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Leslie Crow Papers
MSS 316  
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Collection Details
 
Table of contents What's This?
  • Descriptive Summary
  • Access
  • Publication Rights
  • Preferred Citation
  • Biography / Administrative History
  • Scope and Content of Collection
  • Arrangement
  • Indexing Terms
  • Separated Material

  • Descriptive Summary

    Title: Leslie Crow papers
    Dates: 1850-2006
    Bulk Dates: 1978-2006
    Collection number: MSS 316
    Creator: Crow, Leslie Ellen (1954-2006)
    Collection Size: 25 linear feet
    Repository: University of the Pacific. Library. Holt-Atherton Dept. of Special Collections
    Stockton, California 95211
    Abstract: Collection consists of materials collected and written by Leslie Crow primarily concerning local history and historic preservation in California.
    Physical location: For current information on the location of these materials, please consult the library's online catalog.
    Languages: Languages represented in the collection: English

    Access

    Collection open for research.

    Publication Rights

    Permission for publication is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the researcher.

    Preferred Citation

    Leslie Crow papers. MSS 316. Holt-Atherton Department of Special Collections, University of the Pacific Library.

    Biography / Administrative History

    Stockton, California, resident Leslie Ellen Crow was a local historian, archivist, and civic activist. Born in Kenosha, Wisconsin, on April 11, 1954, she graduated from high school in Des Plaines, Illinois, in 1972, and moved to California the following year. After attending Santa Monica College from 1973 to 1975, she entered the University of the Pacific in 1976. Two years later, she received a bachelor's degree in history with honors.
    In 1979, Crow entered the graduate program in history at the University of the Pacific. Although she never finished, the program led to her involvement in an oral history project conducted by the California Youth Authority. This launched her career in public history, or the practice of history in non-scholarly settings. In subsequent years, she held jobs as Historic Inventory Coordinator for the City of Vacaville (1979-80), Historic Preservation Specialist for the Central Sierra Planning Council (1980-82), and Archivist for the Bank of Stockton (1991-98). From 1980 to 2006, she also worked intermittently as a freelance researcher and consultant.
    As a consultant, Crow conducted research to designate as Stockton City Landmarks the First Church of Christ, Scientist; the Philomathean Club; and Stockton Children's Home. Among other projects, she also spearheaded efforts to nominate as California Historical Landmarks the Lockeford, California, Schoolhouse, and Stockton's Western Pacific Depot. Crow's efforts also proved crucial in placing on the National Register of Historic Places the California Building (Stockton); Commercial and Savings Bank (Stockton); Quarters A, Albert Lindley Residence, U.S. Navy, Rough and Ready Island; Stockton's Little Manila neighborhood and Sikh Temple, and the Woodbridge, California, Masonic Lodge. In addition, she conducted surveys of historic resources for the City of Ripon, California, and Sacramento, and did historical studies of Stockton's City Hall and Stockton State Hospital's Superintendent's Residence in preparation for renovation.
    In 1989, Crow was appointed to Stockton's Cultural Heritage Board, which she chaired from 1990 to 2006. Her appointment exposed her to revitalization efforts aimed at Stockton's aging inner city and waterfront. It also gave her a platform to promote historic preservation and plunged her into a period of civic activism. During the 1990s, she served on Stockton's Women Veterans' Memorial Task Force, the Friends of the Fox Theatre, the Mayor's Waterfront Revival Task Force, the Stockton Waterfront Committee, the Fundraising Committee for the Weber Point Events Center, the City of Stockton Sesquicentennial Committee, and Stockton Mid-Town Task Force. Meanwhile, she also held membership on the College of the Pacific Alumni Advisory Council and served in a variety of voluntary positions at the San Joaquin County Historical Society.
    Crow died in May 2006, at the zenith of her career.

    Scope and Content of Collection

    Collection consists of materials collected and written by Leslie Crow. Of special interest are its research files, whose contents range widely from maps, plans, photocopied newspaper articles, and handwritten notes, to photographs, slides, and applications for historic registration. Geographically, the focus varies from Alameda, Calaveras, and San Francisco Counties to Lodi and the City of Sacramento. However, the richest, fullest, and most numerous files involve Stockton and San Joaquin County.

    Arrangement

    Collection is organized into six series: 1. Biographical Files; 2. Voluntary Service Records; 3. Research Files; 4. VHS Cassettes; 5. Oversize; and 6. Rolled Oversize Maps and Plans

    Indexing Terms

    The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.
    Alameda County (Calif.) - History
    Alpine County (Calif.) - History
    Amador County (Calif.) - History
    Calaveras County (Calif.) - History
    Calaveras River Watershed
    California Youth Authority
    Historic preservation - California
    Lockeford (Calif.)
    Lodi (Calif.) - History
    Ripon (Calif.)
    Sacramento (Calif.) - History
    San Francisco (Calif.) - History
    San Joaquin County (Calif.) - History
    San Joaquin County Historical Society
    Solano County (Calif.) - History
    Stockton (Calif.) - History
    Stockton (Calif.) - Politics and government
    Trinity County (Calif.) - History
    Tuolumne County (Calif.) - History
    Yosemite National Park (Calif.) - History

    Separated Material

    Records of the Stockton Cultural Heritage Board have been removed from this collection and added to the Stockton Cultural Heritage Board Papers, 1977-2005, MSS 210.