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Inventory of the Fritz Burns Papers, 1899-circa 1980
CSLA-4
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Title: Fritz Burns papers
Dates: 1899-circa 1980
Bulk Dates: 1920-1959
Collection number: CSLA-4
Creator:
Burns, Fritz B. (1899-1979)
Collection Size:
13.25 linear ft
Repository:
Loyola Marymount University. Library. Department of Archives and Special Collections.
Los Angeles, California 90045-2659
Abstract: The Fritz Burns Papers contain materials related to the life and career of this major developer of real estate in the Los
Angeles area in the 1920s, and then in the late 1930s through the 1970s. The holdings consist of business records, correspondence,
memoranda, scrapbooks, sales literature, and photographs.
Physical location: Collection stored offsite. Research use requires both an advance notice of intent to use the collection and an appointment.
To schedule an appointment, please contact the Department of Archives and Special Collection, William H. Hannon Library, Loyola
Marymount University: 310-338-2780, 310-338-5357.
Languages:
Languages represented in the collection:
English
The Fritz Burns Papers are part of the Thomas and Dorothy Leavey Center for the Study of Los Angeles Research Collection,
a program of the Thomas and Dorothy Leavey Center for the Study of Los Angeles, Loyola Marymount University. The Research
Collection is administered by the Department of Archives and Special Collections, William H. Hannon Library, Loyola Marymount
University. Collection is open to research under the terms of use of the Department of Archives and Special Collections, Loyola
Marymount University.
Materials in the Department of Archives and Special Collections may be subject to copyright. Unless explicitly stated otherwise,
Loyola Marymount University does not claim ownership of the copyright of any materials in its collections. The user or publisher
must secure permission to publish from the copyright owner. Loyola Marymount University does not assume any responsibility
for infringement of copyright or of publication rights held by the original author or artists or his/her heirs, assigns, or
executors.
[Identification of item], Series number, Box and Folder number, Fritz Burns Papers, CSLA-4, Department of Archives and Special
Collections, William H. Hannon Library, Loyola Marymount University.
Perhaps originally donated to Loyola Marymount University by the Fritz Burns Foundation, circa 1990. In 1990, Father Robert
Trame, then University Archivist at LMU, transferred the papers to the Urban Archives at California State University, Northridge.
They were then returned to Loyola Marymount University in 1996.
Fritz Bernard Burns (1899-1979), born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, was a powerful real estate developer in Southern California.
As vice-president of Dickenson & Gillepsie real estate firm in Los Angeles in the 1920s, he oversaw the development of Palisades
Del Rey (now Play Del Rey). With partner F. W. Marlow, he was involved in the development of Westchester, Windsor Hills,
Panorama City, parts of North Hollywood and other areas in Los Angeles. Such projects made him a prominent developer in Los
Angeles and a leader in the development of mass-produced housing, resulting in community development and the notion of middle
class ownership of homes as a way of life. He was, consequently, a leading civic figure in the city. Burns was also a major
philanthropic benefactor to Roman Catholic institutions, including Loyola Marymount University and Aquinas College. Burns
was President of the Home Builders Association of Los Angeles in 1942 and of the National Association of Home Builders in
1945.
| 1899 | Born Fritz Bernard Burns, Minneapolis, Minnesota |
| 1916-1932 | Salesman, sales manager, and executive vice president, Dickinson & Gillespie Corporation. Responsible for the development of Palisades del Rey, a beachfront area of Los Angeles County. |
| 1924 | Marries Lucille Robinson, whom he divorced in 1927. The couple has one son, Fritz Patrick Burns (1925-1980). |
| 1937-1944 | General partner with F. W. Marlow in Marlow-Burns Development Company, which develops Windsor Hills, Toluca Wood, Westchester, and parts of West Los Angeles. |
| 1940 | Marries Gladys Carson Scheller (1897-1985). |
| 1945 | With Henry J. Kaiser forms Kaiser Community Homes. Best known development is Panorama City. Also the two partners develop properties in Hawaii. |
| 1955 | Burns receives "Man of Achievement" award from the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce. |
| 1960-1979 | CEO, Fritz B. Burns and Associates. Partner in development of hotels and shopping centers in the Los Angeles area. |
| 1979 | Death of Fritz B. Burns. |
The Fritz Burns Papers (CSLA-4) especially cover Burns's early career and his involvement in the development of Palisades
Del Rey (now part of Marina del Rey). There are also substantial holdings on his partnership with F. W. Marlow, which devleoped
parts of West Los Angeles. Thus, the collection provides excellent resources for the study of the development of real estate
and communities in Los Angeles.
Materials in the collection include business correspondence and records, newspaper clippings, scrapbooks, and photographs,
which are especially rich in documenting development in Los Angeles from the 1920s through the 1950s. Of interest are the
notes for talks that Fritz Burns and his partner F. W. Marlow gave at morning sales meetings (1941-1942); newspaper clippings
about public housing, and photographs of Burns and others and some of his projects.
The Fritz Burns Papers are divided into five series, some with subseries:
- Series One: Chronological Files, 1918-1980
- Series Two: Legal and Financial Records, 1927-1936
- Series Three: Photographs--Subseries A: Prints, Subseries B: Negatives, Subseries C: Albums
- Series Four: Newspaper Clippings
- Series Five: Scrapbooks
Descriptions of each series are found in the series' box and folder lists described in this guide to the collection.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in
the library's online public access catalog.
Burns, Fritz B.
Marlow, F. W. (Fred W.)
Dickinson & Gillespie
Real estate developers -- California, Southern -- Biography -- Sources
Real estate development -- California, Southern -- History -- Sources
Palisades del Rey (Calif.) -- History -- Sources
Marina del Rey (Calif.) -- History -- Sources
Los Angeles (Calif.) -- History -- 20th century -- Sources
Keane, James Thomas.
Fritz B. Burns and the Development of Los Angeles. Los Angeles, 2001