Finding Aid for the Omar Suttles Papers LSC.1292
Finding aid prepared by Annie Tang with assistance from Jasmine Jones in the Center for Primary Research and Training (CFPRT),
February 2014; machine-readable finding aid created by Caroline Cubé.
UCLA Library Special Collections
Finding aid last modified on 2016 May 2.
Room A1713, Charles E. Young Research Library
Box 951575
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1575
Business Number: 310-825-4988
Fax Number: 310-206-1864
spec-coll@library.ucla.edu
Contributing Institution:
UCLA Library Special Collections
Title: Omar Suttles papers
Identifier/Call Number: LSC.1292
Physical Description:
3.2 Linear Feet
(8 boxes)
Date (inclusive): 1927-1981
Date (bulk): 1950-1979
Abstract: Omar Suttles (1893-1980) was the founder of the Airfloat Coach Manufacturing Company and manufactured one of the earliest
travel trailers built specifically for recreation. He co-founded the Trailer Coach Association (TCA), presently known as Manufactured
Housing Institute, and wrote a long-running column for
Trailer Life magazine. The collection consists primarily of Suttles' scrapbooks, photographs, reminiscences, correspondence, memorabilia,
brochures, and other printed materials, ranging from approximately 1927 to 1981, with Suttles posthumously receiving correspondence
and honorary mentions in serials.
Physical Location: Stored off-site. All requests to access special collections material must be made in advance using the request button located
on this page.
Language of Material:
English
.
Restrictions on Access
Open for research. All requests to access special collections materials must be made in advance using the request button located
on this page.
Restrictions on Use and Reproduction
Property rights to the physical objects belong to UCLA Library Special Collections. All other 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], Omar Suttles papers (Collection 1292). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research
Library, University of California, Los Angeles.
Processing Information
Processed by Annie Tang with assistance from Jasmine Jones in the Center for Primary Research and Training (CFPRT), February
2014. Initially processed at collection level to facilitate access and has now been processed at folder level.
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UCLA Catalog Record ID
Biography/History
Omar Suttles (1893-1980) was the founder of Airfloat, a Southern California trailer manufacturer. Born in 1893 in Arkansas,
Suttles eventually moved to San Diego, where he not only worked for the Chrysler car company, but also had a short career
as an automobile racer.
In 1927, Suttles moved to Los Angeles, where he met his wife, Ruth. They married in 1928. At this time, Suttles started his
Chrysler repair shop business, where he would eventually manufacture one of the earliest travel trailers built specifically
for recreation. By 1931, he had established the Airfloat Coach Manufacturing Company. His wife became an integral part of
the firm's operations, particularly with regard to the trailers' interior design.
In 1936, Suttles became a founding member of the Trailer Manufacturers Association, later known as the Trailer Coach Association
(TCA). The TCA, in 1975, merged with other similar organizations to form what is today called the Manufactured Housing Institute.
In addition to being a membership-based organization, the TCA also published
Trailer Life magazine, previously known as
Western Trailer Life. Suttles wrote a running column in the 1970s, detailing the early years of trailer travel and the trailer manufacturing industry.
Airfloat contributed to the military effort of World War II, as the U.S. federal government commissioned thousands of trailers
for its armed forces. The company hit its peak in the post-war period and contributed to the popularity of American cross-country
tourism from the late 1940s to the 1950s. In 1955, the firm celebrated its 25th anniversary. During Suttles' 26-year ownership
of the Airfloat company, he was able to patent several trailer design features.
By 1956, Suttles and his wife sold the business, acquired their own Airfloat trailer, and, in their retirement, reveled in
the recreation past Airfloat customers had enjoyed for decades.
When Omar Suttles passed away in 1980, his wife Ruth donated his papers to UCLA shortly after in 1981.
Scope and Content
The collection consists primarily of Suttles' scrapbooks, photographs, reminiscences, correspondence, memorabilia, brochures,
and other printed materials, ranging from approximately 1927 to 1981, with Suttles posthumously receiving correspondence and
honorary mentions in serials. The bulk of the content originates mostly from the period of the 1950s to 1970s, reflecting
the later years of the Suttles' ownership of the Airfloat firm and their travel lifestyle. The bulk of the material relates
to travel.
Organization and Arrangement
This collection has been arranged in the following series:
- Series 1: History of Airfloat, circa 1927-1981
- Series 2: Travel, 1936-1981
Except for Series 1: History of Airfloat, no consistent original order exists. The Suttles's categorical notes and labels
within the collection influenced the arrangement and description.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Scrapbooks.
Photographs.
Airstream trailers.
Inventors -- United States -- Archives.
Suttles, Omar, 1893-1980--Archives.
Series 1: History of Airfloat.
circa 1927-1981.
Scope and Content
This series includes scrapbooks, photographs, images, circulars, clippings of columns written by Suttles, and reminiscences
about events personally written or typed by Omar and Ruth Suttles. The Suttles also included printed materials such as news
clippings on the broader automotive industry.
Organization and Arrangement
Series 1 maintains an original order, as the papers here resemble the categorization the couple had organized in labeled folders,
binders, and scrapbooks.
box 1
Scrapbooks (1 of 2).
1927-1977.
box 7
Scrapbooks (2 of 2).
1927-1977.
box 2, folder 1
Reminiscences and Photos.
circa 1927-1950s.
box 2, folder 2
Engineering and Business.
circa 1950s-1981.
box 2, folder 3
Popular Culture References.
circa 1957.
box 2, folder 4
Serial Clippings and Circulars.
1950s-1970s.
box 2, folder 5-6
American Transportation.
1950s-1970s.
Series 2: Travel.
1936-1981.
Scope and Content
Series 2 is comprised of items related to the travel undertaken during the Suttles' retirement: journal entries, event memorabilia,
correspondence, and magazines and serial clippings, and material related to their involvement in the Trailer Coach Association
(TCA). Additionally, this series includes maps, brochures, trip ideas, clippings, and automotive catalogs related to their
cross-country travels and life in Hemet, California.
Organization and Arrangement
This series was organized topically in categories related to the Suttles' organizational involvement in the TCA and personal
travel. Within those categories, the folders were organized alphabetically.
box 4, folder 1
Recreational Vehicle/Motor Home Hall of Fame Foundation (1 of 2).
1974-1981.
box 6
Recreational Vehicle/Motor Home Hall of Fame Foundation (2 of 2).
1974-1981.
box 3, folder 2
Trailer Coach Association Correspondence and Trailer Life Magazines.
1969-1981.
box 3, folder 3-5
Trailer Life Magazines.
1936-1958.
box 4, folder 2-5
Arizona.
circa 1969-1970s.
box 4, folder 6-7
California (1 of 2).
circa 1940s-1970s.
box 5, folder 1
California (2 of 2).
circa 1940s-1970s.
box 5, folder 2-3
Colorado.
circa 1960s-1970s.
box 8, folder 2
Eastern United States.
circa 1970s.
box 3, folder 6
Hemet, California.
1936-1980.
box 8, folder 4
International.
after 1960.
box 3, folder 1
Journal Entries.
1963-1974.
box 8, folder 5
Motor Homes and Other Vehicles.
circa 1960s-1970s.
box 8, folder 3
Western United States.
circa 1960s-1970s.
