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Kit Carson Ranch Records
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Title: Kit Carson Ranch Records
Creator:
Kit Carson Ranch (Riverside Calif.)
Identifier/Call Number: 0038
Contributing Institution:
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. Special Collections and Archives
Language of Material:
English
Physical Description:
2.08 Linear Feet
(3 boxes)
Date (inclusive): circa 1935-1950
Abstract: The Kit Carson Ranch was operated by the Shade family in Riverside, California during the early 20th century. The collection
contains papers and photographs that document the history of the Ranch and the Shade family.
Advance notice required for access.
Permission to publish, quote, or reproduce must be secured from the repository and the copyright holder.
[Box/folder# or item name], Kit Carson Ranch Records, Collection no. 0038, W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Library, Special Collections
and Archives, University Library, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The collection was donated to California State Polytechnic University, Pomona by Autumn Shade's daughter Franci Allen in 2017.
The Kit Carson Ranch was operated by the Shade family in Riverside, California during the early 20th century. The family consisted
of Mrs. Nell Burdell Shade and her seven children: Carson, Autumn, Audrey, Merle, Meredith, Morris, and Earl. Carson, the
eldest, was nicknamed "Kit" after the frontiersman Kit Carson (1808-1868) and the Shade family used the same name for the
ranch. The Shades built the ranch on land they had obtained during the Great Depression and they boarded and supplied stock
horses for Boy Scout camps in the San Bernardino Mountains. They also organized annual trail rides for the Scouts.
Along with providing horses for trail rides, the Kit Carson Ranch was a popular gathering place for Hollywood stars and military
personnel. It was used as a wedding venue, the site of an event known as the "Shade Party," and hosted an annual Girl Scout
Horse Show. The horse show was organized by Autumn Shade in partnership with Girl Scout Director Miss Ray Womer. The show
included exhibition jumping and a relay race and drew crowds of more than 150 people.
The ranch was also connected to the nearby Ed Wright's Training Stables through Autumn, who had her first job there. Ed Wright
owned the Arabian stallion Raynas, who was bred at the W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Ranch in Pomona.
The ranch ceased operation after the United States became involved in World War II and all seven Shade children enlisted in
the military. Mrs. Nell Burdell Shade later moved to a farmhouse known as La Colina Ranch in Riverside. There, she boarded
Royal Air Force pilots who had been brought from Great Britain to March Air Force Base in Riverside county to train American
pilots. Members of the Shade family continued to live at La Colina Ranch after the war.
The collection includes printed materials and photographs that document the activities of the Kit Carson Ranch and the Shade
family that owned and operated it.
The collection is organized into the following series: Series 1. Printed Materials and Series 2. Photographs.
Autumn Shade Papers, Collection no. 0034, W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Library, Special Collections and Archives, University
Library, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona.
The Freeman Family Collection. Museum of Flight.
The collection was processed by Jose Quirarte under the supervision of Alexis Adkins in 2020.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Kit Carson Ranch (Riverside, Calif.)
Shade family
Boy Scouts
Girl Scouts