Historical Society of Volume 29, Issue 1 Spring 2017 SOUTHERN CALIFORNIAN

HSSC Board of Directors

Officers Kenneth Marcus MESSAGE FROM THE President

Linda Mollno HSSC PRESIDENT First Vice President

Donna Schuele Second Vice President Three subjects the board is current- climate change. As with the 2018 Jeremiah Axelrod ly thinking about are conference conference, there will be at least Secretary themes, fundraising for the Quarter- two tours associated with the Lara Godbille ly, and tours. A major event we theme. Treasurer plan each year is a conference. Finally, the conference theme for

Directors Building on the success of our last 2020 will be “Gender, Race and William Cowan conference on “World War II and Place,” and we will commemorate Paul Bryan Gray the Home Front in Southern Cali- the centennial anniversary of the David Hayes-Bautista fornia,” which took place in Janu- 19th Amendment, or women’s suf- Kristen Hayashi Andrew Krastins ary 2017 at the University of La frage. This was a huge event in Los Marguerite “Peggy” Renner Verne, the board has decided on Angeles as elsewhere in the coun- James Tranquada three themes for the next three try, and there are plenty of sites to Eileen Wallis years. Events and tours are being visit, and so we will organize tours planned for each theme. We wel- and events related to this theme as come you to join us! well. The conference theme for 2018 will In terms of fundraising, we are very Executive Director be on “The Cold War to the Space excited in launching our capital Amy Essington Race: Science, Technology, and campaign for the Southern Califor- Email: executivedirector Society in Southern California,” a nia Quarterly, and a big “thank @thehssc.org topic in which southern California you” to all those members who institutions played a very important have given generously thus far. national role. The Events and Mem- (See page 3.) I think we all agree The Southern Californian is that this marvelous journal is worth published quarterly by the bership Committees are coming up HSSC, a California non-profit with ideas for tours related to the not only saving but should continue 501(c)3 organization. theme, so if there are special sites to flourish in the future. After all, you would be interested in visiting, it’s one of the only journals still please contact our Executive Direc- around that is specifically devoted tor, Amy Essington, to pass on your to the . ideas. The capital campaign is three-fold: The conference theme for 2019 is first, that all board members con- envisioned to be on “The Environ- tribute (which they have); second, ment in Southern California,” and that membership will be asked to to consider such topics as the physi- contribute (and many of you al- cal vs. the built environment, pollu- (Continued on page 11) tion, parks and public space, and Page 2 Volume 29, Issue 1

Treasures of the HSSC Artifact Collection: City of Los Angeles Annexation Map, 1928

It’s often heard these Artifact Collection” is ate of associated, days. Will the San Fer- so interesting. and “true to myself” nando Valley secede • “to be patient with from the City of Los In 1928, the Engineer- the caller who is Angeles? Is Los Ange- ing Department of the provoked; prompt les too big and un- city’s Board of Public with person who is wieldy? What will the Works issued an hurried; sympathet- future of the sprawling “Annexation Map of ic with the caller metropolis be? A centu- the City of Los Ange- who is puzzled con- ry or so ago, the ques- les” to trumpet the dra- siderate of those tions were entirely dif- matic growth of the city who are difficult to ferent. It was more in preceding years. The satisfy; and hospita- like: how much bigger inside front cover pro- ble to those are can Los Angeles get? vided some notable fac- strangers in the City Will it catch Chicago tual information, such or to the Engineer- soon in population? as that the city’s area On the back cover was ing Department”; Isn’t it the preeminent was a whopping 441 the department’s “100% and sign of progress for cit- square miles and that Creed of Public Rela- • “to be friendly, but ies to grow in size and the length and breadth tions,” which included not familiar; cheer- population. of its limits was up to ten core components, ful but not boister- 44 miles north to south based on a belief “in the ous; to give infor- In fact, it was a matter and 20 miles east to value, importance and mation, not advice.” of pride for many resi- west. Moreover, the dignity of my occupa- As to the map, which dents and city leaders estimated population, tion as assistant to the folds out in three large that the aggressive an- according to the Regis- public.” Among these sections and twelve nexation of land to ex- trar of Voters, was just elements was: panels, it is a striking pand Los Angeles under 1.4 million. • treating the public visual reminder of the yielded such fantastic “with the courtesy growth of Los Angeles. results at the end of the Naturally, the booklet From the upper reaches th that springs from 19 century and in the pointed out that “the genuine friendliness of the San Fernando first few decades of the Engineering Depart- Valley to the Los Ange- th and respect” 20 . That’s why this ment is one of the • to be more con- les Harbor area at Wil- installment of City’s largest and most cerned with custom- mington and San Pedro “Treasures of the HSSC important departments” er satisfaction than and from the coast at and added that the de- the transaction Venice and nearby are- partment’s motto was • “to be as attentive as to Eagle Rock and a “Efficiency and Ser- to a person request- huge area in between, vice.” In 1927, the cost ing unimportant in- the city’s transfor- of public works con- formation as to one mation in the preceding struction topped $24 whose needs are thirty years was truly million, an increase of more elaborate” remarkable. 16% from the prior • to keep service to year. This was testa- professional stand- Over 70 annexations ment “to the rapid and ards and consolidations took permanent growth of • to have the motto place from 1895 to the City in terms of foremost in mind 1928 and fully 60% of public improvements.” • to be loyal to the those in the preceding employer, consider- (Continued on page 4)

