Collection Guide
Collection Title:
Collection Number:
Get Items:
The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens staff
oral history collection
HIAoralhist
View entire collection guide
Search this collection
Table of contents
Arturo Arellano interviewed by Dr. José Orozco 2019 November 8
Arturo Arellano interviewed by Dr. José Orozco
Language of Material: Spanish;
Castilian.
Arturo Arellano's interview includes such topics as types of cutting techniques for
gardening, conditions of work, and his areas of responsibility, such as the Lily Pond.
The length of the interview is approximately 47 minutes.
Arturo Arellano was 62 years of age at the time of interview; he has worked for fifteen
years at The Huntington in the Botanical Division and currently holds the position of
Gardener II. Originally from northern Jalisco Arellano discusses his childhood there,
including his family's work; he notes that most gardeners, like himself, are from
Jalisco.
Faustino Benites interviewed by Dr. José Orozco 2022 June 6
Faustino Benites interviewed by Dr. José Orozco
Language of Material: Spanish;
Castilian.
Faustino Benites's interview includes such topics as discussions of his life and family
in Mexico and his work like in the botanical gardens, primarily in the Desert Garden.
Benites was originally hired by Fred Brandt to work in the Desert Garden, and the
discussion includes a description of a typical day of work in his area, the Cactus
Garden, and the difficulty of working with little shade in the heat with cactus plants;
he describes how he enjoys interacting with the visitors and talking to the plants while
playing rock and roll music from the 1980s. The length of the interview is approximately
90 minutes.
Faustino Benites was 61 years old at the time of the interview; he has worked for 33
years at The Huntington in the Botanical Division and currently works in the Desert
Garden. Benites was born in Mexico City and raised in Toluca, Mexico; he immigrated to
the United States in 1986. In October 2021, he began sharing gardening tips in Spanish
on the Huntington's TikTok account and the videos have become very popular.
Guadalupe Gutierrez interviewed by Dr. José Orozco 2021 August 18
Guadalupe Gutierrez interviewed by Dr. José Orozco
Language of Material: Spanish;
Castilian.
Guadalupe Gutierrez's interview includes such topics as his early life in Mexico,
working in the post office, his marriage in 1960, coming to California, and raising his
seven sons. He also discusses the treatment of women in America compared to Mexico, how
he learned to work with the roses, the various staff members he worked for and with over
the years. The length of the interview is approximately 90 minutes.
Guadalupe Gutierrez was 90 years old at the time of his interview; he worked for
thirty-three years at The Huntington in the Botanical Division as a Gardener, before his
retirement in 1993. He was born in Totatiche, Jalisco, Mexico, and worked in a post
office for seven years before coming to San Gabriel, California in either 1958 or 1959.
Guadalupe Gutierrez began work as a gardener at The Huntington in 1960, where he would
eventually be in charge of the roses. After his retirement, he worked as a volunteer at
The Huntington and also learned to paint. Guadalupe Gutierrez died August 1, 2023.
Leonor Jiménez interviewed by Dr. José Orozco 2019 November 8
Leonor Jiménez interviewed by Dr. José Orozco
Language of Material: Spanish;
Castilian.
In her interview Leonor Jiménez observes how the work at The Huntington is easier than
her other jobs working in the fields and in a cannery. She explains how the shifts and
work assignments of custodians are arranged here at The Huntington; her husband also
works as a custodian in Facilities, but they do not work together. Jiménez also notes
her fondness for The Huntington. The length of the interview is approximately 49
minutes.
At the time of the interview, Leonor Jiménez was 62 years of age; she is in the
Facilities division and her job title is Custodian. Jiménez discusses her family's moves
across the border between the United States and Mexico and her move to California when
she was thirteen years of age. Jiménez has also lived in Modesto and Hollister,
California, where her father was a field worker.
Manuel Moreno interviewed by Dr. José Orozco 2020 March 6
Manuel Moreno interviewed by Dr. José Orozco
Language of Material: English.
Manuel Moreno's interview includes such topics as his early life and the work of his
parents; he also discusses his early education in the Los Angeles public school system.
Moreno reviews the different jobs he has held in his lifetime and the philosophy of work
that guides him. He notes that he came to The Huntington through his brother and how he
eventually came to his current position. He describes his workday at The Huntington, how
work is assigned and organized, and how the work is varied, which he likes. Moreno tells
of his hopes for advancement at The Huntington to the classification in Facilities of
engineer, a position that no Latinos currently hold. Moreno concludes the interview by
registering his largely favorable views on working at The Huntington. The length of the
interview is approximately 1 hour and 3 minutes.
