Finding Aid to the Chester Versteeg Papers, 1910-1993 (bulk 1921-1960)
Josh Roselle
The Bancroft Library
© 2016
The Bancroft Library
University of California
Berkeley, CA 94720-6000
bancref@library.berkeley.edu
Contributing Institution:
The Bancroft Library
Title: Chester Versteeg papers
Creator:
Versteeg, Chester
Identifier/Call Number: BANC MSS 96/31 c
Physical Description:
6.5 linear feet
(5 cartons, 1 oversize folder, 1 tube
Date (inclusive): 1910-1993
Date (bulk): 1921-1960
Abstract: The Chester Versteeg papers, 1910-1993 (bulk 1921-1960), include materials produced and collected by Versteeg relating to
the Sierra Nevada and, in a more limited scope, other mountainous regions of North America.
Physical Location: Many of the Bancroft Library collections are stored offsite and advance notice may be required for use. For current information
on the location of these materials, please consult the library's online catalog.
Language of Material:
English
.
Access
Collection is open for research.
Accruals
No additions are expected.
Acquisition Information
The Chester Versteeg papers were given to The Bancroft Library by Janice Hampson and Elizabeth Todd on July 19, 1995.
Alternate Forms Available
There are no alternate forms of this collection.
Biographical Information
Chester Versteeg (1887-1963) was a Los Angeles-based insurance broker, Sierra Club officer, researcher, and author whose hobby
was the Sierra Nevada. He was an avid hiker and mountain climber; he first hiked the Sierra in 1909 and climbed over 250 peaks
in the range, including 40 first ascents. He served on the Sierra Club's editorial board and was the first chairman of the
Geographic Committee of the Sierra Club. In this capacity he was involved in proposing names for Sierra Nevada features. He
also organized the Desert Peaks section of the Sierra Club. He was an amasser of information and collected historical data
including maps and photographs, and he conducted interviews with over 400 pioneers, explorers, and settlers of the Sierra
Nevada.
General
- Finding Aid Author(s):
- Josh Roselle
- Date Completed:
-
November 2010
- Finding Aid Encoded By:
- GenX
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Chester Versteeg Papers, BANC MSS 96/31 c, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley
Processing Information
Processed by Josh Roselle in 2010.
Scope and Content of Collection
The Chester Versteeg papers, 1910-1993 (bulk 1921-1960), include materials produced and collected by Versteeg relating to
the Sierra Nevada and, in a more limited scope, other mountainous regions of North America. The collection consists primarily
of correspondence, raw and analyzed data, complied notes, and clippings. The majority of the collection relates to books he
hoped to write, including a history of saw mills in the Sierra, place names in the Sierra, and interesting place names in
the mountainous regions of North America. These books are likely unpublished. Researchers may be interested in data collected
on place names and on accounts of Sierra experiences. This material was obtained by various methods, including interviews
and written requests for information. As Versteeg was chairman of the Geographic Committee of the Sierra Club, this collection
contains proposals and correspondence regarding assigning names for previously unnamed geographic features in the California
Sierra Nevadas. Much of this correspondence is between Versteeg, representatives of the Sierra Club, the Department of the
Interior, and the Department of Agriculture. There is a small amount of correspondence with and from Francis Farquhar, president
of the Sierra Club.
Separated Material
Photographs have been transferred to the Pictorial Collections of The Bancroft Library.
Publication Rights
Some materials in these collections may be protected by the U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.). In addition, the reproduction
of some materials may be restricted by terms of University of California gift or purchase agreements, donor restrictions,
privacy and publicity rights, licensing and trademarks. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond
that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be
commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owner. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.
For additional information about the University of California, Berkeley Library's permissions policy please see: http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/about/permissions-policies
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Mountaineering--California--Kings Canyon National Park
Mountaineering--California--Sequoia National Park
Mountaineering--California--Yosemite National Park.
Mountaineering--Sierra Nevada (Calif. and Nev.)
Mountaineers--California
Names, Geographical--Sierra Nevada (Calif. and Nev.)
