Collection Guide
Collection Title:
Collection Number:
Get Items:
Payne (Theodore) papers
LSC.2368
View entire collection guide
Search this collection
Table of contents
Contributing Institution:
UCLA Library Special Collections
Title: Theodore Payne papers
source:
Theodore Payne Foundation for Wild Flowers and Native Plants, Incorporated
Creator:
Payne, Theodore, 1872-1963
Identifier/Call Number: LSC.2368
Physical Description:
58.75 Linear Feet
(62 boxes, 2 cartons, 19 flat boxes, 21 shoe boxes)
Date (inclusive): 1879-1988
Date (bulk): 1903-1962
Abstract: Theodore Payne was a horticulturalist, nurseryman, and expert on California native plants. Materials in the Theodore Payne
papers include personal and business records, records pertaining to his professional interests and activities, photographic
material, publications on horticulture and gardening, landscaping records, Payne's writings and speeches, herbarium specimens,
and artifacts.
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.
Open for research. All requests to access special collections materials must be made in advance using the request button located
on this page.
Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use
Property rights to the physical objects belong to UCLA Library Special Collections. All other rights, including copyright,
are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright
and pursue the copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC Regents do not hold the copyright.
[Identification of item], Theodore Payne papers (Collection 2368). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research
Library, University of California, Los Angeles.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Theodore Payne Foundation for Wild Flowers and Native Plants, Inc., 2018.
Prior to accession at UCLA Library Special Collections, this collection was arranged several times, and the original order
of the papers was not maintained. In 2016, it was reprocessed by Amelia Parks, LA as Subject Visiting Archivist at the Theodore
Payne Foundation. During this reprocessing project, Amelia Parks arranged and described the materials to the subseries level.
Additionally, preservation photocopying on materials with water damage and mold was undertaken, and the damaged originals
were not retained due to their poor condition. Some ledger covers have been removed due to their degradation or high acidity.
Where appropriate, the ledger covers were photocopied and placed with contents.
Revisions to the description, physical arrangement, and post-processing activities were undertaken by Kathryn Brunet, Collection
Management student assistant under the supervision of Jasmine Jones, in 2019.
Materials that were previously housed in a box 26 were rehoused, and there is no longer a box 26 in the collection.
UCLA Catalog Record ID:
8889990
Theodore Payne (1872-1963) was a horticulturalist, nurseryman, and expert on California native plants. He was born in 1872
in Church Brampton, Northamptonshire, England. He moved to California in 1893 and owned and operated a nursery in Los Angeles
from 1903 through 1960.
Theodore Payne's education started at Ackworth Academy, a Quaker boarding school in West York, England. In 1888 Theodore Payne
apprenticed with J. Cheal & Sons for training in the nursery and seed business. John Cheal was a horticulturist, offering
a full line of services, and Payne spent time in each of the departments, learning all elements of the nursery business.
In 1893, Payne began working as head gardener at the ranch of Madame Helena Modjeska, a stage actress located in Santiago
Canyon, Orange County. In 1896 Theodore Payne moved to Los Angeles and obtained a position at Germain Fruit and Seed Company
as a flower seedsman. Before opening his own nursery, Payne traveled to England and Europe, including Germany and France.
On his travels he made contacts with several nurseries and maintained many of those relationships throughout his career. In
1903, Theodore Payne purchased Evans nursery at 440 South Broadway, Los Angeles. The Payne Nursery offered a variety of plants,
seeds, and bulbs, as well as landscaping services. Two years later the Payne Nursery moved the office to 345 South Main Street
and stayed there until 1931 when he moved his nursery to Los Feliz Blvd. In 1907 Payne married Alice Noyes, and they remained
married for 56 years, until Theodore Payne's death.
Throughout his career as a nurseryman, Payne kept active with community outreach and education. He taught horticulture and
gardening in many schools around the Los Angeles area and planted educational gardens on school grounds. He was also an active
member of many committees and clubs, among them the Southern California Academy of Sciences and the board for Rancho Santa
Ana Botanic Garden. Payne was also contracted on many jobs for state and federal projects, and acted as an advisor for maintaining
California's native landscape. He actively researched native plants throughout his life and became an expert on the subject.
In order to continue his life's work, he worked to start a foundation dedicated to the preservation and promotion of native
plants of California. Although he first started working toward setting up a foundation in the early 1940s, it did not come
into fruition until the late 1950s. He worked on the foundation and other endeavors relating to native plants up until his
death. Theodore Payne died May 6, 1963 at 91 years old.
The Theodore Payne papers consists of records created or collected by Payne during the course of his life and career. Materials
include personal papers, business records, records pertaining to his professional interests and activities, photographs, lantern
slides, glass plate negatives, publications on horticulture and gardening, landscaping records, drafts and final publications
of Payne's writings and speeches, and herbarium specimens and other artifacts belonging to Payne.
This collection has been arranged in the following series:
Series 1: Personal materials, 1892-1964
Series 2: Professional materials, 1907-1969
- Subseries 2.1: Correspondence
- Subseries 2.2: Writings and presentations
- Subseries 2.3: Associations and committees
- Subseries 2.4: Consultations
- Subseries 2.5: Research notes
- Subseries 2.6: Reference files
- Subseries 2.7: Awards
- Subseries 2.8: Nursery-related books
Series 3: Theodore Payne Nursery records, 1907-1962
- Subseries 3.1: Administrative records
- Subseries 3.2: Correspondence
- Subseries 3.3: Public relations
- Subseries 3.4: Nursery catalogs
- Subseries 3.5: Horticulture
- Subseries 3.6: Seed sales books
Series 4: Project files, 1914-1961
Series 5: Artifacts, undated
Series 6: Photographs, slides, and film, 1893-1988
Series 7: Correspondence, 1906-1963
Series 8: Books, 1879-1962
Series 9: Nursery catalogs, 1895-1969
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
CONTAINS UNPROCESSED AUDIOVISUAL MATERIALS: Materials will require assessment and may need further processing for safe access.
All requests to access special collections materials must be made in advance using the request button located on this page.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Horticulture -- California
Native plants for cultivation -- California
Theodore Payne Foundation for Wild Flowers and Native Plants, Incorporated
Payne, Theodore, 1872-1963 -- Archives