• Afternoon clouds cover the distance peaks of the iconic Boney Mountain

    Santa Monica Mountains

    National Recreation Area California

Archival Collections

Newspaper articles tell us about the past like this one from 1955 featuring a Pow Wow at Paramount Ranch.

NPS/SAMO Archives

The park's archival collections includes oral histories; photographic prints, negatives, and slides; photographs, blueprints, specifications, and other items documenting facility development; and materials related to scientific studies and resource management activities. There are currently over 170 linear feet of archival material in the park's collections 

Below are samples of some of the finding aids for our archival collections (all files are PDF format): 

  

Franklin Canyon Collection, 1912-1992
Mary Gordon Collection, 1985-1991
Public Information Office Records, 1978-1996
Public Information Office Photograph Collection, 1960-1998
Resource Management Files Collection, 1980-1995
Water Resources Management Plan, Dr. Lou Levy Collection, 1927-1997 

For general information about our collections, see Museum Scope of Collection Statement, 2009.

Did You Know?

The need for plants used in restoration projects loomed large for many years, but volunteers made it happen.

A core group of dedicated National Park volunteers, often laboring in the hot sun, built a native plant nursery from the ground up in 2002. Native plants, from the common Ceanothus to the endangered Lyons pygmy daisy germinated in this volunteer-run nursery will help restore disturbed habitat.