Documents for the History of Nineteenth-Century Los Angeles, 1846-1908, 1846-1908, bulk 1846-1857

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Summary

Title:
Documents for the History of Nineteenth-Century Los Angeles, 1846-1908
Dates:
1846-1908, bulk 1846-1857
Creators:
Carroll Morrison
Abstract:
This collection contains twenty-four documents on the history of nineteenth-century Los Angeles, some of which are in Spanish and others in English.
Extent:
1 archival document box; 1 oversize box 2 linear feet
Language:
Languages represented in the collection: English
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Series number, Box and Folder number, Documents for the History of Nineteenth-Century Los Angeles, 1846-1908, CSLA-22, Department of Archives and Special Collections, William H. Hannon Library, Loyola Marymount University.

Background

Scope and content:

This collection contains twenty-four documents on the history of nineteenth-century Los Angeles, some of which are in Spanish and others in English. The documents in Spanish from the 1840s are written in a nineteenth-century cursive.

Letters, circulars, petitions, a jury verdict, and other documents, some in Spanish and some in English, constitute this collection's holdings. The dates of the documents run from 1846 to 1908, with the bulk of the datable material originating between 1846 and 1857. Five of the documents are undated. Although the 30 October 1908 date of the announcement regarding the opening of the LaPetite Theatre (Box 1, Folder 7) is much later than the bulk of the material in this collection, it remains here because of its original inclusion with the other materials of the collection at the time they were accessioned. A Eunice Crittendon, from whom Carroll and Lorrin Morrison probably obtained these materials, made notes about and photocopies of some documents, which have been retained with the collection.

Many of the documents are autograph documents of, or concern, such important figures in Los Angeles history as Pío Pico (1801-1894), last governor of Mexican California and prominent landholder; his brother Andrés Pico (1810-1876), leader of the Mexican defense in California against the U. S. forces; mayor, city council member, and civic leader, Stephen Foster (1820-1898); Sheriff James Barton (d. 1857); Hugo Reid (1811?-1852), owner of the Rancho Santa Anita and defender of Native American rights; the judge and lawyer Benjamin Hayes (1815-1877); and Kimball H. Dimmick, district attorney from 1852 to 1853. The documents cover various aspects of nineteenth-century life in Los Angeles, ranging from the frivolous--dirty courtrooms--to the serious: difficulties with Native American raiders over livestock theft; problems in city government, including an indictment of the county jailer for corruption; crime; and pollution of the zanja or water system.

Some documents are in fragile condition and for research use a photocopy of the item is available. Their condition is noted in the entries in the box and folder list below that provides an index to the contents of CSLA-22.

Acquisition information:
Carrol Morrison, with the assistance of Michael Engh, S. J., as the intermediary for the Leavey Center for the Study of Los Angeles. 2003
Custodial history:

Carroll and Lorrin Morrison, former editors of the Journal of the West, probably obtained these documents from a Eunice Crittendon, who may have been a former employee of the Los Angeles County Sherrif's Department.

Arrangement:

Because there is no original order, the physical arrangement of the collection's materials is arbitrary, but the collection guide has been arranged in chronological order to give a better view of the range of materials across the nineteenth century. The documents in Box 1, Folders 5 and 19 were originally housed together but have been separated for preservation purposes.

Rules or conventions:
Finding aid prepared using Describing Archives: a Content Standard

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Steve Smith, Clay Stalls
Date Prepared:
© 2012
Date Encoded:
Machine-readable finding aid created by Clay Stalls. Date of source: September 28, 2012.

Access and use

Restrictions:

Collection is open to research under the terms of use of the Department of Archives and Special Collections, Loyola Marymount University.

Terms of access:

Materials in the Department of Archives and Special Collections may be subject to copyright. Unless explicitly stated otherwise, Loyola Marymount University does not claim ownership of the copyright of any materials in its collections. The user or publisher must secure permission to publish from the copyright owner. Loyola Marymount University does not assume any responsibility for infringement of copyright or of publication rights held by the original author or artists or his/her heirs, assigns, or executors.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Series number, Box and Folder number, Documents for the History of Nineteenth-Century Los Angeles, 1846-1908, CSLA-22, Department of Archives and Special Collections, William H. Hannon Library, Loyola Marymount University.

Location of this collection:
1 LMU Drive
Los Angeles, CA 90045-2659, US
Contact:
(310) 338-5710
Special.Collections@lmu.edu
Website