Finding Aid to the Lillie Mae King (Ransom) Family Collection of Photographs and Papers 1937-1986 SFP 92
Finding aid written by Moriah Ulinskas
San Francisco History Center, San Francisco Public Library
2015
Title: Lillie Mae King (Ransom) Family Collection of Photographs and Papers
Date (inclusive): 1937-1986
Identifier/Call Number: SFP 92
Creator:
Ransom, Lillie Mae King
Physical Description:
One carton.
(1 Cubic Feet)
Contributing Institution:
San Francisco History Center, San Francisco Public Library
100 Larkin Street
San Francisco, CA 94102
(415) 557-4567
info@sfpl.org
Abstract: The Lillie Mae King (Ransom) collection is comprised of photographs and ephemera documenting the Ransom family as well as
documentation from her tenure as Secretary of the Western Addition Community Organization (WACO). Types of material include
family photos, religious and school certificates, church and school related newspaper clippings, WACO correspondence, WACO
financial ledger, and WACO member rosters.
Language of Materials: Collection materials are in
English.
The collection is available for use during Photo Desk hours.
All requests for permission to publish from the collection must be submitted in writing to the Photo Curator. Permission for
publication is given on behalf of the San Francisco Public Library as the owner of the physical items.
Lillie Mae King (Ransom) Family Collection of Photographs and Papers, (SFP 92), San Francisco History Center, San Francisco
Public Library.
Gift. 1998.
For preservation, photographs were removed from albums and re-housed in acid-free folders.
Yearbooks have been transferred to the San Francisco History Center stacks collection.
Lillie Mae King (Ransom) was an African American community organizer in San Francisco’s Western Addition neighborhood. Born
in Dallas, Texas in 1920 she completed high school at the Girls High School in San Francisco in 1937 and became an active
community member. She raised her four sons Jesse Jr., Leonard, Christopher and Lawrence in the Western Addition and was
an active member of the Catholic community. In the 1960s she became involved with the Western Addition Community Organization
(WACO) and later became the organization’s secretary. On December 26, 1968 WACO filed a lawsuit against the San Francisco
Redevelopment Agency which resulted in the withholding of agency funding until a satisfactory relocation plan was in place
for community residents. Lillie was widely recognized for her advocacy and community organizing work, specifically regarding
the impact of redevelopment on the Area 2 neighborhood in Western Addition. The San Francisco Board of Supervisors adjourned
its regular meeting out of respect to the memory of her, following her death March 7, 1986.
The Lillie Mae King (Ransom) collection is comprised of photographs and ephemera documenting the Ransom family as well as
documentation from her tenure as secretary of the Western Addition Community Organization (WACO). The collection is organized
into two distinct sections family and community organizing. Family includes photographs and ephemera including Lillie’s family
photographs, education certificates of completion, and her sons’ photographs and documentation including schools (Morning
Star School, St. Dominic’s, Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory, City College of San Francisco) and newspaper clippings related
to school, church and sports. Included are Boy Scout photographs, badges, and awards, as well as documentation from the 1957
National Jamboree. The community organizing portion of the collection comprises primarily of financial documents and correspondence
regarding WACO and the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency, but also includes documents from Western Addition Project Area
Committee (WAPAC), National Council of Negro Women, Bay Area Urban League, and San Francisco Planning Department.
Arranged into two series: 1. Family and 2. Community Organizing. The arrangement within Family is by family members.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Western Addition (San Francisco, Calif.) -- History.
San Francisco (Calif.) -- Social life and customs.
San Francisco (Calif.) -- Social life and customs -- 20th century.
Photographic prints, 1940-1950
Photographic prints, 1950-1960
Photographic prints, 1960-1970
Portraits
Ransom, Lillie Mae King
Family Series 1 1937-1986
Physical Description:
12 folders
box 1, folder 1-2; 19
Lillie Mae King (Ransom) 1937-1986
Photographs include settings in San Francisco, Golden Gate Park, Ocean Beach. Ephembera includes Office of Price Administration
(OPA) War Ration Books and tokens for the family, education certificates for Institute of Practical Arts, City College San
Francisco, Galileo Vocational Nurses Association; drivers licences, obituary, and death certificate. Plaque is an appreciation
award on behal of the San Francisco Public Housing Tenants Association (1979).
box 1, folder 3-5
box 1, folder 6-7
Leonard Ransom 1942-1973
box 1, folder 8-9
Christopher Ransom 1945-1964
Photographs include school portraits, St. Dominic School graduation, and Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory football. Ephemera
includes birth certificate, report cards, letter from Congressman Phillip Burton (1964), newspaper clippings on Sacred Heart
Cathedral Preparatory football games with Christopher Ransom.
box 1, folder 10-12
box 1, folder 13-15
box 1, folder 16
Family and Friends' funeral service programs, obituaries and photos 1954-1980
Community Organizing Series 2 1968-1974
box 1, folder 17-18
Western Addition Community Organization (WACO) 1968-1974
WACO Treasurer's Cash Book (1968-1974); correspondence, rosters of members; Appendix to a Program of Social Development for
Western Addition Area 2 (1971); Community Organizations in San Francisco (1971); San Francisco Redevelopment Agency meeting
minutes (1974); Comprehensive Residential Zoning Study plan (1974), Children’s Rights Group newsletter.