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A SPECIAL THANK YOU

The Fall 2016 Southern Californian included a letter from President Ken Marcus asking HSSC members to donate to an endowment for the Southern California Quarterly to ensure the future of the flagship journal of the organization. I am pleased to report that in the months since that initial request, you, the members, joined with the HSSC Board and staff to donate to the SCQ Endowment. We all recognize the importance of this journal. A special thank you to the donors listed below.

If you have not yet made your donation, you may still do so by going to at http://thehssc.org/donate/ or by sending a check. We welcome donations of any size. Thank you. Amy Essington Executive Director

Anonymous Jack Estridge Paul Rippens Eric Abner Jim Gilbert Peter Reich David Appel Helen Grubbs Alicia Rodriquez Jere Baker Frank Gruber Jasper Schad Barry Blodgett Richard Haybed Martin Schiels James Bonar Suzanne Huddleson Doris and Jerry Selmer Elizabeth Brill Robert Ihsen Michael Several Michael Buckley Andrew McCue Maria Siciliano Marvin Carlberg Michael Maiuri Errol Stevens Debbie Caudill Robert McEachen David Surtees Richard De Blois Bruce Merritt Ellen Sweet Lawrence De Graaf Anne Miller Warren Thomas Richard De Luce Char Miller Lee and Mary Ann Tipton C. Terry Dooley Bill Orborne John Van de Kamp Carole and Michael Dougherty Robert Pehl Ann Walnum Richard and Paula Dyke Stephen Preston and Msgr. Francis Weber Michael Engh Janet Whaley

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Treasures of the HSSC Artifact Collection: City of Los Angeles Annexation Map, 1928 Continued

cluded much of the Santa Monica Moun- tains from the coast near Santa Monica Can- yon and inland, includ- ing Westwood, and which embraced well over 30,000 acres. The third largest and most unusual was the notorious Shoestring Addition, which was concocted to take in the San Pedro and Wil- (Continued from page 2) On the other end of the mington areas at Los scale were massive ad- Angeles Harbor and eight years. Some were ditions, including the join them to the original very small, including giant San Fernando Ad- city limits through the the Ostend Addition dition of 22 May 1915, Southern Addition of Santa Monica Moun- from 11 July 1918, which encompassed 1859 and the Southern tains, totaling 8,700 which involved just un- nearly the entirety of Addition of 1896. To- acres and annexed in der an acre in the har- the San Fernando Val- taling just under 12,000 May 1923; West Coast, bor area. The second ley, totaling nearly acres, the Shoestring which became the area smallest annexation was 110,000 acres. In fact, was added to the city at where Los Angeles In- the Holabird, totaling 8 when looking at that the end of 1906. ternational Airport is acres south of Olympic portion of the map, it is located, totaling just Boulevard, just off the striking to see that the Other large parcels add- under 8,000 acres and southeast portion of the City of San Fernando ed to the city included added in June 1917; original pueblo limits of was, and remains, an the combined 9,300 East Hollywood, span- about 18,000 acres. In island surrounded by acres of Wilmington ning over 7,000 acres all, there were thirteen Los Angeles. Another and San Pedro, consoli- and annexed in Febru- parcels of under 100 large addition was dated in August 1909; ary 1910;the Southern acres on the list. Westgate, which in- Laurel Canyon in the and Western addition off the original pueblo limits, comprising 6,500 acres added in April 1896; and Co- legrove, west from the Hoover Street boundary of the pueblo lands en- compassing about 5,600 acres and an- nexed in October 1909.

