Robert B. and William R. Moran Papers Mss 282
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http://oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/c8fn14ws No online items Guide to the Robert B. and William R. Moran papers Mss 282 Finding aid prepared by Pearl Ko, 2011; encoded by Zachary Liebhaber, 2011. UC Santa Barbara Library, Department of Special Research Collections University of California, Santa Barbara Santa Barbara 93106-9010 [email protected] URL: http://www.library.ucsb.edu/special-collections 2011 Guide to the Robert B. and Mss 282 1 William R. Moran papers Mss 282 Title: Robert B. and William R. Moran papers Identifier/Call Number: Mss 282 Contributing Institution: UC Santa Barbara Library, Department of Special Research Collections Language of Material: English Physical Description: 61.2 linear feet(136 boxes) Creator: Moran, Robert B., 1879-1961 Creator: Moran, William R. Date (inclusive): 20th century Abstract: Photographs and documents relating to the careers of Robert B. and William R. Moran. Most of the collection pertains to oil exploration in California, other parts of the United States, and abroad. Physical Location: Special Research Collections, UC Santa Barbara Library Access Restrictions The Moran Trust subseries is closed. The remainder of the collection is open for research. Use Restrictions Copyright has not been assigned to the Department of Special Research Collections, UCSB. All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Head of Special Research Collections. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the Department of Special Research 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 [Identification of Item], Robert B. and William R. Moran papers, Mss 282. Department of Special Research Collections, UC Santa Barbara Library, University of California, Santa Barbara. Acquisition Information Bequeathed with the estate of William R. Moran. Biographical Note Robert Breck Moran (1879-1961) graduated from Stanford University in 1907, worked as a petroleum geologist for Associated Oil and Standard Oil, and opened his own office in San Francisco as a consulting geologist in 1911, marrying Edna Louise Venable of San Luis Obispo, California, that same year. Eventually settling in Pasadena, Robert Moran moved his office to Los Angeles in 1915. Among other achievements, Robert Moran pioneered the use of the airplane in geological reconnaissance work and has been credited with the discovery of the Venice Oil Field well in Los Angeles while consulting for the Ohio Oil Company from 1927 to 1929. On a trip to Peru in 1929, Moran discovered the Agua Caliente Oil Dome, upon which he established the Ganso Azul Oil Field. Robert Moran has been recognized as an early pioneer in the fields of petroleum geology and petroleum engineering. William Rodes Moran (1919-2006) followed in the footsteps of his father. After obtaining his bachelor's degree in geology from Stanford University in 1942, William went on to work for Union Oil as an exploration geologist, retiring as Vice President for Exploration of Molycorp in 1985. From 1956 to 1989 William was an associate editor of the American Association of Petroleum Geologists Bulletin. In addition to his professional work in exploration geology, William was a recognized collector and researcher in the area of early recorded sound. Materials related to William's early sound recording collecting and research activities may be consulted in the William R. Moran collection, PA Mss 57, at the UC Santa Barbara Library Department of Special Research Collections. Scope and Content This guide covers the non-music portion of the William R. Moran Collection, including material relating to Robert B. Moran (RBM) and William R. Moran (WRM). Most of the material relates to oil exploration, in California, other parts of the U.S., and abroad. There is an extensive photograph component to the collection, with 200 glass plate negatives, 8000 early black-and-white negatives and contemporaneous black-and-white prints, and about 4300 more recent color slides. The photographs range from about 1900 to the present, and are particularly strong in the areas of early oil exploration and drilling along the coast and central valleys of California, geological features of the American West, particularly within the coastal ranges and valleys of Central California, Alaska, Washington, Montana, and Wyoming, as well as many early photos of Baja and Peru. Included among the Baja photographs are early prints, negatives and slides of the flora and physical features of the peninsula and Guadalupe Island, likely taken by explorer and botanist Dr. Reid Venable Moran (1916-2010), William's older brother. In addition to the photographs, the collection includes personal, biographical, and work related documents and correspondence of both Robert and William Moran, as well documents related to the Moran 1963 Trust. Many of the Moran Guide to the Robert B. and Mss 282 2 William R. Moran papers Mss 282 1963 Trust documents concern the Ganso Azul Oil Field on the Agua Caliente