Colby E. "Babe" Slater (1896-1965) graduated from the University Farm School (now the University of California, Davis) in 1917. He served with the United States Army Medical Corps in France during the First World War. An outstanding athlete, Slater won Olympic gold medals for rugby in 1920 and 1924. Around 1927, he bought land in Clarksburg, California where he farmed for many years. Slater was active in organizations associated with athletics; agriculture; the University of California, Davis; and Yolo County, California. The Colby E. "Babe" Slater Collection (1906-2001, bulk 1917-1957) contains correspondence, diaries, publications, ephemera, photographic material, and realia. Most of the collection pertains to Slater and the United States Olympic Rugby Team winning gold medals at the Olympic Games in Antwerp, Belgium (1920) and Paris (1924). The collection also includes material related to the history of the University of California, Davis; the First World War; agriculture; and the history of Yolo County, California.

Colby E. "Babe" Slater, was born on April 30, 1896 in Berkeley, California to Louise and John Slater. Babe, the youngest child, had two brothers and a sister. The Slaters lived in San Francisco before moving to Berkeley. The family's fortunes reversed when John Slater, a prosperous sea captain, died in 1908. Babe and his older brother Norman attended Berkeley High School, played on the school's athletic teams, and participated in sporting events on the University of California campus. In 1911 and 1912, Babe Slater led the Berkeley High School rugby team to county, regional, and state titles.

5.3 linear feet

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Collection is open for research under regular Reading Room rules and copyright restrictions.