(Continued on page 8)

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An Archive, a Lawsuit, and the Tragic Tale of the Loss of

Sometimes you come to decedents left so little this rote examination Redondo Beach, and the story, and some- property that distin- drew me closer to a file east into Inglewood and times the story comes guishing the rights of that was at least four Lawndale. Those rights to you. So it is with the husband and of the inches thick, its girth were expanded into a archival research, and wife was not worth the alone suggesting prom- land grant during the so it was as I opened effort, or because ise. And what a jackpot Mexican period, which the first box of tri- American-born and – I hit – the story of the was confirmed by the folded case files from educated judges had no probate of the estate of U.S. Land Commission the Los Angeles County stomach for following Antonio Ygnacio Avila post-statehood. Probate Court. I had what they perceived to had come to me. anticipated this day for be “foreign” law. But Avila belonged to one History does record that nearly a decade, ever in any event, the rec- of the founding families the rancho changed since learning that the ords simply had nothing hands in the late 1860s, Huntington Library to say about the opera- notwithstanding the would be acquiring tion of a marital proper- Land Commission most of the county’s ty system, seen on the prove-up. The accounts court files from the be- one hand as providing note, rather cryptically, ginning of statehood necessary continuity that the land was pur- into the 1920s. and predictability from chased by a Scotsman the Mexican period, or named Robert Burnett. In 2001, the Huntington on the other hand as a A few reveal that he awarded me a one- progressive “reform” of bought the land at auc- month research fellow- the harsh common law tion, while some link ship to examine the rec- that could be used to successor Daniel Free- ords of the Probate attract American wom- Antonio Ygnacio Avila man to the modern de- Court, which existed en to this new frontier. velopment of the tract. from 1850 until the new of the pueblo of Los None, however, even state constitution in However, as anyone Angeles. He proved his hint at a story that 1879 reorganized the who has been fortunate loyalty to the Spanish would explain the four- judicial branch. I antic- enough to conduct re- Crown and was reward- inch thick case file. ipated that these records search at the Hunting- ed with grazing rights would reveal how Cali- ton knows, you’d be on a vast area of land Just a few documents in fornia’s newly estab- crazy not to stick known as Rancho I came to the heart of lished Anglo-American around and play the Sausal Redondo, which the matter: upon Avi- legal system handled hand you’re dealt. And stretched south from la’s death, his youngest issues of family wealth, this hand, it turned out, today’s Playa del Rey, daughter Marta even though Section 13 would take me both far through LAX, down to (Continued on page 9) of the 1849 constitution afield from my original tied the state to a mari- inquiry and more than a tal property system decade to complete. grounded in the Spanish civil law tradition As I made my way se- (known today as the quentially through the “community property” first Hollinger box (a system). sturdy but small con- tainer), each thin case The project was a bust. acclimated me to the Perhaps it was because court but little else. Yet Rancho Sausal Redondo thehssc.org Page 6 Volume 29, Issue 1

PREVIOUS HSSC EVENTS

“Hiding Under Eastern Petticoats? Donna Schuele (UCLA, Cal State LA) explored California’s suffrage The Emerging Women’s Suffrage movement in the 1870s and the Movement in California” ways in which the California Los Angeles Public Library Women’s movement was driven—and riv- Heritage Month Lecture en—by circumstances both local March, 12, 2017 and national.

Tour of Historical Society of Long Beach On Saturday, April 1, 2017, attendees visted Exhibit, “Long Beach Remembers Pearl the Historical Society of Long Beach to view their exhibit “Long Beach Remembers Pearl Harbor.” April 1, 2017 Harbor.” HSLB Executive Director Julie Bar- tolotto and historians Craig Hendricks and Timothy Friden gave a tour of the exhibit and spoke about the history related to the exhibit.

