Farrar (Irwin E.) Papers, 1911-1973

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Summary

Title:
Irwin E. Farrar Papers,
Dates:
1911-1973
Creators:
Farrar, Irwin E., 1893-1983
Abstract:
Irwin Elmer Farrar (1893-1983) was the president of Sierra Alfalfa Company, and later of the Farrar-Loomis Seed Company, experimenting with a new kind of sugar beet and seed. He served as secretary of the Corona Chamber of Commerce, founded the Hemet chapter of Chamber of Commerce (1919), and helped in the formation of the San Jacinto River Protection Committee. He remained involved with water supply issues until the completion of California State Water Project in 1973. The collection consists of Farrar's autobiography and related research materials, correspondence from many California political figures, materials about Farrar's political interests, his personal life and business activities, and materials related to his involvement with water issues and the California State Water Project.
Extent:
13 boxes (6.5 linear ft.) 2 oversize boxes
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Irwin E. Farrar Papers (Collection 1127). Department of Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, UCLA.

Background

Scope and content:

Collection consists of Irwin E. Farrar's autobiography and related research materials. Includes correspondence from many California political figures, such as Governors Edmund G. Brown and Ronald Reagan, as well as from state and national legislators. Also includes materials about Farrar's political interests, his personal life, and business activities related to sugar beet experiments and his years as a bank director. Contains materials related to his involvement with water issues and the California State Water Project.

Biographical / historical:

Irwin Elmer Farrar was born in 1893 near Camarillo, California; attended University of Southern California and Stanford Law School; admitted to the California bar and began practicing law in 1916; became president of Sierra Alfalfa Company, and later of the Farrar-Loomis Seed Company, experimenting with a new kind of sugar beet and seed; secretary, Corona Chamber of Commerce; founded Hemet chapter of Chamber of Commerce in 1919; in 1944 he became interested in water seepage from San Jacinto tunnel of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, which lead to the formation of the San Jacinto River Protection Committee; he remained involved with water supply issues until the completion of California State Water Project in 1973; died in 1983.

Expanded Biographical/Historical Note

Irwin Elmer Farrar was born in 1893, near Camarillo, California. He studied at the University of Southern California and Stanford University, where he studied law. In 1916 he was admitted to the California bar and started private practice. He became president of La Sierra Alfalfa Company and later the Farrar-Loomis Seed Company, which experimented with a new type of sugar beet and new methods of producing that seed.

From the beginning of Mr. Farrar's professional and business career, he took an interest and initiative in business and civic affairs, first as secretary of the Corona Chamber of Commerce. In 1919 he founded in Hemet a chapter of the Chamber of Commerce and in 1922 the Kiwanis Club. He served in several other civic capacities.

In 1944 he became interested in the problems of water seepage from the San Jacinto tunnel of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California. This resulted in the formation of the San Jacinto River Protective Committee and led to his involvement with problems of water supply which did not end until the completion of the California State Water Project in 1973.

The materials in this collection were for the most part assembled and organized by Mr. Farrar when writing his reminiscences in the Biography, a copy of which is in the collection. As far as possible, Mr. Farrar's headings for his own files and his own groupings of materials have been retained in the registering of this collection. Materials collected since the writing of the Biography were also organized with headings by Mr. Farrar and these, too, have been retained.

The collection is rich in materials dealing with water resources and the long processes involved in accomplishing goals through commissions and studies and eventual legislation. The collection contains correspondence from many important California political figures, such as Governors Edmund. G. Brown and Ronald Reagan, as well as many legislators--both state and national. The collection contains materials about Mr. Farrar's other political interests, his business activities (the sugar beet experiments, his years as bank director) and personal life (items collected and observations written from his various travels).

Acquisition information:
Gift of Irwin E. Farrar, 1972, 1977.
Arrangement:

Arranged in the following series:

  • Farrar autobiography (Box 1).
  • Early life, family background and education (Box 1).
  • Beginning professional career (Box 1).
  • Seed production and the beginning of the domestic sugar beet industry (Box 1).
  • Political activities and election as bank director (Box 2).
  • San Jacinto tunnel problems (Box 3).
  • Metropolitan water district (Boxes 4-6).
  • State water project (Boxes 7-11).
  • Notes on foreign and other travels (Box 9).
  • Other materials written or collected by Farrar (Box 11).
  • Notes from Stanford Law School (Boxes 12-13).
  • Pipeline plans, Perris Dam completion (motion picture), personal clipping (Box 14).
  • Proceedings of American Society of Sugar Beet Technologies (Box 15).

Physical location:
Stored off-site at SRLF. Advance notice is required for access to the collection. Please contact the UCLA Library, Department of Special Collections Reference Desk for paging information.
Rules or conventions:
Finding aid prepared using Describing Archives: a Content Standard

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Processed by Dan Luckenbill; machine-readable finding aid created by Caroline Cubé and edited by Josh Fiala.
Date Prepared:
© 2005
Date Encoded:
Text rekeyed by Caroline Cubé from in-house paper finding aid, January 2005 . Machine-readable finding aid derived from rekeyed finding aid, encoding added via Notetab Pro. Online finding aid edited by Josh Fiala. Date of source: February 1974 .

Access and use

Restrictions:

COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE AT SRLF: Advance notice required for access.

Terms of access:

Property rights to the physical object belong to the UCLA Library, Department of Special Collections. Literary rights, including copyright, are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright and pursue the copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC Regents do not hold the copyright.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Irwin E. Farrar Papers (Collection 1127). Department of Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, UCLA.

Location of this collection:
A1713 Charles E. Young Research Library
Box 951575
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1575, US
Contact:
(310) 825-4988
AskLSC@library.ucla.edu
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