Newspaper

Early newspaper articles about Yuma researched by volunteers who downloaded and printed sections of the Historical Newspaper Collection at Ancestry.com http://search.ancestry.com/search/group/histnews . Printouts kept in three-ring binders. Preserved here as a “ready reference” collection. Some years are incomplete or missing altogether. No Series. Arranged chronologically as found in the binders. See container list.

This collection contains chronologically arranged photocopies of material that was extracted from microfilmed documents held by the Arizona State Library and Archives. The collection documents the operation of the Territorial Prison of Yuma from 1875 to 1903.  Included are Arizona Territorial Prison reports, newspaper articles referring to the prison and people associated with the prison, official reports of the Board of Territorial Prison Commissioners and the Office of the Board of Territorial Commissioners. There are inventories, proposals and bids for supplies, physicians’ quarterly reports, prison librarian reports and reports of prison directors. See container list.

This collection was previously split between the AHS Yuma and Tucson branches. The materials have been reunited here.  The research files include many hard-to-find sources, aggregated news articles typed from microfilm, and bibliographies. The bulk of photographs are numbered and indexed. They were intended to be published in the History of Yuma Law Enforcement book.  See container list.

This collection primarily consists of secondary source material, such as news clippings and short biographies. Among the notable papers of this collection are copies of several pages from Charlie’s diary, a copy of the 1916 edition of The Valley Hornet, and a copy of the Klondike News. See container list.

No series. Arranged according to the titles on five original notebooks “Civil Air Patrol Squadron 508 Historical Record 1941-2001+.” The contents reflect the order in which the documents were found. The materials are in excellent condition.  However, the news clippings had deteriorated significantly and were copied to improve access. Highlights of this collection include: official reports, debriefings, news clippings and correspondence related to search and rescue missions; documentation related to border intelligence flights for U.S. Customs; flight plans and logs; rosters of senior members and cadets; pilot training and certifications;  aircraft maintenance records; military correspondence, rules and regulations; newsletters and a few photographs.  See container list.

This collection is primarily composed of business correspondence involving Hall’s many financial ventures. The papers are largely focused in the early 1920s but extend back as far as Besides Hall’s papers, there are also papers belonging to Dick’s brother Ernest Hall, Wenden Justice of the Peace, Cecil Harrington, and the state border inspection station at Ehrenburg. The collection is divided into six series. See container list.

Eugene Francis Sanguinetti was a prominent Yuma businessman. He was born on May 16, 1867 in Coulterville, California to Antone Sanguinetti and Rosa Camiccione. He came to Yuma at AGE 16, inspired to seek his fortune by the success of his neighbor’s eldest son. Soon after his arrival he was hired as a clerk by John Gandolfo, a local merchant and friend of the Sanguinetti family. Sanguinetti quickly rose from clerk to a full partner.  Soon thereafter he bought out Gandolfo to become the sole owner of the business. Sanguinetti quickly began expanding his business from a simple general store to a large commercial empire.  Organized into six series. Series I – Biographical, Series II – Correspondence, Series III – Financial Records, Series IV – Legal Documents, Series V – Memorabilia, Series VI – Scrapbooks. See container list.

The bulk of this collection consists of biographical files copied from Carl Hayden’s pioneer biographies, newspaper clippings, journal articles, microfilm and the internet.  These sources reflect a wide date range and provide the raw material for Frank Love’s newspaper columns, books, class room lectures and public presentations.  The mining materials are especially rich. Many folders include his notes and commentary about conflicting reports in the historical record, quality of the sources, or where alternative conclusions could be drawn. Note that this collection includes only a small sample of Frank Love’s newspaper columns, books, and magazine articles. There is comparatively little personal correspondence with his readers or with other historians.  Arranged in three series then alphabetical and chronologically within. Titles of folders largely represent the original.  Series I: Research Files – includes correspondence, interviews, notes, draft fragments.  Series II: Publications – consists of programs, articles, published materials by other authors or organizations. Series III: Writings – by Frank Love, by his students or were sent to him for feedback. See container list.

This collection is primarily made of year books from various different garden clubs from the Yuma area, primarily from the Yuma Garden Club and the Pecan Grove Garden Club but it also includes information from the Yuma Federated Garden Clubs, the Crane Garden Club, the Hermosa Garden Club and the Del Valle Garden Club in Somerton.  The scrapbooks are designed as expanded versions of the yearbooks, detailing club activities over a one year period of time. They include a number of newspaper clippings and pamphlets. The pamphlets represent garden club shows and activities as well as club directories and other information. The documents folder contains a record of the minutes of a meeting in 1993 as well as two awards presented to Rose Sturges. Arranged by format. There are no series. See container list.