UPCOMING HSSC EVENTS

Centinela Adobe Tour and Talk

Saturday, June 3, 2017, 10:00 am to 12:30 pm

The HSSC is co-sponsoring a tour of the with a talk by Donna Schuele about the Avila Family. The event is co-sponsored by the Historical Society of Centinela Valley.

HSSC Tour of the San Gabriel Mission and La Casa de Lopez de Lowther Adobe

Saturday, June 10, 2017, 10:00 am-12: 00 pm

Come tour two sites in San Gabriel’s historic mission district. The HSSC will tour both the San Gabriel Mission and the La Casa de Lopez de Lowther Adobe.

Member and student discounts available. Registration information available at thehssc.org

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CALL FOR PAPERS THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA 2018 ANNUAL CONFERENCE “FROM THE COLD WAR TO THE SPACE RACE: SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA” CALIFORNIA STATE POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY, POMONA FEBRUARY 10, 2018

Topics may include, but are not limited to:  The Cold War  The development of aerospace in southern Califor- nia  Post-WW2 politics and society  Science and technology’s influence on the institutions, industries, traditions, and people  Medicine in southern California  Hollywood and how film has shaped American ideas about space

 Proposals for full panels encouraged.  Those submitting panel or roundtable proposals should include a brief (100-word) description of the panel, a 250-word abstract for each presentation, and a one-page c.v. for each partici- pant.  Those submitting individual papers should include a 250-word abstract and a one-page c.v.  AV requests should be included for each presenter in the proposal.  All program participants will be expected to pre-register for the conference.  Proposals are due Friday, September 1, 2017, by 11:59PM PT.  Please email your proposal information to [email protected].  Panelists will be notified by Friday, November 3, 2017.  Contact HSSC Executive Director Amy Essington at [email protected] with any ques- tions.

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Treasures of the HSSC Artifact Collection: City of Los Angeles Annexation Map, 1928 Continued

(Continued from page 4) added in 1923), Eagle seeking to avoid Los century, most recently Rock (1923), Venice Angeles city regulatory the Jordan Downs an- Aside from San Fernan- (1925), Watts (1926) authority, transferred nexation in March do, there are other and the little-known his circus to the eastern 2015, consisting of a “islands” surrounded Barnes City (1927). San Gabriel Valley near little over 40 acres in completely or nearly so El Monte and Baldwin South Central Los An- by the expanding city. Barnes City, in fact, Park. geles slated for redevel- Beverly Hills, Santa was a strange anomaly. opment. Monica, the National Circus owner Al Barnes Annexation by the City Home for Disabled moved his enterprise in of Los Angeles was It will certainly be in- Volunteer Soldiers near 1919 from Venice to hardly complete when teresting to see what Westwood, Universal unincorporated land this map was issued, shape and form, Los City, Tujunga, and a between Venice and however. There have a Angeles, which now few small county pieces Culver City. Some of great many since, most, encompasses just over here and there, are ex- this he subdivided and some 150, in the very 500 square miles will amples of such locales. sold for residential pur- busy post-World War II take in the future, will Tujunga, which was poses and the perma- period of the late 1940s take and what its map incorporated in 1888, nent facility for his cir- through 1960s. Some will look like! was consolidated into cus and zoo opened at 60 more were conduct- By Paul R. Spitzzeri, Los Angeles four years the end of 1923 off ed in the 1970s and Director, Workman and after the production of Washington Boulevard. 1980s, but there have Temple Family Home- this map. Shortly afterward, Cul- only been about a dozen stead Museum ver City annexed a nar- in the last quarter- As to the distinction row strip of land along between “annexation” his circus location and, and “consolidation,” to fend off further ag- this has to do with the gression from the studio prior status of the area town, the “La Ballona absorbed into Los An- Improvement Associa- geles. Annexed parcels tion” moved to create were previously unin- Barnes City. corporated areas of Los Angeles County, while Al Barnes enthusiasti- consolidated areas had cally endorsed the idea been incorporated cit- and it was no accident ies. To achieve consol- that over a third of the idation, a majority of registered voters were voters had to approve a his employees! When petition to that effect. he tried to assume more The first of these were control over the new that of San Pedro and burg, though, a ruckus Wilmington. However, erupted with residents other examples include not affiliated with the Hollywood (1910), circus, leading to the Sawtelle (1922), Hyde vote for consolidation, Park (only a city for after just seven months about a year until it was of cityhood. Barnes,

