Collection context
Summary
- Title:
- Eureka Waterfront Litigation Collection
- Dates:
- 1844-1980s
- Creators:
- City of Eureka
- Abstract:
- Extent:
- 7 cubic feet plus oversized items
- Language:
- Preferred citation:
-
Eureka Waterfront Litigation Collection. Cal Poly Humboldt, Library Special Collections and Archives
Background
- Scope and content:
-
In 1968 a lawsuit was filed against the City of Eureka to determine who had legal ownership of land on the Eureka Waterfront. During the 13 year span of the case, the Eureka City Attorney, Melvin Johnsen, obtained assistance from the law firm Nossam, Kreuger and Marsh in Los Angeles. They conducted extensive historical research on the complex history of the question which is rooted in federal swamp lands as well as state tidelands law and cases. Their “evidence” included copies of original deeds and lawsuits dating back to before the establishment of the City, newspaper excerpts, town trustees minutes, city council minutes, etc. These documents, along with copies of many historical maps as well as a series of contemporary aerial photographs and archaeological findings commissioned for the case, are included in the collection. The collection came with a detailed list of the items used as exhibit evidence in the lawsuit. Donated items were numbered and checked off on this list, referred to as the List of Exhibits. This is the essential tool for using the collection and it dictated the arrangement of the collection into two series, the print documents and the maps and aerial photographs. The List of Exhibits is available in the HSU Library Humboldt Room; it is not online. There are two additional groups of items not included in the List of Exhibits, although they were assigned identifying designations by the collection creator. One group is the Defendants Exhibits A-JJJJ. These are in Box 6, Red Binders 1 and 2, with a List of Defendants’ Exhibits A-JJJJ at the front of Red Binder 1. The second group carries a “2-xx” notation. These are in Boxes 7 and 9 (plus a few items in Folder 7 of the collection map filing drawer) and have been described by staff when processing the collection. Copies of both of these lists are located in the HSU Library Humboldt Room, along with the List of Exhibits. It is necessary to use the List of Exhibits to identify items within the collection.
- Acquisition information:
- In 1984 the City of Eureka donated the collection of documents, maps and photographs used as evidence in the Eureka tidelands litigation known as Lazio v. City of Eureka.
Indexed terms
About this collection guide
- Date Prepared:
- 1844-1980s
- Date Encoded:
- This finding aid was produced using Record Express for OAC5 on July 14, 2025, 2:55 p.m.
Access and use
- Restrictions:
-
The collection is open for research.
- Terms of access:
-
Copyright has not been assigned to Humboldt State University. To obtain permission to publish or reproduce in any format, please contact the Special Collections Librarian.
- Preferred citation:
-
Eureka Waterfront Litigation Collection. Cal Poly Humboldt, Library Special Collections and Archives
- Location of this collection:
-
Third Floor, Room 3031 Harpst StreetArcata, CA 95521-8299, US
- Contact:
- (707) 826-3419