http://oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/c83t9pbw No online items Alamitos Land Company Papers: Finding Aid Finding aid prepared by Li Wei Yang, February 9, 2010. The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens Manuscripts Department 1151 Oxford Road San Marino, California 91108 Phone: (626) 405-2191 Email: [email protected] URL: http://www.huntington.org © 2010 The Huntington Library. All rights reserved. Alamitos Land Company Papers: mssAlamitosLandCompanypapers 1 Finding Aid Overview of the Collection Title: Alamitos Land Company Papers Dates (inclusive): 1885-2007 Collection Number: mssAlamitosLandCompanypapers Creator: Alamitos Land Company. Extent: 95 boxes + 98 oversize maps Repository: The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens. Manuscripts Department 1151 Oxford Road San Marino, California 91108 Phone: (626) 405-2191 Email: [email protected] URL: http://www.huntington.org Abstract: This collection contains the records of the Alamitos Land Company of Southern California (in operation from the mid 1880s-2008), which operated first as a land sale company and later as a property management company, chiefly for properties in Long Beach and Signal Hill, California. Includes financial records, legal and land documents, annual reports, correspondence, minutes, project files, specifications and technical reports, and maps. Language: English. Access Open to qualified researchers by prior application through the Reader Services Department. For more information, contact Reader Services. Publication Rights The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from or publish images of this material, nor does it charge fees for such activities. The responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and obtaining necessary permissions rests with the researcher. Preferred Citation [Identification of item]. Alamitos Land Company Papers, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California. Provenance Gift of Jean Bixby Smith, January 2009. Historical Note Founded by members of the Bixby and Flint families and their business partner, I. W. Hellman, in 1888, the Alamitos Land Company was first organized as a land sale company during the real estate boom of Southern California in mid 1880s. The company was engaged in the subdivision of lands and offering them for sale as town lots, commercial properties, and farm lands. A large portion of the lands was eventually bought or annexed and is presently located in the City of Long Beach and the City of Signal Hill. When oil was discovered in 1921 under some of the company’s properties, the Alamitos Land Company transformed itself into a land management company by leasing 240 acres of Signal Hill land to Shell Oil Company for drilling. As a result, the company added more revenue channels by collecting royalties from oil drilling and granting oil pipe easements. Subsequently, the company expanded its business operations into management of agricultural lands and commercial and industrial buildings. As the amount of oil started to dwindle in the early 1970s, the company turned some of its former oil drilling sites into a number of residential, commercial, and industrial projects. The company ceased operation on December 31, 2008. Scope and Content The Alamitos Land Company papers are organized into four series: Administrative Series Commercial Properties Series Oversize Series Map Series Administrative Series contains records relating to various facilitative operations within the Alamitos Land Company, including, but not limit to, account books, annual reports, appraisals, articles of incorporation, audits, balance sheets, bylaws, correspondence, financial records, financial statements, inventories, ledgers, legal documents, minutes, stock certificates, and titles (property rights). This series is organized alphabetically. A small number of oversize administrative records are stored under the Oversize Series. Alamitos Land Company Papers: mssAlamitosLandCompanypapers 2 Finding Aid Commercial Properties Series include a wide-ranging type of records relating to the company’s commercial and industrial portfolio. As per the original order, records are grouped under the headings of their respective commercial properties or projects, which include, but not limit to, Alamitos Beach Townsites, Alamitos Tract, Bixby Center, Bixby Ridge, Brawley Beef Packing Plant, Brawley Steam Wells, Firebaugh, Geothermal, Hathaway Apartments, Hathaway Business Park, The Knolls, Long Beach Tidelands, Luckey Ranch, Palo Verde and Spring Retail, Paramount Business Park, Recreation Park, Reservoir Hill, Rosemead Flair Business Park, Signal Hill East Unit, Tract 10548, U.S. Navy Depot, and the Willows Office Building. All commercial