At the time of the interview Manuel ("Manny") Moreno was 42 years of age; he began
working at The Huntington in 2007, in the Facilities division and currently holds the
position of Facilities Maintenance Technician. Moreno was born on February 11, 1979 in
San Luis Potosí, Mexico, and came to the United States at an early age; he did not learn
Spanish at home but in high school. His father worked as a "grinder" in the aerospace
program and his mother as a seamstress and homemaker. In school he developed an interest
in mathematics because he liked the preciseness of numbers; he also has a fondness for
working on cars.
Angel Pinedo, Jacinto Pinedo, and Rosie Pinedo interviewed by Dr. José Orozco 2021 November 6
Angel Pinedo, Jacinto Pinedo, and Rosie Pinedo interviewed by Dr. José Orozco
Language of Material: English.
The interview of Angel Pinedo, Jacinto Pinedo, and Rosie Pinedo includes such topics as
their family's life as migrants, the influence of their father's work as a gardener at
The Huntington and as an operator of his own gardening business, their parents
charitable work, and how their own successful careers were attributed, in part, to their
upbringing. The length of the interview is approximately 90 minutes.
Angel Pinedo, Jacinto Pinedo, and Rosie Pinedo are the children of Ramiro Ramírez
Pinedo, of The Huntington Botanical Division and a participant in the oral history
program; they are also the nephews and niece of Cruz Pinedo, also of the Botanical
Division and a participant in the oral history program. Rosie Pinedo was born near Villa
Guerrero, Jalisco, Mexico, in 1968; her brothers were born in Southern California, Angel
in 1986 and Jacinto in 1973. The three children accompanied their father while he was
either working in The Huntington gardens or at his own gardening business. The exposure
to The Huntington helped develop in them an appreciation of plants and gardens as well
as art. Angel Pinedo holds an M.S. and teaches in the California State University
Fullerton biology department, as well as being the education director of the Arroyo Seco
Foundation; Jacinto Pinedo is an electrician, and Rosie Pinedo works in language
translation.
Cruz Pinedo interviewed by Dr. José Orozco 2019 July 27
Cruz Pinedo interviewed by Dr. José Orozco
Language of Material: Spanish;
Castilian.
Cruz Pinedo's interview contains discussions of his life and family in Mexico,
including the poverty of the family, his birth on a rancho, his marriage, and
agricultural work. He also extensively covers his move to the United States, includes
such topics as work, his preference for the United States, and his dealings with
immigration authorities. Pinedo also discusses his work in the gardens with Fred Brandt,
the long-time German-Swiss head of the gardens. The length of the interview is
approximately 1 hour and 26 minutes.
Cruz Pinedo is in the Botanical Division with the job title of Gardener II. Pinedo was
born in 1936 and at the time of the interview has been working at The Huntington since
1977. Pinedo's work at The Huntington has been in the gardens and he is the brother of
C. Ramiro Ramírez Pinedo, another participant in this project.
C. Ramiro Ramírez Pinedo interviewed by Dr. José Orozco 2019 June 13-20
C. Ramiro Ramírez Pinedo interviewed by Dr. José Orozco
Language of Material: Spanish;
Castilian.
C. Ramiro Ramírez Pinedo details his life in Mexico, discussing such matters as his
father's work, including his pay as a farm worker and a stint working in Washington
state; his mother's and father's family backgrounds; and a vivid account of his father's
experience in Mexico's Cristero War. Mr. Ramírez Pinedo discusses how he left home at a
young age in search of work because of his family's poverty. Ramírez Pinedo's move to
the United States receives detailed attention: the means of coming here, his wife's
journey to the United States, where they lived once she had arrived in Southern
California. In regards to his work at The Huntington, Ramírez Pinedo recounts how he
came to The Huntington through a cousin, that his initial position in Botanical was only
temporary and without insurance, and how much he was paid. He goes on to discuss his
work with the camellias and in the Cactus Gardens. He eventually moved to bonsai
pruning, which is now his specialty. Ramírez Pinedo notes that his training came from
Japanese-American gardeners at UCLA and from Ben Oki, a well-known bonsai specialist in
Southern California. Mr. Ramírez Pinedo explains his philosophy of pruning and how it is
an art form to him. In addition, he covers such matters as pay at The Huntington, the
ethnic make-up of the Botanical Gardens' non-managerial staff, and the attention that he
receives from Huntington visitors when he is working; that attention led him to
establish his own gardening business. Ramírez Pindeo also discusses his wife's work,
their children, and their philosophy in raising them as well as his devotion to the
Virgen de Guadalupe. The length of the two interviews cumulatively total approximately 4
hours and 30 minutes.
