California State University, Northridge, Urban Archives

The David E. Bess Collection of California Songs contains materials related to Dr. Bess's "California City Song" Project, including sheet music for songs about California, a small amount of sheet music for songs about other places, research materials, sheet music cover artwork, and presentations on the project.

The Santa Susana Field Laboratories (SSFL) was established by Rockwell International in 1946. SSFL comprises approximately 2,700 acres located in the southeastern section of Ventura County. Rocket engine testing began at the SSFL in the 1940s. Research conducted at SSFL since its activities began has proved to generate hazardous waste.Two major investigations (1982 and 1990) have been completed and continual oversight activities of the area by the U.S. Department of Energy and the Regional Water Control Board have closely documented the cleanup activities at SSFL. In December 1996, Rocketdyne Division of Rockwell, as well as the Santa Susana Field Laboratories became a subsidiary of Boeing North American, Inc. The collection includes action plans, assessment and investigative reports, and bimonthly and quarterly monitoring reports conducted by various environmental consulting firms and government agencies.

Kenneth C. Burt served as Political Director of the California Federation of Teachers from 1997 to 2018. Burt was a self-published author and historian, writing The Search for a Civic Voice: California Latino Politics and contributing to numerous academic journals and anthologies related to Latinos, labor, coalition politics and the Cold War. This is a collection of interviews and recordings Kenneth Burt conducted between 1980 and 2004 with community leaders, labor organizers, religious leaders and politicians involved in California politics and the labor movement, with a focus on the California Chicano community. Burt conducted the interviews and recordings for research purposes for his published works.

The California Shipbuilding Corporation (CalShip), established in February 1941 on Terminal Island, became one of the focal points in Los Angeles' war effort. At CalShip, forty thousand men and women worked under war contracts to produce 467 vessels in four years. Known as the "Liberty Fleet," these cargo ships were designed to be constructed faster and less expensively than traditional cargo ships. The CalShip shipyard closed in September 1945 after the launching of its last Victory ship, "four years to the minute after the first slid into the water." The collection is comprised copies of the bi-weekly magazine, CalShip Log, for the period of September 1, 1941 to September 27, 1945; the CalShip Cavalcade; and a CalShip Labor Day program.

The Cities of Destiny Oral History Project interviewed immigrants and minorities in Los Angeles. These histories document life and childhood in the interviewees' native countries, how they came to the United States, and their impressions of America.

Founded in 1947 by Fred Ross Sr., Edward Roybal, and Anthony Rios, the Community Service Organization (known as the CSO) was a grass-roots civic-action organization led by its membership. The goal of the organization was to empower community members to become civically engaged to improve their lives and fight for social justice. The CSO began in East Los Angeles focusing on the Latino and Mexican-American communities, and then expanded with Chapters across California. The collection documents the daily operations of the State CSO as well as the local Los Angeles Chapter of the CSO, and the CSO Regional Council No. 1. Materials also include the administrative records generated from the operation of multiple social service programs.

The collection consists of articles by Charlene Day on gender identity and crossdressing, book and movie reviews authored by Charlene Day, still images of a computer program created by Day, a video recording including still photographs and moving images of Charlene Day, and materials related to the Alpha Chapter of The Society for the Second Self (Tri-Ess) which was a support group for heterosexual crossdressers and their significant others.

Richard Fish was born in Los Angeles, California on February 25, 1919. He earned a bachelor's degree in Cinematography and Journalism at the University of Southern California in 1940, served in the United States Army during World War II, and later attended the California School of Fine Arts in San Francisco. The Richard Fish Collection documents his career as a professional photographer with a focus on residential and commercial architecture and landscape design, art and artists, writers and composers, celebrities and public figures, and natural land and waterscapes. The collection consists of records, documents, correspondence, diagrams, maps, promotional material, publications, notes, photographic material, audio recordings, and ephemera.

The Daniel R. Hayes Berlin Wall Piece and Customs Declaration consists of a small piece of the Berlin Wall affixed to a plaque, a larger piece of the Berlin Wall, and the associated customs declaration for both pieces.

The International Longshoremen's and Warehousemen's (ILWU), Local 13 Oral History Project Collection consists of interviews with various generations of longshoremen that were part of the Local 13 Union in Los Angeles, California.