DEL AMO NURSERIES COLLECTION, 1922-1976

Finding aid prepared by Jennifer Allan Goldman

California State University, Dominguez Hills

Archives & Special Collections

University Library, Room G-145

1000 E. Victoria Street

Carson, California 90747

Phone: (310) 243-3895

URL: http://archives.csudh.edu/

Descriptive Summary

Title: Del Amo Nurseries Collection

Dates: 1922-1976

Collection Number: Consult repository

Creator: Rancho San Pedro Nursery and Del Amo Nursery

Extent: 26 boxes (32 linear feet)

Repository: California State University, Dominguez Hills Archives and Special Collections

Archives & Special Collection

University Library, Room G-145

1000 E. Victoria Street

Carson, California 90747

Phone: (310) 243-3013

URL: http://archives.csudh.edu/

Abstract: Materials in this collection are from the San Pedro Rancho Nursery and Del Amo Nursery. They include ledges, tax documents, correspondence, contract information, catalogs, and artifacts on the subjects of growing and providing landscaping materials, daily business practices, contracts with cities and theme parks, and other topics.

Language: Collection material is in English

Administration Information

Access

There are no access restrictions on this collection.

Publication Rights

All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Director of Archives and Special Collections. Permission for publication is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical materials and not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.

Preferred Citation

[Title of item], Del Amo Nurseries Collection, Courtesy of the Department of Archives and Special Collections. University Library. California State University, Dominguez Hills

Acquisition Information

Materials were recieved from the Del Amo Estate Company around 1979.

Project Information

This finding aid was created as part of Early Los Angeles/Rancho San Pedro Manuscript Cataloging Project, a CSU Dominguez Hills Library project funded by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission. The project started in 2005. Project Director was Greg Williams. Project Archivists were Thomas Philo and Jennifer Allan Goldman.

History

The San Pedro Ranch Nursery Company was founded in February 1921 by Dr. Gregorio del Amo y Gonzales, husband of Maria Susana Delfina Dominguez, daughter of Manuel Dominguez. Dr. del Amo had a strong interest in horticulture since his childhood and founded the nursery to provide trees and shrubs for the landscaping of Dominguez Hills, as well as to provide an occupation for his son, Carlos. The nursery was incorporated in April 1923 and renamed Del Amo Nurseries in May 1933. In 1937, the Del Amo Nurseries was merged into the Del Amo Estate Company.

The nursery, located at the intersection of Del Amo Boulevard and Alameda Street with offices in the Union Bank Building in downtown Los Angeles, provided wholesale horticulture products to locations as distant as New York, Spain, France, Peru, and Morocco. Due to Gregorio Del Amo’s interest in horticulture, varieties of trees, shrubs, and ornamental flowering plants from every continent were grown and sold at the nursery. The products were physically planted into the land, instead of in pots or tubs, in the same order as in the printed catalogs, creating a “living catalog.” The nurseries also hosted the Nurseries Industries Roundup in 1938. The one-day meeting allowed industry members to discuss relevant issues, as well as the possible establishment in Westwood of a University of California school for the study of subtropical and ornamental plants.

After Gregorio del Amo’s death in 1941, his son Jaime inherited the property. The nursery continued to operate, though profits were small. During the 1960s, the nursery donated stock for Torrance and Long Beach planting projects. The Estate Company properties, including the nursery, were liquidated in 1964.

The nursery was controlled by a board of five directors until its purchase in 1937. The President was Gregorio del Amo. Vice-Presidents were Stuart O’Melveny (1923-1925), Francisco G. de la Riva (1925-1933), Thomas Herron (1933-1936), and Jaime del Amo (1936-1937). Secretaries were William S. Martin (1923-1925), Eugenio Cabrero (1925-1926 and 1927-1937), and H. J. Scherer (1926-1927). Treasurers were Carlos del Amo (1923-1926) and Eugenio Cabrero (1928-1937). Operations were overseen by a manager/general manager, beginning with H. J. Scherer (1926-1933). Scherer was followed by John Milton Asher (1933), Harold McFaddan (1936-1942), Henry Oldershaw (1944-1947), and Ove Hoyer (1947-1964).