C. Ramiro Ramírez Pinedo is in the Botanical Division with a job title of Lead
Gardener. Ramírez Pinedo was eighty years old at the time of his interviews and has
worked at The Huntington for 50 years. He is the brother of Cruz Pinedo, another
participant in this project.
Shadi Shihab interviewed by Dr. José Orozco 2019 December 6
Shadi Shihab interviewed by Dr. José Orozco
Language of Material: English.
Shadi Shihab discusses his life in Israel, and his first impressions of California. He
speaks at length about the organization of Botanical's work teams and his work as a
supervisor and curator. Shihab analyzes the qualities that make for a good worker here
as well as a curator. He also discusses his relationship with his work crews, all of
whom he has hired. At the end of the interview, Shihab notes how hard working they are
and how their pay needs to improve. Shihab reviews how Botanical met the challenge of
the San Gabriel Valley windstorm of 2011 that damaged many of The Huntington's plants,
trees, and shrubs. Shihab notes his high regard for Jim Folsom, the director of The
Huntington's Botanical Gardens; he also mentions such persons as Ann Richardson, former
curator of the Camelia gardens, and Fred Brandt, former superintendent of the gardens.
The length of the interview is approximately 42 minutes.
Shadi Shihab is in the Botanical Division with the job title of Curator. He was born in
Israel in 1976; after moving to the United States in 1997, Shihab received a degree in
horticulture from Cal Poly Pomona and two related degrees from Pasadena City College. He
has worked at The Huntington since January 1998, rising from the classification of
temporary gardener at the start of his tenure to one of the curators.
Javier Vasquez interviewed by Dr. José Orozco 2021 July 14
Javier Vasquez interviewed by Dr. José Orozco
Language of Material: English.
Javier Vasquez's interview includes such topics his mother's work as a seamstress and
his father's two jobs: a gardener at The Huntington and at a USA gas station; he
remembers his father taking him to The Huntington when he was a child and the
camaraderie he saw among the workers, including Jim Folsom and Fred Brandt. He discusses
his own education and other jobs before starting at The Huntington. He details the daily
work routine in Facilities and the standards of good work as well as the impact of the
COVID pandemic and the challenges it presented. The length of the interview is
approximately 120 minutes.
Javier Vasquez was 36 years of age at the time of the interview; he began working at
The Huntington sometime around 2005 in the Facilities Department and currently holds the
position of Custodial Services Assistant Supervisor. Vasquez was born in Los Angeles and
grew up in San Gabriel and Rosemead, California. His mother was a seamstress and his
father, Rigoberto Vasquez, was a gardener at The Huntington for many years before his
death in 2008. Javier Vasquez worked his way up from a temporary janitor to a
supervisorial role in Facilities.
John Villarreal interviewed by Dr. José Orozco 2019 November 1-22
John Villarreal interviewed by Dr. José Orozco
Language of Material: English.
John Villarreal devotes considerable time discussing his childhood in a migrant
household (his parents came from Nava, Coahuila, Mexico), offering insights into such
topics as bilingualism, work, and education. Because his family belonged to the
Jehovah's Witnesses Villarreal discusses this aspect of his family life in detail. In
addition he discusses his gay sexual identity and its impact on his family, and how his
co-workers view his sexual identity. Villarreal discusses his job interview with Shadi
Shihab, also a participant in this oral history program, for a position in Botanical and
how Shihab helped him learn on the job. Villarreal also recounts how he transferred to
the Rose Garden, and explains his work in this garden, especially his management of the
extensive volunteer program upon which this part of Botanical relies to care for The
Huntington's famed roses. He discusses social relationships of gardeners outside The
Huntington and how the staff, which is mostly Latino, view their opportunities and place
at The Huntington. Of note are Villarreal's comments on how staff who work in the
gardens view those staff who work in offices. Besides Shadi Shihab, Villarreal also
mentions Fred Brandt, long-time supervisor of the gardens. The length of the two
interviews is approximately 3 hours and 30 minutes.
John Villarreal is in the Botanical Division with the job title of Technical Gardener.
At the time of Villarreal's interviews he was 61 years old. Villarreal began work at The
Huntington in the Palm and Jungle Gardens; he moved on to the Rose Garden where he has
worked for the last six years. Originally a hairstylist, Villarreal developed an
interest in gardening and earned an associates degree in horticulture which led to his
interest in The Huntington.