Most of the collection was collected by longtime colonist, Walter Millsap, and includes papers from the early years of the colony in California and Louisiana (1911-1930), correspondence between Millsap and other colonists (1920-1958), and files from the assets recovery attempt (1959-1969). Board of directors' files (1959-1969) include minutes and papers, meeting proxies, and other documents. Correspondence is chiefly between Millsap and over 100 other colonists.

The colony of Llano del Rio was formed in 1914 by Job Harriman, a socialist lawyer and politician from Los Angeles. Harriman sought to provide an economic underpinning to the ideas of socialism by organizing a cooperative colony. Harriman and a group of associates sought land for the site of the colony, settling on 10,000 acres in the Antelope Valley, north of Los Angeles. They incorporated the Llano del Rio company in California in 1914, and later reincorporated under Nevada law in 1916.

5 boxes, 1 oversize folder (2.0 Linear feet)

Copyright has not been assigned to the California Historical Society. All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Director of Research Collections. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the California Historical Society as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the reader.

CHS is not taking appointments for research at this time. Please check the Library's website updates: https://californiahistoricalsociety.org/collections/north-baker-research-library/