Title: Dixon Family Collection

Dates: 1910-2022 (bulk dates 1960-1969)

Collection Number: MS 2022-003

Creator/Collector: James Benjamin Dixon Ethel Dixon Benjamin Franklin Dixon Frances Elliott Harold Elliott Jim Elliott James Hanson Jim Dixon Loyd Woodntt Burnet Wohlford Pete Ting Andrew Coil Ginger Weinberg David Weinberg Irene Weinberg Albert Young Ronae Elaine Norman Bill Norman Dori Norman Jana Norman Dixon McNeal Elliott Hanson Wohlford Ting Coil Weinberg Young Norman Escondido Mutual Water Company Time-Advocate Newspaper Camp Beale Norman's Wrecking

Extent: 1 scrapbook, 28 photographs, newspaper clippings, ephemera, and correspondence.

Repository: Escondido Public Library, Pioneer Room

Abstract: James Benjamin Dixon (1886-1978) was one of the pioneering families of Escondido, superintendent of the Escondido Mutual Water Company, and namesake of the Dixon Dam in Escondido, California. Dixon was son of Benjamin Franklin Dixon (1844-1928) and moved with his family from Kansas in 1890. B.F. Dixon moved his family to Escondido for citrus ranching following a freeze that destroyed in Florida groves. J.B. Dixon grew up on his father’s ranch at the east end of the valley, 50 acres off what is now Valley Center Road. J.B. Dixon was an avidly collected, studies, and classified bird eggs. His collection of about 5,000 eggs from breeding birds of California was donated to Palomar College in San Marcos, California. (source: Times-Advocate, June 18, 1978) Mrs. A.W. Coil (d. November 12, 1912) was a member of the Baptist Church of Escondido and passed away at the age of 77 at her home on Nebraska Ave in Escondido, CA (source: Times-Advocate, November 15, 1912).

Language of Material: English

This collection is open for research.

Dixon Family Collection, Pioneer Room, Escondido Public Library

[Identification of item]. Dixon Family Collection. Collection Number: MS 2022-003. Escondido Public Library, Pioneer Room

This collection was donated to us by James Paul Hawthorne, a genealogy enthusiast from Escondido, California. During our interview, Hawthorne told us the items belonged to his brother who passed away in 2016. The brother was an avid collector, visiting local yard sales and scouring Craigslist and social media sites for estate sales, auctions, and yard sales. Hawthorne believes this collection from the Dixon Family was purchased by his brother on one of these adventures. Hawthorne attempted to contact decedents of the Dixon family to return the collection to them, but no one in the family returned his messages. Included with the collection is a document from Hawthorne titled James Benjamin Dixon and is genealogical information on the man and his family. This was research done by Hawthorne to attempt to contact the Dixon family.

The items in this collection are in stable condition. Some photographs are damaged and some images are faded on older photographs. The original Camp Beale envelope shows signs of wear and damage, and the Camp Beale photograph has been removed from the envelope to the Oversize folder. Loose photographs in the collection have been added to the Photographs folder. Fasteners were removed from tax bills and replaced with archival clips. The scrapbook has signs of water damage from an unknown source. Newsprint has caused discoloration and archival paper has been added between the pages. The scrapbook has been photographed and loose photographs have been moved to the Photographs folder and notated in the Table of Contents. A loose document titled “A tribute to the memory of friend Benjamin Franklin Dixon” has been moved to the Correspondence folder. The first set of photo corners was blank and did not hold a photograph as seen in image “MS 2022-003_Dixon Family Collection_Scrapbook_001.” The box containing the collections donation is located in the bottom of the archival box. Note that Hawthorne added the adhesive label “Dixon Family” to the box prior to donating the materials to the Pioneer Room.

Correspondence, Ephemera, Genealogical information, Newspaper Clippings, Photographs (1928, 1936, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1969), Tax Bills (1945-1946), Scrapbook (1960-1969)