Finding aid for the Division of Business and Administrative Support Services Records

Ward Eldredge, Anna Uremovich, Tammy Fishman, Alyson Mazzone, Bekah Piche, Allison Metzler

Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks

47050 Generals Highway

Three Rivers, CA 93271-9700

Phone: (559) 565-3133

Fax: (559) 565-3133

Email: Ward_Eldrege@nps.gov

URL: http://www.nps.gov/seki

Finding aid for the Division of Business and Administrative Support Services Records

Collection number: SEKI 22365

Museum and Archives

Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks

Three Rivers, California

Processed by:: Ward Eldredge, Anna Uremovich, Tammy Fishman, Alyson Mazzone, Bekah Piche, Allison Metzler
Date Completed:: August 2011
Encoded by:: Tammy Fishman

Descriptive Summary

Title: Division of Business and Administrative Support Services records

Dates: 1904-2005

Bulk Dates: 1969-2002

Collection number: SEKI 22365

Collector: Sequoia National Park (Calif.). Division of Business and Administrative Support Services

Collection Size: 900 linear feet

Abstract: Records generated within the organizational divisions of Sequoia Kings Canyon National Park concerning Park management, planning and development.

Repository: Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks, Museum and Archives

Three Rivers, CA 93271-9700

Physical location: Sequoia Kings Canyon National Parks. Ash Mountain Headquarters, Archive.

Languages: Languages represented in the collection: English

Access

The collection is open for research by appointment.

Publication Rights

Many collections are former federal government records and are in the public domain. Other collections are from private sources; copyright has been transferred to the NPS on most. Some collections have publication restrictions. Researchers are required to properly credit all materials used. The researcher assumes responsibility for acquiring copyright permissions when needed.

Preferred Citation

Division of Business and Administrative Support Services records, SEKI 22365. Courtesy of the National Park Service, Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks.

Biography / Administrative History

The Division of Business and Administrative Support Services was created in 2008 when two functions that previously reported directly to the parks' superintendent, Safety and Concessions Management, were added to the Division of Administration. Following the consolidation of these park functions into the expanded (and renamed) Division of Business and Administrative Support Services, branch records were also consolidated. Records in this collection have been organized into series that reflect the work functions of the contemporary division.

Since the establishment of the National Park Service in 1916, the office of the Parks' superintendent has been responsible for the oversight of all park programs and the office remains the principal decision-making, contractual, and budgetary authority. With the growth of the agency, a number of fundamental work functions have been transferred to various support offices. The responsibility for tracking budgets and day-to-day bookkeeping has long been one of the primary duties of the Division of Administration. By the late 1980s, the Division consisted of four branches: budget, information management, personnel, and procurement. Budgetary records are well represented in this collection. The concessions office, responsible for the management of the numerous contractual relationships between the parks and the various private businesses operating within its boundaries, has moved several times over the past decades. At the outset of the Park era, the authority for signing contracts with concessioners resided with the Parks' superintendent. By the 1960s, when Park superintendents began having management assistants, the work fell largely to them. By the late 1980s, Sequoia and Kings Canyon's concessions office had grown to five permanent employees with a branch chief reporting directly to the Parks' superintendent. In 1995, the branch became a division, the Division of Planning and Concessions Management, under the leadership of William Tweed. By 1997, the office was dissolved as a freestanding division and was moved back under the Office of the Superintendent. Until 2006, some special use permits, environmental compliance and land issues were managed through the concessions office. With the expansion of environmental compliance workload and increasing complexity and political sensitivity regarding land issues, those functions were moved under the newly established Deputy Superintendent. For much of its history, the Parks' safety office has consisted of one employee reporting directly to the Parks superintendent; from 1992-2002, Gary Bornholdt was the Parks' Safety Officer. Before its transfer to the current Division of Business and Administrative Support Services, the Parks' safety office was part of the office of the Deputy Superintendent or directly for the Superintendent.

Scope and Content of Collection

The collection consists of correspondence, permits, reports, legal documents, memoranda and analyses. The collection documents the Parks' budget, permitted special use activities, the disposal of hazardous material, and workplace and employee safety. Special use permits document activities which include the following: hydroelectric development and re-licensing, management of private inholdings, grazing allotments, and proposed recreational development.

Arrangement

The collections is organized into three series: Series I Budget; Series II Concessions; and Series III Safety.

Indexing Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.

Sequoia National Park (Calif.). Division of Business and Administrative Support Services.

