Descriptive Summary
Administrative Information
Biography
Scope and Content
Arrangement
Indexing Terms
Other Finding Aids
Descriptive Summary
Title: Richard Hanna Papers,
Date (inclusive): 1957-1962
Collection number: See series descriptions
Creator:
Hanna, Richard
Extent:
7 cubic feet
Repository:
California State Archives
Abstract: Richard Thomas Hanna, a Democrat, was elected to the California State Assembly in a special election in June of 1956. He served
through 1962 when he was elected to the United States House of Representatives.
Physical location: California State Archives
Language:
English.
Administrative Information
Access
Collection is open for research.
Publication Rights
For permission to reproduce or publish, please contact the California State Archives. Permission for reproduction or publication
is given on behalf of the California State Archives as the owner of the physical items. The researcher assumes all responsibility
for possible infringement which may arise from reproduction or publication of materials from the California State Archives
collections.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Richard Hanna Papers, LP[number]:[folder number], California State Archives, Office of the Secretary
of State, Sacramento, California.
Acquisition Information
The California State Archives acquired the Richard Hanna Papers following his final Assembly term.
Biography
Richard Thomas Hanna, a Democrat, won a special election in June of 1956 after LeRoy E. Lyon resigned his Assembly seat.
In November of that year, Mr. Hanna was re-elected to the Seventy-Fifth Assembly District serving Orange County. Born in
Kemmerer, Wyoming, on June 9, 1914, his family moved to Long Beach, California, in 1923. He attended Lynwood and Horace Mann
grammar schools and graduated from Compton Union High School. He went on to earn an A.A. degree from Pasadena Junior College,
and received his B.A. degree from the University of California at Los Angeles. He received his L.L.B. degree from UCLA Law
School. During World War II, Mr. Hanna served in the Navy Air Corps. He made his living as an Attorney at Law. On April
1, 1945, Richard Hanna married Doris Muriel Jenks and together they raised a daughter, Pamela.
During his term in the Assembly, Richard Hanna was instrumental in the establishment of the University of California at Irvine
and California State University at Fullerton. He was elected to the House of Representatives, 34th District, in 1963 and
served in that capacity until 1974.
Assembly Member Hanna was a member of the Lions, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, and the American Legion. Other affiliations
include the Elks and Lambda Chi Alpha and Phi Delta Phi Fraternities.
According to the California Legislature at Sacramento (Handbooks), Hanna served on the following committees:
State Assembly, 1977-1982
-
Standing Committees
- Education, 1957-1962
- *Chairman, 1961-1962
- Governmental Efficiency and Economy, 1959-1962
- Finance and Insurance, 1961-1962
- Judiciary, 1957-1962
- Livestock and Dairies, 1957-1958
- Public Health, 1957-1958
- Rules, 1959-1960
- *Chairman, 1959-1960
- Subcommittees
- Accident Prevention, 1957-1958
- *Chairman, 1957-1958
Scope and Content
The Richard Hanna Papers consist of 7 cubic feet of records reflecting Hanna's activities during his time as an Assembly Member.
The records contain Assembly bill files, 1957-1962. The bill files document his legislative activity during his term as a
member of the California State Legislature. The bills introduced by Richard Hanna include a wide array of subjects. Education
was an important issue to Hanna and he authored legislation regarding textbooks, schools and school property, teachers' credentials,
and special education. Other subjects of interest to Hanna include air pollution and radiation clean up, taxes, and water
laws.
Arrangement
The Richard Hanna Papers are arranged into three series: bill files, subject files, and photographs.
Indexing Terms
The following terms have been associated with these materials in the Archives'
automated public access system (currently in development, September 2004).
Subjects
Hanna, Richard
California - - Legislature - - Assembly
Educational - - law and legislation
Other Finding Aids
Assembly Office of Research finding aid, Records of Assemblymen, at the California State Archives.