Sierra Nevada (Calif. and Nev.)
Sierra Nevada (Calif. and Nev.)--History
Sierra Nevada (Calif. and Nev.)--Name
Clippings
Farquhar, Francis Peloubet, 1887-1974--Correspondence
Matthes, François, 1874-1948
Versteeg, Chester, 1887-1963--Archives
Sierra Club
Sierra Club. Geographic Committee
Series 1:
Correspondence.
1922-1958
Physical Description:
0 needs updating
Carton 1, folders 1-13
Arrangement
Arranged alphabetically by topic or individual, as per original arrangement.
carton 1, folder 1
Astronomy.
1936
General
Published in 1935.
carton 1, folder 5
International Geographic Information Requests.
1934-1950
carton 1, folder 6
Le Conte, Joseph.
1922
1936
Content/Description
Includes biographical sketch.
carton 1, folder 8
Matthes, Francois.
1922-1940
Content/Description
Includes biographical sketch.
carton 1, folder 9
Sierra Club North Branch versus South Branch Dispute.
1946
carton 1, folder 10
Sierra Nevada Exploration Information Requests.
1922
carton 1, folder 11
Smithsonian Correspondence Regarding Mount Whitney.
1923-1936
carton 1, folder 12
General Correspondence.
1922-1958
carton 1, folder 13
General Requests for Information.
1922-1935
Series 2:
Place Names.
1923-1969, undated
Physical Description:
0 needs updating
Carton 1, folders 14-43; Carton 2; Carton 3, folders 1-11
Arrangement
Arranged alphabetically. When relating to the Sierra, this series is generally organized by quadrangle area or by related
topics (such as places named after precious stones, named after explorers, or named after animals). Although there are folders
of place name data arranged by state, the data collected is quite sparse outside of California. Correspondence found in the
place names series folders was left with its related material, rather than being separated from related material and filed
in the Correspondence series.
Scope/Content
The Place Names series consists of accumulated data, including requests for place name histories, interviews regarding place
names, biographies of places named after individuals, place name proposals, and first ascents of mountains data.
carton 1, folder 14-15
First Ascents - General Sierra - Not Confined to one Quadrangle.
1923-1925, undated
carton 1, folder 16
First Ascents - Sierra - Bishop Quadrangle.
undated
carton 1, folder 17
First Ascents - Bridgeport Quadrangle.
undated
carton 1, folder 18
First Ascents - Dardanelles Quadrangle.
undated
carton 1, folder 19
First Ascents - Dinuba Quadrangle.
undated
carton 1, folder 20
First Ascents - Sierra - Kaiser Quadrangle.
undated
carton 1, folder 21
First Ascents - Sierra - Kaweah Quadrangle.
undated
carton 1, folder 22
First Ascents - Mariposa Quadrangle.
undated
carton 1, folder 23-24
First Ascents - Sierra - Mt. Goddard Quadrangle.
1925-1956, undated
carton 1, folder 25-26
First Ascents - Sierra - Mt. Lyell Quadrangle.
undated
carton 1, folder 27
First Ascents - Sierra - Mt. Morrison Quadrangle.
undated
carton 1, folder 28-31
First Ascents - Sierra - Mt. Whitney Quadrangle.
1934, undated
carton 1, folder 32
First Ascents - Olancha Quadrangle.
undated
carton 1, folder 33
First Ascents - Sonora Quadrangle.
undated
carton 1, folder 34
First Ascents - Sierra - Tehipite Quadrangle.
undated
carton 1, folder 35
First Ascents - Trimmer Quadrangle.
1923, undated
carton 1, folder 36-37
First Ascents - Sierra - Yosemite Quadrangle.
undated
carton 1, folder 38
Big Bear Valley History.
1934
carton 1, folder 39
Biographical Data on People who Have Mountain Peaks Named after Them.
undated
carton 1, folder 40
Canada.
1934-1936, undated
carton 1, folder 41
Canada Geographic Board Correspondence.
1935
carton 1, folder 42
Decisions of the United States Geographic Board.