Dome in the Eastern Andean foothills of Peru. Established in 1929 by Robert Moran, this field first saw production in 1939. The Moran 1963 Trust subseries is closed. The collection also contains a stereoscopic photograph subseries. Arrangement The collection has been divided into three series. Series I., Robert Breck Moran, and Series II. William Rodes Moran, comprise the personal, biographical and work related documents of Robert and William Moran, including the closed Moran 1963 Trust subseries. Series III, Photographs, has been divided into subseries by original format, and again by location (by state if within the United States, by country if outside the United States), subject, or size. Subseries III.1 Prints and Negatives, begins with photographs related to the the early oil industry in Southern and Central California (and a small number of other locations) under the heading "Oil", in order to maintain and highlight their original order and provenance. Photographs in Subseries II.10, WRM photographs, have been left with the personal/biographical materials in Series II., William Rodes Moran, in order to maintain their provenance. Acronyms WRM = William R. Moran, RBM = Robert B. Moran, EVM = Edna V. Moran Box Type by Number BOX TYPES BY NUMBER: DOCUMENT BOXES: 1-20, 31-54, 60-108, 113-125, 128-135. OVERSIZE BOXES: 21-22, 55-57, 126-127, 136. SHOEBOXES: 23-30, 58-59, 109-112. Subjects and Indexing Terms Petroleum industry and trade -- California -- History Black-and-white negatives Black-and-white prints (photographs) Color slides Correspondence Glass plate negatives Photographs Stereoscopic photographs Moran, Robert B., 1879-1961 -- Archives Moran, William R. -- Archives Standard Oil Company Union Oil Company of California Series I. Robert Breck Moran Arrangement Series I. Robert Breck Moran, has been divided into the following subseries: I.1. Personal/Biographical 1940s-1950s I.2. Moran Trust 1915-1963 I.3. Calendars/Notebooks 1907-1954. Subseries I.1. Personal/Biographical 1940s-1950s Box-folder 60: 1 Postcards undated Box-folder 60: 2 American Geographical Society, certificate 1944 Box-folder 60: 3 American Society of Civil Engineers, diploma 1946 Box-folder 60: 4 Miscellaneous biographical documents undated Box-folder 60: 5 Drawing of neoclassical facade undated Box-folder 60: 6 "Memorial, Robert Breck Moran," AAPG Bulletin, Vol. 46, no. 4 1962 April Guide to the Robert B. and Mss 282 3 William R. Moran papers Mss 282 Series I.Robert Breck Moran Subseries I.1.Personal/Biographical 1940s-1950s Box-folder 60: 7 Visas, passports, and other travel documents undated Box-folder 60: 8 American Petroleum Institute 1950s Subseries I.2. Moran Trust 1915-1963 Access Restrictions The Moran Trust subseries is closed. Box-folder 61: 1 Philipine islands Copra 1915 Box-folder 61: 2 Numerical index to cabinet files undated Box-folder 61: 3 Alphabetical index to cabinet files undated Box-folder 61: 4 Index to cabinet files, office copy undated Box-folder 61: 5 Petroglyph on schist wall 1924 Box-folder 61: 6 Miscellaneous data on mines 1929-1947 Box-folder 61: 7 Baroid lab report 1944 Box-folder 61: 8 Mine sale Morrison Co. 1936-1942 Box-folder 61: 9 Equipment catalogs for mines undated Box-folder 61: 10 Utah salt production 1948, 1955 Box-folder 61: 11 R.R. and shale oil plant, Chile 1933 Box-folder 61: 12 Valuation costs, misc. undated Box-folder 61: 13 Blackfor Company undated Box-folder 61: 14 Isochores and Isopachs undated Box-folder 61: 15 Miscellaneous documents undated Box-folder 61: 16 Osteodontornis Orri, photos undated Box-folder 61: 17 Horizontal bars estimate 1920-1921 Box-folder 61: 18 Horizontal bars, complete estimate undated Box-folder 61: 19 Specifications, cable tool outfit 1920 Box-folder 61: 20 Unjust taxation of California oil properties undated Box-folder 61: 21 West Coast Drill and Construction Co. 1917 Box-folder 61: 22 Electric surveying 1950-1951 Box-folder 61: 23 Peru, astronomical observation 1931 Box-folder 62: 1 Letter from Hugh A. Moran 1957 Box-folder 62: 2 Topo map requests and quadrangles 1922 Box-folder 62: 3 Drawers 15-20 undated Box-folder 62: 4 Richfield Oil, Mckeon Drilling 1927 Box-folder 62: 5 Peru, magazine articles and photo 1938 Box-folder 62: 6 Notes from Scotty Greene's diary undated Box-folder 62: 7 Nathan Moran, correspondence 1944, 1946 Box-folder 62: 8 Chaco Boreal, Paraguay, maps undated Box-folder 62: 9 Ben Page, correspondence 1942 Box-folder 62: 10 Ed Page, H.L. Pfau, correspondence 1938 Box-folder 62: 11 U.S. Geological Survey, correspondence 1946-1958 Box-folder 62: 12 University of California correspondence 1955-1957 Box-folder 62: 13 Travel expenses, misc. undated Box-folder 62: 14 University club undated Box-folder 62: 15 Atlantic Oil Co. undated Box-folder 62: 16 Iron King mines title documents 1902-1903 Box-folder 62: 17 Iron King mines title documents 1919-1920 Box-folder 62: 18 Iron King report 1925 Box-folder 62: 19 Iron King mines 1939 Box-folder 62: 20 Iron King mines, xeroxes undated Box-folder 62: 21 Iron King, map undated Box-folder 62: 22 Monterey Park Land Co.