Collection Guide
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Finding Aid for the Rancho Los Amigos Hospital records
0407
0407
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Table of contents
Title: Rancho Los Amigos Hospital records
Collection number: 0407
Contributing Institution:
USC Libraries Special Collections
Language of Material:
English
Physical Description:
30.0 Linear feet
50 cartons
Date: ca. 1887-1999
Abstract: The Rancho Los Amigos Hospital began in the late 1880's as the Los Angeles County Poor Farm. For over a century, the Rancho's
mission has evolved, first as a hospital for indigents and then as a center for rehabilitation for chronic diseases. The papers
in this collection chronical this development. Included are administrative and financial records, internal and external publications
generated by Rancho staff, retrospective and historical accounts, oral history tapes, blueprints, plans, and similar material.
The collection includes large numbers of photographs, both of staff members and therapeutic techniques. Likewise, there are
many films and audio-recordings on issues involving.physical therapy and rehabilitation.
Physical location: Stored off-site. Advance notice is required for access to the collection. Please contact for paging information.
creator:
Rancho Los Amigos Medical Center.
The Rancho Los Amigos Hospital began in the late 1880's as the Los Angeles County Poor Farm. For over a century, the Rancho's
mission has evolved, first as a hospital for indigents and then as a center for rehabilitation for chronic diseases. The papers
in this collection chronical this development. Included are administrative and financial records, internal and external publictions
generated by Rancho staff, retrospective and historical accounts, oral history tapes, blueprints, plans, and similar material.
The collection includes large numbers of photographs, both of staff members and therapeutic techniques. Likewise, there are
many films and audio-recordings on issues involving physical therapy and rehabilitation.
Open for use by appointment only.
Copyright has not been assigned to the the California Social Welfare Archives. All requests for permission to publish or quote
from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the appropriate agency or person.
Rancho Los Amigos Hospital records, Collection no. 0407, California Social Welfare Archives, Special Collections, USC Libraries,
University of Southern California
The material was acquired directly from personnel at Rancho Los Amigos Hospital with the approval of the Los Angeles County
Board of Supervisors.
The Rancho Los Amigos Hospital records were gathered from a variety of sources within the hospital itself. In many cases,
records had been "mined" for other purposes. Many items show evidence of having been moved from one scrapbook to another,
for instance. In addition, some of the most valuable records were used for public display purposes and then stored away in
offices or series that had little to do with their original provenance.
The most thorough-going disruption of the records appears to have occurred during the writing of the Centennial history in
1985-1988 by Colleen Adair Fliedner, RANCHO: Centennial, Rancho Los Amigos Medical Center, 1888-1988 published by the Rancho
Los Amigos Hospital Medical Center, 1988. [LC number 90-061927; ISBN: 09267156-0-3]. Many of the records that appear in that
book are no longer to be found in the collection. The book itself does, however, stand as a reasonable compendium of Rancho
history, and the researcher is encouraged to use this source before tackling the records in this collection.
Part of the same process of preparation for the Centennial celebration involved a conscientious attempt to create photographic
archives of some of the earliest Rancho records. Some of the most useful records in this collection are proof-sheets and negatives
from that effort. The great bulk of the material in this collection is photographic or cinematic. Annual group photos of every
department make up the bulk of the photos, but there are many unidentified photos and photo series that were clarly intended
for internal staff instruction. The provenance and use of many of these photos is open to question. Most of the film and audiotape
collection also appears to be for internal instruction. The provenance of these films is open to severe question. Unlike the
rest of the collection, the films were not weeded to eliminate redundancy, since multiple copies might well be necessary for
future preservation efforts.
Given the condition of the fond, then, it was thought best to create a wide set of topically based series, maintaining original
order whenever possible, but recognizing that for the most part, precise provenance is not attainable.
| 1888 | County Farm |
| 1932 | Rancho Los Amigos |
| Los Amigos Rancho | |
| 1955 | Rancho Los Amigos Hospital |
| 1984 | Rancho Los Amigos Medical Center |
This collection is organized into the following series:
1. Administration
2. Accounting
3. Buildings and Plans
4. Departments
5. Publications
6. Employees
7. Professional Staff Association
8. Staff Publications
9. Public Affairs
10. Fundraising
11. Descriptive and retrospective
12. Inmate Life
13. Individuals
14. Oral History
1. Administration
2. Accounting
3. Buildings and Plans
4. Departments
5. Publications
6. Employees
7. Professional Staff Association
8. Staff Publications
9. Public Affairs
10. Fundraising
11. Descriptive and retrospective
12. Inmate Life
13. Individuals
14. Oral History
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Rancho Los Amigos Hospital -- Archives
Rancho Los Amigos Medical Center. -- Archives
Hospitals--California--Los Angeles County--Archival resources