properties and projects were located within the State of California. This series is organized alphabetically. Types of records within the Commercial Properties Series include, but not limited to, agendas, agreements, annual reports, appraisals, correspondence, deeds, environmental impact statements, escrows, feasibility studies, financial records, insurance records, invoices, judicial records, land surveys, land valuations, leases, legal documents, maps, memorandums, newspaper clippings, notes, photos, plans (orthographic projections), proposals, receipts, reports, specifications, tax records, and technical reports. Oversize Series includes oversize records and objects from both Administrative Series and Commercial Properties Series. They are appraisals, banners, bookkeeping records, company seals, correspondence, ledgers, minutes, photos, plaques, and stock certificates. This Series is organized Alphabetically and by dates. Map Series contains 98 oversize maps, circa 1885 to 1976. Most maps are related to properties and land owned by the Alamitos Land Company. The Map series is further categorized geographically into four sub-categories: Alamitos Tract (59), Tideland Survey (18), Farm Properties (8), and Other (12). Please note map #1, 10, 11, 56, 57, and 58 are housed separately from the main map drawer as of February 2010 due to their size. Arrangement Organized in the following manner: 1) Administrative Series (Boxes 1-22) 2) Commercial Properties Series (Boxes 23-88) 3) Oversize Series (Boxes 89-92, plus items on shelf) 4) Map Series (Map Folders 1-59) Arranged alphabetically. Indexing: subjects This list is not meant to be all-inclusive but to represent the people and subjects that are most prevalent in the collection. Many people and subjects in the collection will not be on this list. Personal/Corporate • Alamitos Land Company • Atlantic Richfield Co. • Bixby, Llewellyn, IV • Bixby, Llewellyn, Jr. • Bixby, William F. • Bixby Land Company • California. Division of Highways • California State Mining Bureau • Chevron Corporation • Farmers and Merchants National Bank of Los Angeles • Hayes, Victor W. • Healey, Charles T. (Charles Terraine) • Imperial Irrigation District (Calif.) • Le Plastrier Development Company • Long Beach Jewish Community Center (Calif.) • Long Beach Unified School District • Long Beach (Calif.). City Manager • Long Beach (Calif.). City Planning Commission • Long Beach (Calif.). Dept. of Oil Properties Alamitos Land Company Papers: mssAlamitosLandCompanypapers 3 Finding Aid • Long Beach (Calif.). Dept. of Planning and Building • Long Beach (Calif.). Tidelands Agency • Los Angeles County Flood Control District (Calif.) • Los Angeles County (Calif.). Road Dept. • Pacific Electric Railway Company • Ralph M. Parsons Company • Rosor, Clarence M. • San Diego State University • Shell Oil Company • Signal Hill (Calif.) • Smith, Jean Bixby • Smith, Joseph R. • Standard Oil Company of California • Southern California Edison Company • United States. Department of Energy • Unocal Corporation Subjects • Alfalfa--California. • Apples--California. • Architecture--California--Long Beach. • Atlantic Richfield Co. • Bankruptcy--California. • Beef industry--United States. • Beets and beet sugar--United States. • Benzene--Environmental aspects--California. • Brawley (Calif.) • Chain restaurants--United States--Buildings. • Commercial leases--California. • Cotton farmers--California • Crop yields--California. • Crop yields--California--Imperial County • Dedication to public use--California. • Eminent domain--United States--Cases. • Engineering geology--United States. • Firebaugh (Calif.) • Foreclosure--California. • Gas pipelines—California Geothermal power plants • Geothermal resources--California. • Hellman, Isaias W. (Isaias William), 1842-1920. • Highway bypasse--California. • Housing development--California. • Huntington Beach (Calif.) Maps. • Imperial Valley (Calif. and Mexico) • Kesterson Reservoir (Calif.) • Land subdivision--California. • Liquidation--United States. • Long Beach (Calif.) • Long Beach (Calif.) Maps. Alamitos Land Company Papers: mssAlamitosLandCompanypapers 4 Finding Aid • Long Beach (Calif.)--Buildings, structures, etc. • Minerals--California. • Office leases--California. • Oil and gas leases--California. • Oil fields--California--Long Beach. • Oil industry workers • Oil well drilling--California. • Orange County (Calif.)--Maps. • Paramount (Calif.) • Petroleum engineering--United States. • Petroleum pipelines--California. • Petroleum workers--United States. • Petroleum--California--Fresno County. • Petroleum--California--Los Angeles County. • Petroleum--Prospecting--United States. • Public utilities--Right of way • Public works--California. • Ranches--California. • Rancho