Collection Guide
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Shafer (Ed and Mary) Digital Photographs
0163
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Table of contents
Language of Material:
English
Contributing Institution:
Pepperdine University. Special Collections and University Archives.
Title: Ed and Mary Shafer Family Photographs
Identifier/Call Number: 0163
Physical Description:
403.1 Megabytes
Date (bulk): 1948-1961
Abstract: The Shafer family owned and operated the Cloverleaf Ranch in the Santa Monica Mountains from 1946 to 1964, raising cattle
and stocking man-made lakes with trout for public fishing. The Shafer land is now part of Malibu Creek State Park. The digital
collection contains photographs of the Shafers' ranch, home, and Trout Lakes, as well as two articles about the Shafers' cattle
and Trout Lakes, respectively. Materials date from 1948-1961.
This is a digital collection of photographs.The original photographs are still held by the donors. Access copies of digital
images are available as JPG files. Please contact Pepperdine Special Collections for access.
The original structure, naming and contents of the material have been maintained. This digital collection is arranged according
to the index compiled by Gary Liss. The images each contain an identifying badge with an individual number, and the numerical
order of these badges has been maintained.
The Shafer family owned and lived on Cloverleaf Ranch in the Santa Monica Mountains from 1946 to 1964. The property now forms part of Malibu Creek State Park. Edgar Shafer and his wife, Mary Jane, purchased their 60-acre ranch to run horses and cattle, including the first registered herd of Brangus
beef cattle in California. The Shafers leased additional land from their neighbor and friend, Ronald Reagan. When the price of beef fell in the early 1950s, the family found an ingenious new use for their land. Ed, Mary Jane, and
their sons Mike, Dave, and Steve all worked to dredge up two large lakes on the ranch, close to the intersection of Mulholland
Highway and Las Virgenes Road. The Shafers purchased trout and other fish from local fisheries to fill their new lakes, and
opened them to the public. The Trout Lakes proved immediately popular among Angelenos looking for an escape from the city,
as well as with commuters passing through the canyon on their way to the beach. The Shafers lived in the historic Sepulveda
Adobe house for ten years before building a new home on their property in the late 1950s. In 1964, the family sold their ranch
to Fox Realty Corp.
Adapted from information provided by Gary Liss.
[Box/folder# or item name], Ed and Mary Shafer Digital Photographs, Collection no. 0163, Malibu Historical Collection, Special
Collections and University Archives, University Libraries, Pepperdine University.
This collection was a donation from Mike Shafer, with the assistance of Gary Liss. Liss digitized the photographs and articles,
and compiled an index of the images using Shafer's notes and the notes written on the back of each photograph. The information
from this index has been transcribed in the corresponding item's Scope and Contents note. Liss also named each digital image
file according to the index. Although the file names have been changed to comply with the institution's file naming conventions,
Liss' original names are kept as "File" titles.
This collection was arranged and described by Reilly Saint Amand, July 2019.
This collection contains digitized photographs of the Shafer family and Cloverleaf Ranch, part of what is today Malibu Creek State Park. The photographs largely showcase the Shafers' home near Mulholland Highway, and the popular Trout Lakes located near the
intersection of Mulholland and Las Virgenes Road. Also included are two contemporary articles, one concerning the Shafer's
herd of Brangus beef cattle, and the other about the family's successful Trout Lakes.
Permission to publish, quote, or reproduce must be secured from the repository and the copyright holder.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Malibu (Calif.) -- History -- 20th century
Santa Monica Mountains (Calif.)
Malibu Creek State Park (Calif.)
Trout fishing
Photographs
Articles
Shafer, Mike