Scope and Content

This collection is composed of large hand-written financial ledger books and an alphabetically-organized file of textual records documenting the nursery’s business activities. A large group of the correspondence is from Vice-President Thomas Herron and general managers H. J. Scherer and Ove Hoyer. Other materials include correspondence to and from Sea World and the Selective Service System, purchase orders, legal documents, newsclippings, advertisements, price lists from Del Amo Nurseries, and artifacts collected by the company. Folders other than ledgers have been kept in the original order: alphabetical order regardless of series.

Arrangement

Arranged in four series:

Series I. Financial Documents (1922-1965)
Series II. Business Documents (1922-1945)
Series IV. Artifacts and Photographs (1938, no date)

Indexing Terms

Subjects

Landscape industry

Landscape gardening

Landscape nurseries

Nursery and garden industry

Nursery growers—California

Nursery—Management

Ornamental plant industry

Ornamental trees

Urban beautification – Long Beach (Calif.)

Horticulture

Personal Names

Cabrero, Eugenio

Del Amo, Gregorio

Del Amo, Jaime

Herron, Thomas J.

Leimert, Walter H.

Scherer, H. J.

Corporate Names

San Pedro Ranch Nursery Company

Del Amo Nurseries

Del Amo Estate Company

Germain's Seed and Plant Company

Walter H. Leimert Co.

Materials

Sales Catalogs

Price Lists

Related Material

Del Amo Estate Company Collection
Del Amo Foundation Collection
Rancho San Pedro Collection
Rancho San Pedro Reference Collection

Financial Documents 1922-1965

Physical Description: 65 folders

Scope and Content Note

Ledger books, balance sheets, financial statements, correspondence with banks, purchase orders and invoices, sales figures, payroll documentation, and state and federal tax forms.

Box 1

General ledger 1923-1926

Box 2

General ledger 1926-1928

Box 3

General ledger 1928-1930

Box 4, 5, Folder 1

General ledger 1930-1940

Box 5-7, Folder 2

General ledger 1930-1940

Box 7, Folder 3

General ledger 1952-1956

Box 7, 8, Folder 4

General ledger 1952-1955

Box 8, Folder 5

General ledger 1957-1964

Box 9, Folder 6

General ledger 1954-1961

Box 9, Folder 7

General ledger 1937-1950

Box 10, Folder 8

General ledger 1923-1930

Box 10, Folder 9

Accounts receivable lists 1924-1926

Box 10, Folder 10

Statements of Expenditures 1923-1924

Box 10, Folder 11

Comparative Statement of Income 1923

Box 10, Folder 12

Monthly budgets, ledger balances, bills payable lists, and company assets/expenses statements 1922-1923

Box 10, Folder 13

Monthly trial balances 1924-1926

Box 10, Folder 14

Monthly and yearly statements of expenditures 1948-1949

Box 11, Folder 15

Monthly financial statements, including income and expense statements, trial balances, accounts receivable and vouchers payable 1950-1952

Box 11, Folder 16

Monthly financial statements, including income and expense statements, trial balances, accounts receivable and vouchers payable 1953-1954

Box 11, Folder 17

Monthly financial statements, including income and expense statements, trial balances, accounts receivable and vouchers payable 1955-1957

Box 11, Folder 18

Trial balance ledger, including monthly trial balances and vouchers payable 1957-1964

Box 12, Folder 19

Vouchers payable ledger 1926-1949

Box 12, Folder 20

Vouchers payable ledger 1950-1963

Box 13, Folder 21

Loose records, including notes on Christmas bonuses 1942-1946

Box 13, 14, Folder 22

Payroll book 1941-1960

Box 14, 15, Folder 23

Del Amo Estate Company, compensation records ledger, arranged alphabetically 1936-1963

Box 15, Folder 24

Payroll summaries 1924-1926

Box 15, Folder 25

Daily gasoline and oil reports 1936-1937

Box 15, Folder 26

Bank pass books for Security Trust and Savings, Security First National Bank, and Union Bank and Trust 1930-1945

