 1985-1989
Scope and Contents
Includes photos, postcards, brochures, and notes.
Box 11, Item 4
Ledger book of handwritten notes
undated
