Preliminary Guide to the James H. Gildea Middle East Railroad Collection
Preliminary arrangement and description by D. Tambo
Department of Special Collections
Davidson Library
University of California, Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara, CA 93106
Phone: (805) 893-3062
Fax: (805) 893-5749
Email: special@library.ucsb.edu
URL: http://www.library.ucsb.edu/special-collections
© 2010
The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.
Preliminary Guide to the James H. Gildea Middle East Railroad Collection, ca. 1940s-1970s [bulk early 1950s]
Collection number: Bernath Mss 219
Department of Special Collections
Davidson Library
University of California, Santa Barbara
- Processed by:
- Preliminary arrangement and description by D. Tambo
- Latest revision:
- Oct. 26, 2010
- Encoded by:
- A. Demeter
© 2010 The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.
Descriptive Summary
Title: James H. Gildea Middle East Railroad Collection
Dates: ca. 1940s-1970s
Bulk Dates: early 1950s
Collection number: Bernath Mss 219
Collection Size:
1.1 linear feet
(2 document boxes and 1 oversize box).
Creator:
Gildea, James H.
Repository:
University of California, Santa Barbara. Library. Dept. of Special Collections
Abstract: The collection contains documents and photos, mainly about James H. Gildea's involvement in the early 1950s, as engineer and
manager in charge of the construction of the Saudi Government Railway, running through the Arabian desert from the Persian
Gulf to the capital city of Riyadh.
Physical location: Del Norte (boxes 1-2); Annex 2 (box 3); Del Sur Map Cabinets (Map Cabinet 20-5).
Languages:
English
Access Restrictions
None. Collection is partially stored off-site; advance notice required for retrieval.
Publication Rights
Copyright has not been assigned to the Department of Special Collections, UCSB. All requests for permission to publish or
quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Head of Special Collections. Permission for publication is given
on behalf of the Department of Special Collections as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply
permission of the copyright holder, which also must be obtained.
Preferred Citation
James H. Gildea Middle East Railroad Collection. Bernath Mss 219. Department of Special Collections, Davidson Library, University
of California, Santa Barbara.
Acquisition Information
Gift of the Gildea Estate and Purchase, 2006.
Scope and Content of Collection
The collection contains documents and photos, mainly about James H. Gildea's involvement in the early 1950s, as engineer and
manager in charge of the construction of the Saudi Government Railway, running through the Arabian desert from the Persian
Gulf to the capital city of Riyadh. The project came about as a result of a 1947 agreement between King Abdul Aziz Ibn Saud
and the Arabian-American Oil Company (Aramco). The cost was financed primarily from Saudi oil revenues, with engineering and
construction under the guidance of Aramco and the Bechtel Construction Company. Gildea, formerly with Union Pacific, was chosen
to head the project because of his experience in World War II as an operating manager for the Iranian railroad. Gildea later
lived in Santa Barbara and was married to Madame Gildea.
Indexing Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.
Gildea, James H.
Railroads--Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia and railroads
Box 1: 1
Documents and correspondence re railway work,
1945-1960
Box 1: 2-4
Saudi Arabia - Photographs
Box 2: 1
Photograph album - "Construction Saudi Gov. Railroad," incl. loose photos,
c. 1950-1951
Box 1: 6
Identification, etc. - Passports, business cards, photographs, etc.
Box 1: 8
Correspondence, etc. (mostly Santa Barbara),
1961-1979
Box 3: 1
Award - American Institute of Architects re Jim Gildea Resource Center Santa Barbara,
1988
Box 3: 1
Framed art - hand-lettered quote
Box 3: 1
Large photograph album and loose photos
Map Cabinet 20-5
Saudi Government Railroad timetable