Box 15, Folder 27

Monthly income and expense ledger book 1931-1937

Box 16, Folder 28

Yearly financial reports 1927-1936

Box 16, Folder 30

Audit report by Harry K. Hill 1924

Box 17, Folder 50

Sheet adjusting journal entries 1946

Box 17, Folder 51

Weekly gasoline reports 1961-1963

Box 17, Folder 52

Monthly profit and loss statements 1946-1953

Box 17, Folder 53

Account statements, trial balances, and other documents 1926-1932, 1934, 1938-1943, 1963-1964

Box 18, Folder 54

Statements of accounts receivable 1928-1933

Box 18, Folder 55

Statements of accounts receivable, including advertisements and pay roll breakdowns 1934-1935

Box 18, Folder 56

Donations of nursery stock 1955, 1962

Box 18, Folder 58

Employee earning statements and correspondence noting social security withdrawals 1940-1941

Box 20, Folder 84

Interest charges 1948

Box 20, Folder 85

Nursery stock inventories, including polaroids of moving full-grown trees 1922, 1924, 1939-1949, 1963

Box 21, Folder 92

Merrick, L. B., Nurseries 1924-1934, 1938, 1946

Box 21, Folder 97

Petty cash disbursements and reimbursements 1933-1945

Box 21, Folder 98

Purchase orders and invoices 1936-1946

Box 22, Folder 109

Payroll and bonus lists and correspondence regarding rates of pay 1932-1945

Box 22, Folder 110

Taxes, states sales and use; forms, rates, and correspondence 1933-1935

Box 22, Folder 111

Taxes, states sales and use; forms and correspondence 1936-1937

Box 23, Folder 112

Taxes, states sales and use; forms and correspondence 1937-1938

Box 23, Folder 113

Taxes, states sales and use; forms and correspondence 1940-1942

Box 23, Folder 114

Taxes, states sales and use; forms and correspondence 1943-1947

Box 23, Folder 115

Taxes, states sales and use; forms and correspondence 1948-1952

Box 23, Folder 116

Taxes, states sales and use; forms and correspondence 1955-1958

Box 23, Folder 117

Taxes, states sales and use; forms and correspondence 1959-1961

Box 23, Folder 118

Taxes, states sales and use; forms and correspondence 1963-1965

Box 23, Folder 119

Taxes, federal income; forms and correspondence 1927-1932

Box 23, Folder 120

Taxes, federal income; forms and correspondence 1933-1936

Box 23, Folder 121

Taxes, federal income; forms and correspondence 1937-1940

Box 23, Folder 122

Taxes, state income; forms and correspondence 1927-1935

Box 24, Folder 123

Taxes, federal income; forms and correspondence 1936-1945

Box 24, Folder 124

Taxes, federal income; forms and correspondence 1946-1955, 1965

Box 24, Folder 125

Taxes, county; forms and correspondence 1926-1945, 1962

Box 24, Folder 128

Union Bank and Trust Company, promissory notes and correspondence 1927-1928, 1932-1937

Box 24, Folder 136

Analysis of field sales during fiscal year ending May 31, 1932 1933

Box 24, Folder 137

Analysis of sales by month, fiscal year ending May 31, 1932 1933

Correspondence 1922-1976

Physical Description: 76 folders

Scope and Content Note

Including pieces to and from the general managers, employees of the nursery, banks, and the State Insurance Compensation Board.

Box 16, Folder 33

A - miscellaneous 1930-1945, 1951-1955, 1958-1961

Box 16, Folder 34

Adams, Charles G. 1933-1935, 1941

Box 16, Folder 35

Agreements - lease and related correspondence 1922-1923, 1933-1934, 1947

Box 16, Folder 36

American Association of Nurserymen, membership file 1933, 1936, 1950, 1960

Box 16, Folder 37

Applications for employment -- rejected 1934, 1944-1945

Box 16, Folder 38

Asher, John Milton, general manager of nursery 1933-1935, 1942

Box 16, Folder 39

B - miscellaneous 1930-1947, 1955-1956, 1961-1962

Box 17, Folder 40

Briggs, Robert P. 1932

Box 17, Folder 41

Bills paid, other than vouchers, including memberships, insurance companies, and other nurseries 1946, 1949, 1952-1964