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An Archive, a Lawsuit, and the Tragic Tale of the Loss of Rancho Sausal Redondo Continued

(Continued from page 5) and sons alike? What literate, the padres that made him think he grounded this society in launched a will contest could get away with it? the mission system against his eldest son And, ultimately, was were not. They were Juan. She claimed that invoking the processes prodigious and diligent her brother had, by dint of an unfamiliar legal record-keepers, and of undue influence or system a fruitful move? their sacramental ac- fraud, induced his fa- For Marta? For Anto- counts of births ther to execute a will nio Ygnacio’s family? (baptisms), marriages, with terms overly fa- Who won, and who and deaths provide the vorable to him. The lost? best exposition of colo- allegations were breath- Juan Avila nial demographics in all taking: in no other case More largely, what of North America.

in the archives, before Few of this could this case teach us or after, had Californio about the Californio My study would not era were literate. In have been possible siblings, steeped as ’s fron- experience during the these families were in early years of American without two monumen- tier environment, this tal efforts to translate patriarchal norms, en- group seemed indiffer- rule, as Los Angeles gaged in such a legal transformed from a and organize this data: a ent to formal education. three-volume reference battle. And the circum- Thus, legal and govern- sleepy, feudal, barter stances that set the economy outpost ruled produced by Marie mental records provide Northrop (two volumes stage for the suit ap- some of the only writ- by a small group of peared unique as well: elite landowners into a published prior to the ten accounts of daily start of my research and unlike other rancheros life. While the Probate commercial region who routinely executed where everything - es- the third a few years Court documents com- in), and later the Hun- death bed wills, Avila prising the Avila case pecially land - became executed his nearly a commodified, access to tington Library’s NEH- were undeniably a gold funded Early California decade before his de- mine, they nonetheless cash accelerated new- mise. Why? Because comers’ wealth accu- Population Project, con- left many questions un- ceived and edited by what was expiring at answered. Most im- mulation, and status that point was not Avi- was fluid rather than Dr. Steven Hackel. portant, what had led Northrop both translat- la’s body but his mind. Marta to take such a fixed at birth? He probably had suf- ed and organized mis- drastic, and potentially sion and other records, fered a stroke and the destructive, step against Sometimes, the seren- mental capacity to dipity of research creating trees of Alta a brother, especially California’s elite fami- make a valid will was one who had become means not just stum- quickly diminishing or bling upon a rich ar- lies that began with the the de facto head of the founding of the pueblo already gone. Once the household upon the chive but also discover- will was executed, it ing the kind of story and stretched a couple death of his father? of decades beyond didn’t matter how much And, given the undenia- where the sun, moon, longer Antonio Yg- and stars line up, allow- statehood. Later, the bly favorable testamen- Huntington’s project nacio survived; the tary terms, had Juan in ing you to augment and terms were unchangea- exploit the sources you took advantage of tech- fact coaxed his father to nological advances, ble. And any wrongdo- deviate from the ordi- do have. In this regard, ing on Juan’s part could Antonio Ygnacio Avi- building a relational nary impulse of Califor- database that broke remain hidden for nio patriarchs to be- la’s tale did not disap- years, making it harder point. While the Cali- down individual mis- queath their property sion entries into field- to prove when Avila equally to daughters fornio population may did pass away. have been mostly pre- (Continued on page 10)

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An Archive, a Lawsuit, and the Tragic Tale of the Loss of Rancho Sausal Redondo Continued