1927-1969
carton 1, folder 43
Department of the Interior - Spelling of Toponyms and Standardization of Geographic Names.
1949
carton 2, folder 1
General List (Includes Miscellaneous and Major Geographical Features and Systems: Great Lakes, Rivers, Ranges, etc).
undated
carton 2, folder 2-9
North American Continent - Organized by Name Relationship.
undated
carton 2, folder 10
North American Continent Worksheet.
undated
carton 2, folder 11
Place Name Proposals - Southern California Edison.
1933 September 9-1935 April 5
carton 2, folder 12-14
Place Name Proposals.
1925-1957
carton 2, folder 15
Systems and Discussions.
1923-1954,
undated
carton 2, folder 16
U.S. States - Alabama.
undated
carton 2, folder 17
U.S. States - Alaska.
undated
carton 2, folder 18
U.S. States - Arizona.
undated
carton 2, folder 19
U.S. States - Arkansas.
undated
carton 2, folder 20
U.S. States - California.
undated
carton 2, folder 21
U.S. States - Colorado.
1934-1935,
undated
carton 2, folder 22
U.S. States - Connecticut.
undated
carton 2, folder 23
U.S. States - Delaware.
1936
carton 2, folder 24
U.S. States - Florida.
undated
carton 2, folder 25
U.S. States - Hawaii.
undated
carton 2, folder 26
U.S. States - Idaho.
undated
carton 2, folder 27
U.S. States - Illinois.
undated
carton 2, folder 28
U.S. States - Indiana.
undated
carton 2, folder 29
U.S. States - Iowa.
undated
carton 2, folder 30
U.S. States - Kansas.
1936,
undated
carton 2, folder 31
U.S. States - Kentucky.
1936,
undated
carton 2, folder 32
U.S. States - Louisiana.
undated
carton 2, folder 33
U.S. States - Maine.
undated
carton 2, folder 34
U.S. States - Maryland.
1934-1935,
undated
carton 2, folder 35
U.S. States - Massachusetts.
1934,
undated
carton 2, folder 36
U.S. States - Michigan.
1935,
undated
carton 2, folder 37
U.S. States - Minnesota.
undated
carton 2, folder 38
U.S. States - Mississippi.
1935,
undated
carton 2, folder 39
U.S. States - Missouri.
undated
carton 2, folder 40
U.S. States - Montana.
undated
carton 2, folder 41
U.S. States - Nebraska.
undated
carton 2, folder 42
U.S. States - Nevada.
1934-1935,
undated
carton 2, folder 43
U.S. States - New Hampshire.
undated
carton 2, folder 44
U.S. States - New Jersey.
undated
carton 2, folder 45
U.S. States - New Mexico.
undated
carton 2, folder 46
U.S. States - New York.
undated
carton 2, folder 47
U.S. States - North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Georgia (Includes Great Smokey Mountains).
undated
carton 2, folder 48
U.S. States - North Dakota.
1936,
undated
carton 2, folder 49
U.S. States - Ohio.
undated
carton 2, folder 50
U.S. States - Oklahoma.
undated
carton 2, folder 51
U.S. States - Oregon.
1934-1935,
undated
carton 2, folder 52
U.S. States - Pennsylvania.
undated
carton 3, folder 1
U.S. States - Rhode Island.
undated
carton 3, folder 2
U.S. States - South Dakota.
undated
carton 3, folder 3
U.S. States - Texas.
1936,
undated
carton 3, folder 4
U.S. States - Utah.
1935,
undated
carton 3, folder 5
U.S. States - Virginia and West Virginia.
1934-1935
carton 3, folder 6
U.S. States - Vermont.
undated
carton 3, folder 7
U.S. States - Washington.
undated
carton 3, folder 8
U.S. States - Wisconsin.
1935,
undated
carton 3, folder 9
U.S. States - Wyoming.
1934,
undated
carton 3, folder 10
United States Library of Congress Correspondence.
1935
carton 3, folder 11
United States Geographic Board List.
1934
Series 3:
Subject Files.