Helene Alberta Thomas was born July 5, 1901 in Raton, New Mexico, and was the eldest child of Jonathan Bertie Thomas and Katherine Helen Wendel. Helene’s father was the engineer on a passenger train on the Santa Fe railroad when it wrecked in Earl, Colorado in 1905, killing him instantly. Helene received a degree in chemistry in 1922 from the University of Kanas. Her first job was with the Kansas State Food Lab. She then obtained a Master of Arts degree in Bacteriology in 1924 and went to work for the Kansas State Public Health Lab. The collection consists of biographical files, newspaper clippings, and correspondence, business papers from Thomas Laboratories and photographs, all with a date range of circa 1900-1986. See container list.

Binders of meeting minutes, annual scrapbooks, and yearbooks containing a combination of club activities, newspaper clippings and photographs of members and club events. Much of the club’s activities are well documented with accompanying photographs. See container list.

In 1915, the first Kiwanis Club was founded by business and professional men in Detroit, Michigan. Organizers coined the word “Kiwanis” meaning “We Trade.”  By 1924 the club became Kiwanis International with 1200 clubs worldwide and 90,000 members.  In 1987, bylaws were changed so that women could be elected as members.  The Kiwanis Club of Yuma is part of the Southwest District which originated in El Paso, Texas in 1917. Phoenix was the first club chartered in Arizona. The Yuma club was organized in 1922. What began as a business network has evolved into an organization dedicated to community service around the ideal of “The Golden Rule in Business, Civic, and Social Life” with the motto “We Build.”   The focus of Kiwanis fundraising is to benefit young children and youth through gun shows, pancake dinners, and the Yuma County Fair. The collection is arranged in six series, alphabetically and chronologically within. While the records date from the 1918 through 2000, there are significant gaps throughout. See container list.

The brief summary of the Klan by B. Johnny Rube entitled “Yuma County’s Invisible Empire: The Knights of the Ku Klux Klan” indentifies the organization coming to Arizona in 1921. The Yuma Klan held their meetings at Somerton, Arizona ten miles southwest of Yuma. It was claimed that over 2,000 persons attended some local Klan meetings with “at least 50 or more men” becoming members. Most individuals left the Yuma membership early in 1925. This collection consists of correspondence, publications, membership materials, and blank forms associated with the Yuma County Ku Klux Klan Chapter. Also contained in the collection is a catalogue of official robes and banners for purchase, along with a brief pamphlet of Klan organizational history in western Arizona. There are eight photos and ten negatives depicting materials in the collection. One oral recording of the Somerton Star talk by Dr. Minor about the Ku Klux Klan was transferred to the Oral History collection, AHS-Tucson. See container list.

Mary Elizabeth Post was an influential school teacher in early Yuma. She was born in Elizabeth Town, New York on June 17th 1841. Her early years were marked with a love of learning, which was supported by her father who purportedly hired tutors to come to their home when the local school was not in session. By the time she was 15, Mary had begun to teach classes as well as take them. In 1862 Mary’s family moved to Iowa where she followed, teaching in a number of different schools around the state.  This collection is arranged in seven series: Series I: Biographical, Series II: Correspondence, Series III: Hall of Fame, Series IV: Manuscripts, Series V: Memorabilia, Series VI: Photos, Series VII: Publications. See container list.

The Oatman Massacre occurred in the early months (February or March) of 1851.   Royce Oatman and his family, pioneers looking to find a new life in California, were traveling towards Fort Yuma from Tucson. The family set out alone, having decided to press on when the pioneer caravan they were travelling with had opted to rest and resupply at a friendly Pima village. The Oatman family were attacked by a hostile tribe (the survivors identified the group as Tonto Apache, while others have said Yavapai or even Maricopa). The parents, eldest daughter, and two youngest children were killed in the attack. Two daughters, the 13 year old Olive and the seven year-old Mary were taken captive and the eldest son, Lorenzo was beaten and left for dead.  This collection contains secondary sources regarding the Oatman Massacre, Olive Oatman’s captivity and release. Also includes photocopies of original materials such Olive’s re-published lecture notes, and other original sources held by the Bancroft Library. See container list.

Omer Trent (O.T.) McCoon was born at Fort Scott, Kansas in The family moved to Oregon where his father George Henry McCoon sold Singer Sewing Machines. Omer and his brother Otis became involved in construction and real estate in Fresno, California. Otis went on to specialize in construction and urban development in the San Francisco area.  O.T. became head of the Fresno Realty Syndicate. He reportedly sold over 200,000 acres of grape and fig land before moving his family to Yuma, Arizona in 1916 where he envisioned huge opportunities for agricultural growth. Arranged in four series:  Series I: General, Series II: Publications, Series III: Photographs, Series IV:  News Clippings. See container list.

R. Peter Woodard was an influential educator in Yuma, Arizona. He was born in Hereford, Arizona in 1915. He graduated from Bisbee High School in 1931, and received teaching degrees from Arizona State College in Flagstaff, the University of Arizona in Tucson, and Arizona State University in Tempe. He began his life in Yuma teaching at Sunnyside School before serving a three- year stint in the military during World War II. He returned to Yuma upon his release from service and took a teaching position at Fourth Avenue Junior High School. Soon afterwards Pete became Superintendent of Yuma School District 1, a post which he held for 26 years from 1948 to 1975. In 1980 he was named Yuma’s Man of the Year. He died in 2007 at the age of 92. This collection documents the District 1 Yuma Elementary Schools. The scrapbooks primarily contain news clippings but also include photographs, correspondence, and memorabilia. The dates of the material coincide with the dates that Peter Woodard served as superintendent of the school district. See container list.

