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Elza Ivan Edwards Papers: Finding Aid
mssHM 65769-65811  
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Collection Details
 
Table of contents What's This?
  • Overview of the Collection
  • Access
  • Administrative Information
  • Biographical Note
  • Scope and Content
  • Arrangement
  • Indexing: Subjects
  • Indexing Terms

  • Overview of the Collection

    Title: Elza Ivan Edwards Papers
    Dates (inclusive): 1948-1997
    Bulk dates: 1966-1980
    Collection Number: mssHM 65769-65811
    Creator: Edwards, E. I. (Elza Ivan), 1897-1984.
    Extent: 53 items in 1 box
    Repository: The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens. Manuscripts Department
    1151 Oxford Road
    San Marino, California 91108
    Phone: (626) 405-2129
    Email: reference@huntington.org
    URL: http://www.huntington.org
    Abstract: This small collection contains correspondence and some ephemera of Elza Ivan “Eddie” Edwards (1897-1984), who authored several books on the history of Death Valley, California. The letters primarily date from the late 1960s to 1980 and are chiefly personal in nature though some discuss history-related activities.
    Language: English.

    Access

    Open to qualified researchers by prior application through the Reader Services Department. For more information, contact Reader Services.

    Administrative Information

    Publication Rights

    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]. Elza Ivan Edwards Papers, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

    Provenance

    Gift of Earl F. Nation, September 8, 2000.

    Biographical Note

    Elza Ivan “Eddie” Edwards (1897-1984) was born in Idaho in 1897. Later he moved to California where he opened an accounting advisory service for medical offices. Edwards‟ hobby was Death Valley history and he was the author of several books including The Valley Whose Name is Death, Desert Voices: A Descriptive Bibliography, and The Enduring Desert. He was an active member of the Los Angeles Corral of the Westerners and served as Sheriff in 1966. In 1964, he and his wife, Beryl, retired and moved to Yucca Valley, California. Edwards died in 1984.

    Scope and Content

    The majority of the 43 pieces of correspondence are written by Elza Ivan Edwards and are personal in nature; however, several of the letters discuss in detail the activities and publications of the Los Angeles Corral of the Westerners and the Death Valley '49ers. The letters also discuss Edwards‟ various books on Death Valley as well as the publications of George Koenig, Anthony Kroll, and Earl F. Nation (fellow Westerners and the addressees of Edwards‟ letters). One letter by Edwards recounts a hiking trip in Nevada and provides a good description of the area around Dayton, Nevada, as well as the ghost towns Delamar and Genoa. The ten pieces of ephemera include biographical information about Edwards and newspaper clippings.

    Arrangement

    Correspondence arranged alphabetically by author, followed by ephemera.

    Indexing: Subjects

    Death Valley '49ers
    • lza Ivan Edwards, 1897-, letter (1976, Aug. 20) to Anthony Kroll. HM 65783.
    • lza Ivan Edwards, 1897-, letter (1977, Jan. 29) to Anthony Kroll. HM 65784.
    • lza Ivan Edwards, 1897-, letter (1970, Oct. 21) to Earl F. Nation, 1910-. HM 65797.
    Nevada – Description and travel
    • lza Ivan Edwards, 1897-, letter (1966, Aug. 31) to George Koenig. HM 65774.
    Westerners. Los Angeles Corral
    • rthur H. (Arthur Henry) Clark, 1912 -, letter (1966, May 31) to Earl F. Nation, 1910-. HM 65770.
    • lza Ivan Edwards, 1897-, letter (1964, Oct. 28) to George Koenig. HM 65773.
    • lza Ivan Edwards, 1897-, letter (1966, May 14) to Earl F. Nation, 1910-. HM 65788.
    • lza Ivan Edwards, 1897-, letter (1966, June 12) to Earl F. Nation, 1910-. HM 65790.
    • lza Ivan Edwards, 1897-, letter (1969, Nov. 17) to Earl F. Nation, 1910-. HM 65791.
    • lza Ivan Edwards, 1897-, letter (1969, Dec. 30) to Earl F. Nation, 1910-. HM 65794.
    • verett Gordon Hager letter (1966, May 26) to Earl F. Nation, 1910-. HM 65808.
    Westerners. San Bernardino Corral
    • lza Ivan Edwards, 1897-, letter (1976, Feb. 22) to Anthony Kroll. HM 65782.
    • lza Ivan Edwards, 1897-, letter (1975, July 22) to Earl F. Nation, 1910-. HM 65798.
    • lza Ivan Edwards, 1897-, letter (1975, July

    Indexing Terms

    The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the Huntington Library's Online Catalog.  

    Subjects

    Edwards, E. I. (Elza Ivan), 1897-1984.
    Death Valley '49ers.
    Westerners. Los Angeles Corral.
    Westerners. San Bernardino Corral.
    Authors, American -- 20th century -- Archives.
    Deserts -- Anecdotes.
    Deserts -- United States.
    Ghost towns -- Nevada.
    California -- Description and travel.
    Death Valley (Calif. and Nev.) -- Description and travel.
    Nevada -- Description and travel.

    Forms/Genres

    Letters (correspondence) -- West (U.S.) -- 20th century.

    Additional Contributors

    Koenig, George, correspondent.
    Kroll, Anthony, correspondent.
    Nation, Earl F., 1910-., correspondent.