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Sleeper (Jim) papers
MS.R.173
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Contributing Institution:
Special Collections and Archives, University of California, Irvine Libraries
Title: Jim Sleeper papers
Creator:
Sleeper, Jim
Identifier/Call Number: MS.R.173
Physical Description:
122.3 Linear Feet
(80 record cartons, 18 flat boxes, 13 rolled item boxes, 10 a/v boxes, 2 legal document boxes, 1 letter document box, 1 half
letter document box)
Date (inclusive): 1858-2012
Abstract: This collection contains the papers of Orange County, California historian James ("Jim") Doren Sleeper (1927-2012). Jim Sleeper
specialized in Orange County history, especially the Irvine Ranch, Rancho Mission Viejo, and the O'Neill Ranch. The Sleeper
papers are comprised of research files, clippings from local Orange County newspapers, manuscript and published versions of
Sleeper's scholarly writings, annotated copies of books, maps, and ephemera. Also included is biographical material, such
as school records, correspondence, and family photographs.
Language of Material:
English
.
The collection is open for research.
See the "r173_Index cards user guide" under "Collection Scope and Content Summary" for more information about Sleeper's research
files.
Property rights reside with the University of California. Copyrights are retained by the creators of the records and their
heirs. For permission to reproduce or to publish, please contact the Head of Special Collections and Archives.
Jim Sleeper papers. MS-R173. Special Collections and Archives, The UC Irvine Libraries, Irvine, California. Date accessed.
For the benefit of current and future researchers, please cite any additional information about sources consulted in this
collection, including permanent URLs, item or folder descriptions, and box/folder locations.
Acquired, 2014.
Processed by Phil Brigandi, Kelly Spring, and Kimberly Gallon, 2016. Reprocessed by Zoe MacLeod, 2020.
James "Jim" Doren Sleeper (1927-2012) was a leading Orange County historian. A native of Santa Ana, his interest in local
history began in the late 1930s. After graduation from Santa Ana High School and service in the Army Air Force in the last
days of World War II, Sleeper worked as a newspaper reporter, teacher, forest ranger, and a public relations man before switching
to history full time in the 1960s. He served as staff historian for The Irvine Company (1965-1969), and later filled a similar
role for the Rancho Mission Viejo Company. He worked as a historical consultant on environmental impact reports, legal cases,
for both the Orange County Register and the Los Angeles Times, and many other public and private projects.
His published work includes a wide variety of articles (some 2,000 by his count) and a number of important books. In "Turn
the Rascals Out! The Life and Times of Orange County's Fighting Editor, Dan M. Baker" (1973), he used the biography of a Santa
Ana newspaperman to trace the early history of Orange County. "A Boys' Book of Bear Stories (Not for Boys): A Grizzly Introduction
to the Santa Ana Mountains" (1976) weaves together several stories. Sleeper writes about bears in the Santa Ana Mountains
and also includes a general outline of human history in the hills, as well as thumbnail sketches of a host of mountain pioneers.
"Great Movies Shot in Orange County that will Live Forever (or at least until 1934)" (1980) delves deeply into the minutia
of local movie making. "Bears to Briquets, A History of Irvine Park" (1987) began as a small pamphlet published for the 70th
anniversary of Irvine Park in 1967; the revised version brings in a great deal more mountain history and some surprising episodes
from the park's past. Sleeper was perhaps best known for his almanacs – "Jim Sleeper's Orange County Almanac of Historical
Oddities" – published in three editions (1971, 1974, and 1982). They include summaries of local agriculture, chronologies
of local events, and even local weather superlatives.
Over the years, Sleeper developed the largest private research collection on the history of Orange County and was a friend
and mentor to several generations of local historians. He was active in a number of local historical organizations, including
the Orange County Historical Society, the Orange County Pioneer Association, the Old Courthouse Museum Society, and the Santa
Ana Cultural Heritage Board.
| 1927 | Born April 16 in Santa Ana. |
| 1942 | Begins work as a copy boy for the Santa Ana Independent. Earns the rank of Eagle Scout. |
| 1943-45 | Publishes The Gold Quill, a local Boy Scout newspaper. |
| 1944 | Attends summer journalism workshop at Northwestern University. |
| 1945 | Publishes first book (a collection of fiction), Shocking Reports from the Electric Eel. Graduates from Santa Ana High School. |
| 1945-46 | Serves in Army Air Force. |
| 1947 | Editor, Orange County Farm Shopper. Enrolls at Occidental College; later serves as editor of the campus humor magazine, Fang. |
| 1948 | Purchases cabin in Holy Jim Canyon. |
| 1951 | Receives BA degree in Literature from Occidental College. |
| 1953 | Receives MA degree in English from Occidental College; receives teaching credential. |
| 1953-54 | Teaches English and journalism at Orange Coast College. |
| 1954-61 | Works seasonally for the U.S. Forest Service as a forest ranger and firefighter in the Santa Ana Mountains. |
| 1950s-60s | Makes many extended trips to Mexico, Central, and South America. |
| 1957 | Hired to write scripts for Burritt Wheeler, KFI radio personality. |
| 1960-61 | Does post-graduate work at UCLA. |
| 1961 | Co-founder of the Canyon Wren newsletter for Santa Ana Mountains cabin owners; serves as editor and publisher, 1962-66. |
| 1961-62 | Works as a publicist for Forest Lawn. |
| 1963-64 | Teaches English at Fullerton Union High School. |
| 1965 | Marries fellow teacher Nola Fox. |
| 1965-69 | Serves as staff historian and public relations writer for The Irvine Company; develops a historical newsletter for the company, the Rancho San Joaquin Gazette. |
| 1967 | Publishes first edition of Bears to Briquets. |
| 1969 | Begins careers as a freelance historical researcher and writer. |
| 1971 | Publishes first Jim Sleeper's Almanac of Orange County Historical Oddities. |
| 1973 | Publishes Turn the Rascals Out! |
| 1974 | Publishes second Almanac. |
| 1976 | Publishes A Boys' Book of Bear Stories. |
| 1979 | Publishes Portrait from the Past, a history of the Old Orange County Courthouse. |
| 1980 | Publishes Great Movies Shot in Orange County. |
| 1982 | Publishes third Almanac. |
| 1985 | Hired as historical consultant for the Rancho Mission Viejo Company; works for them off and on until 2005. |
| 1987 | Publishes revised edition of Bears to Briquets. |
| 2007 | Sells cabin in Holy Jim Canyon. |
| 2012 | Dies, September 27, age 85. |
Collection Scope and Content Summary
This collection contains the research files, manuscripts, and personal papers of Orange County, California historian Jim Sleeper.
Sleeper's research files on Orange County include newspaper clippings, ephemera, photographs, maps, and notes. Also included
in the collection is the extensive card index system Sleeper used for his research files, books, newspaper clippings, and
artifacts. The collection also contains manuscript and published versions of Sleeper's scholarly writings. Also included are
Sleeper's personal and family material, such as photographs, negatives, diaries, correspondence, and school work.
This collection is organized in the following four series:
- Research files, 1859-2012.
- Writings, 1945-1997.
- Index cards, undated.
- Biographical, 1858-2012.
The Nat Neff papers and the Bayha Family papers were removed and became two seperate collections.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Orange County (Calif.)--History.
Newspaper clippings.
Maps--California--Orange County--20th century.
Irvine (Calif.)--History.
Orange County (Calif.)--Photographs.
Sleeper, Jim