The bulk of the collection came from the estate of Mary Kerckhoff, who researched the Customhouse on behalf of the Yuma Assistance League. Other donated items have been added from a variety of sources. This collection is organized into three series: Series I – General: This series contains various documents concerning the Quartermaster Depot and related subjects. These documents include biographical material about various people related to the Depot, copies of ledgers from the time that the Depot was active, and copies of the deeds dating to the period in which the city of Yuma acquired the property. Also included in this series are materials concerning Mary Kerckhoff and her research into the history of the Customhouse. Series II – Publications: This series contains historic structure reports, cultural resource investigation reports, manuals, and interpretive plans. Series III – Media: This series contains media related to the Quartermaster Depot, including newspaper clippings, photographs, an audio interview and a video recording. See container list.

This collection represents numerous donations of original newspapers beginning in 1965 to the Yuma County Historical Society and later to the Arizona Historical Society – Rio Colorado Division.  Many of the runs are fragmentary and incomplete.  However, a distinguishing feature of the collection is the variety of secondary newspapers, some of which are rare and may be the only issues that exist in any archives or library. Some of these newspapers have never been microfilmed or scanned. Although some runs have been previously microfilmed, the scattered issues in this collection may fill in existing gaps to the holdings of other library and archives for future re-microfilming or scanning projects.   The microfilm contains only scattered years of a variety of Arizona newspapers.   They may have been donated by researchers working on specific topics.  See container list.

Four binders cover a short period of the club’s activities. They include newspaper clippings, photographs of club outings and picnics as well as membership lists and a few meeting minutes. See container list.

The Yuma Chamber of Commerce was founded in 1905 to represent the interests of local business owners. From the beginning, the Chamber has promoted Yuma as a place to visit and live.  In 1925 it created Fly Field, the first airport in the City of Yuma. In 1954 the chamber played a major role in convincing the Baltimore Orioles, a major league baseball team, to hold their spring training in Yuma. Other projects include developing a convention center, building a desalinization plant, organizing various conferences, and supporting a wide range of civic initiatives. The bulk of this collection is material generated by various Yuma Chamber of Commerce committees from the 1960s to mid-1980s.  It includes newsletters, correspondence, and news clippings. Folders are arranged alphabetically within each series and chronologically within each folder. The collection is organized into five series: Series I – General, Series II – Committees, Series III – Publications, Series IV – Photographs, Series V – Scrapbooks. See container list.

This collection contains scrapbooks and photo albums created by volunteers to document the history, activities and events of the Yuma County Historical Society from its inception in 1963 through 2012. The scrapbooks consist of flyers, programs, photos and news clippings. They range in condition from fair to excellent.  See container list.

Yuma Proving Grounds is a military testing area for new technologies. It began in 1943 as the Special Bridge Test Section to assist in the development of floating bridges by testing them in the swiftly flowing Colorado River. The bridge tests were also used to train engineering troops in using the finalized bridges in the European theatre of WWII. In 1944, due to lack of man power, the testing was carried out by volunteer Italian Prisoner of War troops. Near the end of the war testing was also done on placing roads across rice paddies in preparation for invading Japan. This collection is an eclectic mix of materials donated by individuals associated with the Proving Grounds, and records copied from the National Archives. This collection is organized into nine series: Series I – Documents, Series II – General, Series III – Historical Preservation, Series IV – Newspaper Articles, Series V – Personnel, Series VI – Photographs, Series VII – Publications, Series VIII – Videos, Series IX – Oversize. See container list.

The Yuma Water Users Association is an organization dealing with water issues in the Yuma area. It was originally organized in 1903 shortly after the Reclamation Act was passed by the United States Congress. The Association was originally created as a non- profit to represent its members in negotiations with the Bureau of Reclamation. In 1904 Congress created the Yuma Project under the Bureau of Reclamation with the intention of making the Yuma area more agriculturally profitable. Towards this end, construction was begun on Laguna Dam in 1905. Water diversion to the Yuma area was handled by Laguna Dam until 1941, when the diversion point for Yuma was switched to Imperial Dam. Through a contract with the Bureau of Reclamation in 1951, the Yuma Water Users Association assumed control of the works and facilities of the Yuma Project including both irrigation and power generating facilities. In 1962, a supplemental contract was signed giving the Association control of the Siphon Drop Power Plant and its various facilities such as transmission lines and irrigation works in California. This collection is comprised of seven series: Series I: Correspondence, Series II: Documents, Series III: Finance, Series IV: News Clippings, Series V: Photographs, Series VI: Publications, Series VII: Wage Stabilization Board. See container list.