(Continued from page 9) elite family: through records through 1930 om, the Great Flood them, the Avila family became available on was followed by three searchable records. Be- joined forces with the Ancestry.com, so I years of crushing ginning in 2006, the Yorbas, the Sepulvedas, headed over to the Fam- drought, killing off database was freely ac- and the Sanchezes, The ily History Center at the even more cattle. And cessible to anyone with combined landholding Church of Latter Day it was during this time an internet connection. of these families was Saints in West Los An- that the bills for attor- Added to this was the staggering, and many of geles to take advantage ney’s fees and other Southern California the men held positions of free access. Tracing costs of estate admin- Quarterly’s earlier re- of power in the local the Avila family post- istration bore down on production of patrons government. But for- statehood, I witnessed the Avilas, payable in (censuses) that were tunes diminished for the its further fragmenta- cash. The only way the commissioned by the later children: as Juan’s tion. estate could raise the Mexican government in younger brothers were necessary funds was to the 1830s and 1840s. pressed into managing But it wasn’t just the sell cattle, which were Rancho Sausal Redon- availability of micro becoming increasingly As I pondered how the do, they married late or demographic records scarce in quantity and relationship between not at all, sometimes to that hinted at the how quality. Marta and Juan could women of questionable and why of the will have so deteriorated as repute. And poor Mar- contest; macro environ- My research serendipity to lead her, nay allow ta: as the only unmar- mental evidence record- did not end with the her, to go to law to ried daughter left at ed by literate Anglos now-easy access to dig- wrest family wealth home, especially when revealed that the litiga- itized records and the away from him, I sus- her father became ill, tion was just one aspect discovered confluence pected that the key lie caretaking duties fell to of the increasing eco- of economy and envi- in diminished patriar- her. By the time she nomic vulnerability of ronment. After strug- chal power. Did family married, she was an the Avila family. In gling for a few years bonds actually start to “old maid” of twenty- fact, what occurred was over how to frame the fray some time before five and her father had a perfect storm. Un- story of Rancho Sausal Antonio Ygnacio exe- lost his ability to trade knowable at the time Redondo (was it a legal cuted his will? There on his status to find her that Antonio Ygnacio history of property de- would be no trove of a spouse. Avila executed his will, volution? was it about letters, no hidden diary the cattle market took the status of women in that could reveal family Alas, the Huntington’s off in the mid-1850s, Californio society?), an secrets. But in a society project was limited to due to the influx of opportunity to partici- where arranged mar- processing only pre- Americans and their pate in a seminar co- riages were the norm, statehood records, thus appetite for beef. No sponsored by the Clem- and marriage was seen the database mostly longer were the animals ents Center for South- as a crucial tool to in- ends at 1850, but at that raised just for hide and west Studies at South- crease and cement fam- point American census tallow. The Avilas, like ern Methodist Universi- ily status, the mission records proved helpful. other ranchero families, ty and the Autry Na- records and the patrons Having never worked increased their stock tional Center convinced might yield some an- with census records be- and enjoyed the pro- me that this story would swers. Indeed they did. fore, I procrastinated ceeds of meat sales. be best situated in the The marriages of the over that part of the re- Then came the Great newly-resurgent field of first few of Antonio search, until once again Flood of 1862, drown- family history. The Ygnacio’s children I was rescued by tech- ing thousands of head seminar aimed to pro- were all befitting of an nology. By 2006, the of cattle. Hard to fath- duce an anthology (Continued on page 11)

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An Archive, a Lawsuit, and the Tragic Tale of the Loss of Rancho Sausal Redondo Continued

(Continued from page 10) alerted me to a criminal lived on. But over 150 By Donna Schuele, case involving Marta. It years after Avila’s death HSSC Second Vice- showcasing the research was the smoking gun! in 1858, thanks to that President of a dozen scholars stud- four-inch case file at the ying family and kinship How Marta fared in the Huntington Library, we To learn more about the in the American West. will contest will remain a now know that the story history of Rancho Sausal Conveners of these sorts story for another day, as of this family’s loss was Redondo, the Avila fami- of groups hope for a syn- will the details of how far more tragic and re- ly, and the development ergy among participants. Antonio Ygnacio’s fami- vealing of the times than of Inglewood, join Donna As luck would again ly ultimately forfeited its a simple entry in the his- Schuele for a talk and have it, just as I was legacy. No surprise, tory books marking the tour of the Centinela Adobe on Saturday, June completing the final draft however, the Avila name passage of a ranch from rd of my study, a fellow au- became erased from local Californio to Anglo 3 , at 10 a.m. See page thor, using another set of history, while others, like hands. And such is the 6 for more details. court records in the Hun- Machado, Sepulveda, serendipity of venturing tington’s collection, Feliz, and Dominguez, into the archives.