Box 17, Folder 42

C - miscellaneous (1 of 2 - from original order) 1928-1962

Box 17, Folder 43

C - miscellaneous (2 of 2 - from original order) 1928-1962

Box 17, Folder 44

Castillo, Pearl, re: Cododac Castillo accidental death while working 1947-1948

Box 17, Folder 45

California Nursery Company, including collection receipts 1930, 1934-1938, 1941-1943, 1947

Box 17, Folder 46

California Nursery Can Supply Co., including cancelled checks, invoices and collection notices 1939-1942, 1944

Box 17, Folder 47

D - miscellaneous 1934-1943

Box 17, Folder 48

Dehm, Henry, regarding seed orders and shipment 1927-1928

Box 17, Folder 49

Del Amo, Dr. Gregorio 1922-1938

Box 18, Folder 57

E - miscellaneous 1930-1932, 1942-1946, 1954, 1958

Box 18, Folder 59

F - miscellaneous 1932-1937, 1940-1945, 1954-1956, 1961-1962

Box 18, Folder 60

G - miscellaneous 1930-1935, 1940-1946, 1958, 1960-1961

Box 18, Folder 61

Garnishments of employee pay 1956-1957, 1960

Box 18, Folder 62

Germain's Seed and Plant Co. 1931-1943

Box 18, Folder 63

Herron, Thomas J., Vice President; January - July 1933

Box 18, Folder 64

Herron, Thomas J., Vice President; August - September 1933

Box 19, Folder 65

Herron, Thomas J., Vice President; October - December 1933

Box 19, Folder 66

Herron, Thomas J., Vice President; January - February 1934

Box 19, Folder 67

Herron, Thomas J., Vice President; March - April 1934

Box 19, Folder 68

Herron, Thomas J., Vice President; May - June 1934

Box 19, Folder 69

Herron, Thomas J., Vice President; July - October 1934

Box 19, Folder 70

Herron, Thomas J., Vice President; November - December 1934

Box 19, Folder 71

Herron, Thomas J., Vice President; January - February 1935

Box 19, Folder 72

Herron, Thomas J., Vice President; March - June 1935

Box 19, Folder 73

Herron, Thomas J., Vice President; July - December 1935

Box 19, Folder 74

Herron, Thomas J., Vice President; January 1936

Box 20, Folder 75

H - miscellaneous 1930-1951, 1961

Box 20, Folder 76

Howard, Paul J. 1932-1933, 1961

Box 20, Folder 77

Hoyer, Ove, general manager of nurseries 1945-1949

Box 20, Folder 78

Hoyer, Ove, general manager of nurseries 1950-1953

Box 20, Folder 79

Hoyer, Ove, general manager of nurseries, including photo and clippings from Nursery donation to Community Chest 1954-1959

Box 20, Folder 80

Hoyer, Ove, general manager of nurseries 1960-1961

Box 20, Folder 81

Hoyer, Ove, general manager of nurseries 1962

Box 20, Folder 82

Hoyer, Ove, general manager of nurseries 1963-1964, 1967, 1976

Box 20, Folder 83

I - miscellaneous 1933, 1941

Box 20, Folder 86

J - miscellaneous 1930-1935, 1942-1943, 1955

Box 20, Folder 87

K - miscellaneous 1928, 1933-1935, 1937, 1941-1945

Box 21, Folder 88

L - miscellaneous 1930-1937, 1940-1947, 1952, 1954

Box 21, Folder 89

Los Angeles Credit Manager's Association 1947-1949, 1960, 1964

Box 21, Folder 90

M - miscellaneous 1926, 1930-1947, 1951, 1955, 1960

Box 21, Folder 91

McFaddan, Harold, general manager of nursery 1936-1944

Box 21, Folder 93

Murphy, Mrs. Daniel (Antoinette) 1934-1935

Box 21, Folder 94

N - miscellaneous 1932-1935, 1939-1944, 1948-1952

Box 21, Folder 95

O - miscellaneous 1926, 1930-1935, 1942-1945, 1958

Box 21, Folder 96

P - miscellaneous, includes May, 1944 of Pacific Coast Nurseryman with articles regarding Victory Gardens and Japanese farmers 1931-1952, 1955