1910-1993
Physical Description:
0 needs updating
Carton 3, folders 12-49; Cartons 4-5, Oversize folder 1C, Oversize roll 1
Arrangement
Arranged alphabetically. Correspondence found in the subject series folders was left with its related material, rather than
being separated from related material and put in the Correspondence series.
Scope/Content
The Subject Files series consists mostly of data regarding the Sierra, and a small amount of material on other mountainous
regions of the U.S. and Canada. Subject file topics include tree data; air and water temperature tests; sound tests of rivers
and waterfalls; old mine and sawmill histories; and interviews with pioneers, settlers, and Sierra explorers.
carton 3, folder 12
Accounts, Poems, Sayings, and Songs (non-Sierra).
undated
carton 3, folder 13
Aerial Photographic Prints of the High Sierra.
1951-1955
carton 3, folder 15
Army Officers - Places Named after Them, Accounts, Biographies.
1924,
undated
carton 3, folder 16-17
Book Preparation - Bibliographies.
undated
carton 3, folder 18
Book Preparation - Citations, To Do Lists, Photo Lists, Miscellaneous.
undated
carton 3, folder 19
Book Preparation - Master Citation Sheet.
undated
carton 3, folder 21
Cattle and Sheep in the Sierra - Accounts, History, Persons Involved.
undated
1959
carton 3, folder 22
Casa Diablo Hot Springs.
1955
carton 3, folder 23
Chase, Ralph Arthur - Address Honoring George C. Ward
undated
carton 3, folder 24
Climbing - High Sierra - Miscellaneous Data and Technique.
1921-1964
carton 3, folder 26
Comparative Altitudes - California and Colorado, and Extremes of Altitude by State.
1920-1922
carton 3, folder 27
Descriptions of High Sierra Locations and Features.
1923-1955,
undated
tube 1
Encapsulated Map of Sequoia National Forest Fish Plants.
1870-1914
Content/Description
Trout Species covered: Rainbow; Eastern Brook; Loch Leven; Tahoe or Cutthroat; Golden (Roosevelt). compiled by S.L.N. Ellis.
Fragile. Must be handled with care.
carton 3, folder 28
Expedition Accounts, Essays, and Trip Log by Chester Versteeg.
1912-1960
carton 3, folder 29
Exploration of the Sierra by Sierra Club Members.
1922-1930,
undated
carton 3, folder 30
Explorers and Exploration of the High Sierra prior to 1900.
undated
carton 3, folder 31
Explorers and Exploration of the High Sierra since 1900.
1922-1951
carton 3, folder 32
Fireside Reading List for Sierra Club.
1921
carton 3, folder 34
Forestry in the Sierra.
1922-1923
carton 3, folder 35
Foster, Sequoyah - Biography.
undated
carton 3, folder 36
Geologic History of the Yosemite Valley - Professional Paper by Francois Matthes.
1930
carton 3, folder 37
Geologic Reconnaissance of the Inyo Range... - Professional Paper by Adolph Knopf.
1918
carton 3, folder 38
Geological Survey Data.
1934-1954
carton 3, folder 39
Geology and Geological History of the Sierra.
1922-1934,
undated
carton 3, folder 41
Indian War of 1856 - Excerpts of Accounts by John Barker and George Stewart.
1923,
undated
carton 3, folder 42
Indians in the Sierra.
1936
1954
carton 3, folder 43
Information about Chester Versteeg - Clippings, Diary, Mount Versteeg, Correspondence, C.V, Accounts.
1912-1993
carton 3, folder 44
King, Clarence - Biographical Notes.
undated
carton 3, folder 45
Lake Freezing Data.
1941-1957
carton 3, folder 46
Lake Tulainyo - Highest Lake in North America.
1935-1936
carton 3, folder 47
Lakes - High Sierra Data and Temperature Tests.
1956-1959
carton 3, folder 48
Lakes - International Data (no data collected).
undated
carton 3, folder 49
Lakes - North American Data and Temperature.
1953-1956
1930
carton 4, folder 1-3
Mapping in the Sierra - History, Correspondence, and Notes.