PRESIDENT’S COLUMN CONTINUED

(Continued from page 1)

ready have); and third, to approach corporations and foundations who have given to HSSC in the past or may in the future. The goal is $1 million, and the good news is that we’re about a third of the way there, with a total of $333,000 raised thus far. If you have not already done so, please consider a generous gift for this very worthy cause, and consider also including the journal’s endowment in your will. That will truly be a “gift that keeps on giving.” It’s worth remembering that the journal of the Society first began in 1884 and has enjoyed continuous pub- lication until the present. It started as an annual publication and became a Quarterly journal in 1935. It is a peer-reviewed journal that publishes articles on the history of California and the West, and its authors range from well-established scholars, to graduate students, to independent scholars. That kind of inclusivity is rare among scholarly journals today. Its readership reaches far beyond the HSSC membership; since 2011 the journal has been published by University of California Press and has been accessible first on JSTOR and then Highwire databases. During Jan.-Dec. 2016, SCQ articles had 54,250 views and a total of 99,262 pdf downloads. Finally, please keep your eye out for upcoming events this summer and register as soon as possible, and bring your friends! Among these events are a tour of the Centinela Adobe on Saturday, June 3rd, and a tour of the San Gabriel Mission and La Casa de Lopez de Lowther Adobe a week later, which will be in con- junction with the San Gabriel Historical Society. More information on these tours is available on our web- site, thehssc.org. Looking ahead, we are also planning a lecture and discussion at the Pasadena Museum of History in Sep- tember and a Holiday Xmas party at the Homestead Museum. Members have expressed an interest in re- launching this Christmas tradition after we had to move out of Lummis House, and the Homestead Muse- um currently looks like the best location to have it. We will probably have the party in the first week of De- cember, and of course we’ll keep you posted on this and other events. We look forward to seeing you at future conferences and tours. We thank you for your continued support of the Society. Please reach out to us for any suggestions or comments you may have; we are always happy to hear from our members, and it is because of you that the Society continues to survive and thrive.

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Upcoming HSSC Events Historical Society of Southern California Centinela Adobe Tour and Talk Saturday, June 3, 2017, 10:00 am to 12:30 pm PO Box 50019 The event is co-sponsored by the Historical Society Long Beach, CA 90815 of Centinela Valley

Telephone HSSC Tour of the San Gabriel Mission and 323-222-0546 La Casa de Lopez de Lowther Adobe Website: Saturday, June 10, 2017, 10am-12pm thehssc.org HSSC Annual Conference Saturday, February 10, 2018 Email: California State Polytechnic University, Pomona [email protected] Call for Papers on page 7

Check thehssc.org for event details. Member and student discounts available.

Note our new mailing address: HSSC PO Box 50019 Long Beach, CA 90815

HSSC Awards

The HSSC gives eight awards in three categories. The HSSC Board-approved guidelines for each of the awards are posted on our website. Check thehssc.org for award bylaws and applica- tion/nomination information. For awards with applications, the deadline for the 2017 awards is August 1, 2017.

Books • The Norman Neuerburg Award honors the best book on California history that emphasizes the nineteenth century or earlier. • The Martin Ridge Award honors the best book on California history that emphasizes the twentieth century onward. • The Donald H. Pflueger Local History Award honors an outstanding scholarly book or project (print or electronic) on Southern California local history.

Articles • The Doyce B. Nunis, Jr. Award honors the best demonstration of significant scholarship in the South- ern California Quarterly by a rising historian. • The Carl I. Wheat and Frank Wheat Award honors the best demonstration of significant scholarship in the Southern California Quarterly by an established historian.

Service • The Denise and Jack Smith Community Enrichment Award honors an individual who has enriched the community of Los Angeles by their dedicated service and accomplishments. • The Joseph O’Flaherty Teaching Award honors creative excellence in the teaching of history in grades K-12 in the schools of Southern California. • The Fellows Award honors exceptional lifetime achievements that have brought distinction to history.

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