Box 21, Folder 99

R - miscellaneous 1925, 1933-1938, 1941-1946, 1950, 1956

Box 21, Folder 100

Recommendation letters 1934, 1940-1944, 1949

Box 22, Folder 101

S - miscellaneous 1925-1928, 1930

Box 22, Folder 102

Scherer, H. J., general manager of nursery 1925-1929

Box 22, Folder 103

Scherer, H. J., general manager of nursery 1930

Box 22, Folder 104

Scherer, H. J., general manager of nursery 1931-1933, 1944-1945

Box 22, Folder 105

Sea World 1963-1964

Box 22, Folder 106

Selective Service System case file, with forms and telegraphs regarding the drafting of nursery employees 1943-1945

Box 22, Folder 107

Stores Collection Bureau 1946-1948

Box 22, Folder 108

T - miscellaneous 1925-1937, 1941-1946, 1950

Box 24, Folder 126

T - miscellaneous 1930-1943

Box 24, Folder 127

Union Bank and Trust Company 1933, 1939, 1941-1943, 1959-1961

Box 24, Folder 129

United States Credit Bureau 1946-1947

Box 24, Folder 130

V - miscellaneous 1926-1946, 1955-1956

Box 24, Folder 131

Virginia Country Market, including lease and legal documents 1940-1941

Box 24, Folder 132

W - miscellaneous 1926, 1930-1945

Box 24, Folder 133

Water well drilling, contracts, invoices, and correspondence 1933, 1941, 1944

Box 24, Folder 134

Wilson, Elma K., including expense lists to be recorded and application for employment 1934-1936, 1939

Box 24, Folder 135

X, Y, Z - miscellaneous 1930, 1934

Box 25, Folder 139

State Compensation Insurance; including forms, brochures, and invoices for insurance payments 1935-1944

Box 25, Folder 140

State Compensation Insurance; including forms, brochures, and invoices for insurance payments 1945-1959

Box 25, Folder 141

State Compensation Insurance; including forms, brochures, and invoices for insurance payments 1960-1961

Box 25, Folder 142

State Compensation Insurance; including forms, brochures, and invoices for insurance payments 1962-1965

Business Documents 1922-1945

Physical Description: 7 folders

Scope and Content Note

Legal documents, including certificates of incorporation and by-laws, minutes of board meetings, newsclippings, reports, advertisements, price lists, pamphlets, and a stock certificate book.

Box 16, Folder 29

Report by H. J. Scherer, including an overview of the finances and productions of the nursery and recommendations 1926

Box 16, Folder 31

Minutes of board meetings, articles of incorporation, by-laws, and other legal documents, including certificates of incorporation from the state of California 1923-1937

Box 16, Folder 32

Stock journal and ledger 1923-1933

Box 25, Folder 138

Wholesale price lists and catalogs 1940-1960

Box 25, Folder 143

News pieces mentioning the nursery and Ove Hoyer 1945

Box 25, Folder 144

Stock certificate book 1924-1933

Box 25, Folder 145

Semi-monthly time book 1926-1930

Artifacts and Photographs 1938, no date

Physical Description: 1 folder, 1 folder

Scope and Content Note

Lettering from Del Amo Nurseries sign and paper embosser with nursery’s seal, aerial photographs of the Nursery and the field office.

Box 25, Folder 146

Field office building photograph no date

Box 26

2-inch wood letters with bronze paint no date

Box 26

Paper embosser no date

Aerial of nursery and surrounding land, including Los Angeles River, July (in Map Case 2, drawer 10) 1938

Aerial of nursery and surrounding land, July (in Map Case 2, drawer 10) 1938

Aerial of nursery and surrounding land, major streets and property line marked, July (in Map Case 2, drawer 10) no date