Webb (Thompson) Papers, 1798-1995, bulk 1905-1974

Printable guide [HTML]
Request items

Summary

Title:
Thompson Webb papers
Dates:
1798-1995, bulk 1905-1974
Creators:
Webb, Thompson, 1887-1975
Abstract:
A collection of personal, professional, and business papers of Thompson Webb, California educator and founder of the Webb School in Claremont, California.
Extent:
27.1 Linear Feet (65 boxes, 1 volume)
Language:
Materials are in English.
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item]. Thompson Webb papers, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Background

Scope and content:

A collection of approximately 30,000 items from 1798 to 1995, it contains the personal, professional and business papers of educator Thompson Webb (1887-1975) and his wife, Vivian Louise Howell Webb. The letters, manuscripts and documents in the collection concern education, especially the Webb School in Claremont, California; agriculture in the Coachella Valley and Riverside; the town of Claremont, California; and religious organizations. There is also material about the other Webb Schools in Bell Buckle and Knoxville, Tennessee; Scripps College; The Claremont Colleges; and Pilgrim Place, Claremont, California. The collection also includes copies of 56 letters from 1859 to 1862 of Daniel L. Clary, a student who joined the Confederate Army not long after the beginning of the United States Civil War and who died from battle wounds. There is also a significant amount of Webb family correspondence in the collection, in addition to the papers of Thompson Webb's father-in-law, a Los Angeles area minister named Robert Paine Howell. Persons represented in the collection include: Marshall Stimson, Jerry Voorhis, William Robert "Swaney" Webb, Thompson Webb, Thompson Webb (1917-1998), Vivian Louise Howell Webb, William Robert Webb (1874-1960), William Robert Webb (active 1947-1962), and William Robert Webb (1921-). Included in the collection are 10 boxes of minimally processed addenda.

Biographical / historical:

Richard Thompson Webb (1887-1975) was a California educator and founder of the Webb School in Claremont, California; he was the son of educator and U.S. Senator William Robert ("Sawney") Webb (1842-1926). In June 1915 he married Vivian Louise Howell; the couple had four sons: Richard Thompson Webb, Robert Howell Webb, William Robert Webb, and Joseph Lambuth Webb. Thompson Webb taught at the Webb School in Bell Buckle, Tennessee founded by his father before he moved with his family to California in 1922. He served as headmaster of the Webb School in Claremont, California, until his retirement in 1962; he was active in community and educational affairs and retained an interest in ranching, agricultural projects, rural planning, and irrigation projects until his death in 1975. The name "Richard Thompson Webb" was legally changed to "Thompson Webb" by both father and son.

Acquisition information:
Gifts of Thompson Webb, Jr., 1975-1996.
Processing information:

Processed by Huntington Library Staff, circa 1980-1998. In 2020, Gayle Richardson created the finding aid derived from a legacy summary report.

Arrangement:

Arranged alphabetically and by subject.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Gayle Richardson
Date Encoded:
This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2022-06-01 13:30:03 -0700 .

Access and use

Restrictions:

Open for use by qualified researchers and by appointment. Please contact Reader Services at the Huntington Library for more information.

Terms of access:

The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from or publish images of this material, nor does it charge fees for such activities. The responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and obtaining necessary permissions rests with the researcher.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item]. Thompson Webb papers, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Location of this collection:
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108, US
Contact:
(626) 405-2191
reference@huntington.org
Website