Sequoia Kings Canyon National Park (Calif.).

Conservation of natural resources.

Grazing--Environmental aspects.

Hydroelectric power plants--Kaweah River--History.

Accidents--Sequoia National Park (Calif.).

National parks and reserves--Law and legislation--United States.

Land ownership--California.

Sequoia National Park (Calif.)--Management.

Concessions (Amusements etc.)--Sequoia National Park (Calif.).

Folder 001-018

Series 1. Budget 1986-2001

Extent: 18 folders

Series Scope and Content Summary

The series consists of correspondence and status reports concerning the annual budgets for Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks and the Devils Postpile National Monument.

Arrangement

Chronological.

Folder 019-088

Series 2. Concessions Records 1919-2002

Extent: 69 folders

Series Scope and Content Summary

The series consists of permits, correspondence, and plans. Important topics include the consultation with private landowners within the Parks' boundaries, the legacy of hydroelectric development, cattle grazing, and recreational development.

Arrangement

The series is organized into five subseries: Subseries A, Private Lands; Subseries B, Utility Permits; Subseries C, Recreation Permits; Subseries D, Grazing Permits; and Subseries E, Other Permits

Subseries A. Private land 1929-2002 1977-1980

Subseries Scope and Content Summary

The subseries consists of correspondence and permits relating to the management of private lands or inholdings within the boundaries of the Parks. The majority concerns building permits for properties in Wilsonia. A smaller set concerns Silver City and the acquisition of tracts at Redwood Mountain.

Subseries B. Utility permits 1919-1991 1977-1980

Subseries Scope and Content Summary

The subseries consists of correspondence and permits relating to the activities of public utility operators within the boundaries of the Parks. The majority concern the re-licensing of Southern California's Kaweah No. 3 hydroelectric plant. A smaller number concern Pacific Telephone.

Arrangement

The subseries is arranged by utility operator: Southern California Edison, followed by Pacific Telephone.

Subseries C. Recreation permits. 1936, 1965-1977

Subseries Scope and Content Summary

The subseries consists of correspondence, plans, and compliance reports relating to permitted recreational use of the Parks. The majority concern the proposed development of a large-scale recreational facility on the Sequoia National Forest. Beginning in the late 1960s, the Walt Disney Corporation sought and obtained a special use permit to develop a ski resort in the Mineral King Valley. The resulting battle ultimately led to the addition of the Valley to Sequoia National Park.

Arrangement

Chronological.

Subseries D. Grazing permits. 1941-1995

Subseries Scope and Content Summary

The subseries consists of correspondence and reports relating to permitted grazing of cattle within and adjacent to the parks. The majority concern the trespass of cattle from adjacent private and Forest Service lands.

Arrangement

Chronologically.

Folder 089-187

Series 3. Safety records 1904-2002 1986-1999

Extent: 98 folders

Series Scope and Content Summary

The series consists of correspondence, legal documents, forms, inspections, and reports. Important topics include accidents involving park employees, hazards to public safety, and hazardous waste disposal. Some of this material pertains to significant events including the restoration of Giant Forest, the tort claim following a lightning fatality on Mount Whitney, the associated health risks of prescribed fire (i.e., smoke), and tree hazards.

Arrangement

The series is organized into three subseries: Subseries A Accidents and Inspections; Subseries B Threats and Protection; and Subseries C Hazardous Waste Disposal

Subseries A. Accidents and inspections 1904-2002 1993-1999

Subseries Scope and Content Summary

The subseries consists of forms, statistics, and reporting of employee accidents (including fatalities). Also present are inspection reports of park facilities.

Arrangement

Chronologically.

Subseries B. Threats and protection 1957-2002 1985-1997

Subseries Scope and Content Summary

The subseries consists of correspondence, legal documents, and memoranda. The bulk of the material concerns the lightning-caused death of a park visitor at the Mount Whitney shelter and the resulting tort claim. Additional material includes an inventory of mines within the Parks' boundaries and material concerning the health risks of smoke. Also present are copies of the Superintendent's Annual Report for 1985-1990.

Arrangement

The subseries is arranged by subject.

Subseries 3. Hazardous waste disposal 1980-2002

Subseries Scope and Content Summary

The subseries consists of correspondence, contracts, and documentation concerning the disposal of hazardous waste. In additional to routine reporting, the subseries also includes material concerning the disposal of waste generated by the demolition of buildings and facilities during the restoration of Giant Forest.

Arrangement

The subseries is arranged by subject.