1922-1933,
undated
carton 4, folder 4
Maps - Miscellaneous U.S. Topographical.
undated
carton 4, folder 5
Maps - Western Canada Topographical and Travel.
undated
carton 4, folder 6-8
Mines of the Sierra - Descriptions, Accounts, and Correspondence.
1921-1955
carton 4, folder 9
Mountaineering Clubs.
1923,
undated
carton 4, folder 10
Mountains of Southern California - San Gabriel, San Gorgonio, etc. - Place Names, Clippings, and Notes.
1925-1926,
undated
carton 4, folder 13
Mount Whitney Clippings.
1924-1956
carton 4, folder 14
Muir, John - Accounts, Poems, and Clippings.
undated
carton 4, folder 15
Muir, John - Lecture Notes Given at Shrine Auditorium, 1910, Regarding John Muir.
1910
carton 4, folder 16
National Park Brochures - Canada.
1924-1934
carton 4, folder 17-18
National Park Brochures and Publications - U.S.
1930-1935
1956
carton 4, folder 19
National Parks and Forests - Creation of, Purpose, Boundaries (including Kings Canyon/Grant National Park).
1922-1957
carton 4, folder 20
Pioneers, Personal Impressions of.
undated
carton 4, folder 21
Poems by Chester Versteeg.
undated
carton 4, folder 22
Power Development - Big Creek/San Joaquin Dam.
1927
carton 4, folder 23
River and Stream Tests - Sierra and North America.
1956-1958
carton 4, folder 24
Sawmills of the Sierra.
1923-1933,
undated
carton 4, folder 25
Science Occupies Mount Whitney - Chapter XII (of Versteeg's Planned Book?).
undated
oversize_folder 1C
Sectional Aeronautical Charts for Seattle, Denver, and Mt. Whitney
undated
Physical Description:
3 charts
carton 4, folder 26
Sierra Miscellaneous.
1922-1923,
undated
carton 4, folder 27
Snow, Rainfall, and Weather - Data and Requests.
1922-1957
oversize_folder 1C
Old Maps of the High Sierra - Copies.
1857-1884
carton 5, folder 1-2
Sound - Test Information, Data, and Requests.
undated
1956-1960
carton 5, folder 3
Speeches by Chester Versteeg.
undated
1935
carton 5, folder 4
Temperature Data - Historical Data and Research.
1953-1959
carton 5, folder 5
Temperature Test Data.
1954-1957
carton 5, folder 6
Temperature Tests Secured by Various Sources.
1950-1955
carton 5, folder 7-8
Temperature Tests Secured by Versteeg in the Field.
1950-1959
carton 5, folder 9
Tertiary Gravels of the Sierra Nevada - by Waldemar Lindgren.
1911
carton 5, folder 10
Tragedies of the High Sierra, Including Mount Whitney, Chapter XXXIII [of Versteeg's Planned Book?].
1930-1942
carton 5, folder 11
Trails and Roads in the Sierra.
1924-1951,
undated
carton 5, folder 12
Transportation in the Sierra.
undated
carton 5, folder 13
Trees - King of Pines, Madera Sugar Pine Company - Sugar Pine Lumbering Booklets.
1932
carton 5, folder 14
Trees - Sequoias.
1936-1954
carton 5, folder 15
Trees of California.
1930-1955
carton 5, folder 16
Trees and Flowers of the Sierra.
1922-1957,
undated
carton 5, folder 17
Trout and Trout Planting in the Sierra.
1922-1957
carton 5, folder 18
Versteeg's Article in the Congressional Record.
1940
1943
carton 5, folder 19
Waterfall Tests - Data and Sound Measurements - Yosemite and other Sierra Waterfalls.
1956-1958
carton 5, folder 20
Wild Animal Life, mostly High Sierra and California.
1922-1959,
undated
carton 5, folder 21
Winter Exploration and use of the High Sierra.
1957
carton 5, folder 22
Yosemite Firefall Tests.
1957-1958
carton 5, folder 23
Yosemite, Naming of, and Poem.
undated
carton 5, folder 24
General Printed Matter.
1926-1960