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Stewart (James) Papers
SMC 0029
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Contributing Institution:
Special Collections & Archives, UC San Diego
9500 Gilman Drive
La Jolla 92093-0175
Title: James Stewart Papers
Creator:
Stewart, James R. (James Ronald), 1927-2017
Identifier/Call Number: SMC 0029
Physical Description:
10.8 Linear feet
(27 archives boxes, 1 card file box, 1 map case folder, and 9 films)
Date (inclusive): 1943-2008
Abstract: Papers of James Stewart, former chief Diving Officer at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and scuba training pioneer.
The collection contains correspondence, professional materials, writings, photographs, and diving-related subject files and
diving manuals.
Languages:
English
.
Scope and Content of Collection
Papers of James Stewart, former chief Diving Officer at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and scuba training pioneer.
The collection contains correspondence, professional materials, writings, photographs, and diving-related subject files and
diving manuals. Subjects of note include early diving safety, procedures and protocols; diving instruction; the SIO research
diving program; and diving in Antarctica.
Arranged in ten series: 1) BIOGRAPHICAL FILES, 2) CORRESPONDENCE, 3) SUBJECT FILES, 4) PROFESSIONAL DIVING, 5) TEACHING, 6)
DIVING ORGANIZATIONS, 7) DIVING MANUALS & GUIDES, 8) WRITINGS, 9) PHOTOGRAPHS & SLIDES and 10) AUDIOVISUAL MATERIAL.
James Stewart Papers, SMC 29. Special Collections & Archives, UC San Diego.
James Ronald Stewart (b. 1927) first experienced diving as a teenager in the waters off the coast of San Diego, and proved
to be an adept diver from a young age. In 1951 he was inducted into the Bottom Scratchers, one of the first free-diving and
spearfishing clubs in the country; the admittance rate of the club was notoriously low, and required that applicants achieve
such feats as diving 30 feet and retrieving three abalone in a single dive. Like other divers during the 1950s, Stewart was
introduced to the advent of scuba diving largely through experimentation, trial and error, and collaboration with other enthusiasts.
He received a B.S. in Botany from Pomona College in 1953 and his teaching credential from San Diego State University in 1958.
He also studied graduate-level marine botany at both USC and the University of Hawaii.
Stewart's career began as an independent diving consultant and contractor. During the late 1950s he conducted dives as a part-time
research diver for the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, traveling to such places as Eniwetok Atoll and Mexico, and assisted
Conrad Limbaugh and Andy Rechnitzer with the SIO diving training program. In 1958 he was hired as Field Director for the SIO
Kelp Project, and in 1959 he co-discovered the underwater sandfalls at Cabo San Lucas alongside Conrad Limbaugh and Wheeler
North. He was named Diving Officer in 1960 after Limbaugh's untimely death, and went on to host the first statewide class
on scuba diving at UC Santa Barbara. During the 1960s Stewart spearheaded the initiative to standardize diving procedures
and protocol for the University of California and created the University Guide for Diving Safety in 1963. He then went on
to develop diving training programs for the National Park Service and the Office of Polar Programs in Antarctica.
Stewart was very involved in diving groups and associations, and guided the standardization of diving safety and protocol
across the country. He co-founded the Los Angeles Council of Diving Clubs, the San Diego Council of Divers, the San Diego
County Underwater Search and Recovery Program and the San Diego County Coroner's Scuba Death Investigation Committee. He also
served as a member of the National Association of Underwater Instructors and the State of California Advisory Board on Underwater
Parks and Reserves. James Stewart continued to serve as SIO Chief Diving Officer until his retirement in 1991.
Selected images from this collection have been digitized, and can be viewed by clicking on the link. Additional audiovisual
materials have been digitized and may be available upon request.
Original media formats in SERIES 10) AUDIOVISUAL MATERIAL are restricted. Viewing/listening copies may be available for researchers.
COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE. ALLOW ONE WEEK FOR RETRIEVAL OF MATERIALS.
Publication rights are held by the Regents of the University of California.
Acquired 1991, 2001, 2015.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Scuba diving -- History
Deep diving -- Physiological aspects
Scuba diving -- Safety measures
Diving
Scuba apparatus
Deep diving -- Certification
Deep diving -- History
Stewart, James R. (James Ronald), 1927-2017 -- Archives
Limbaugh, Conrad, 1924-1960 -- Correspondence
Scripps Institution of Oceanography -- History