Sources & References

Sources, Bibliography & References

Various sources have proved invaluable for this history. This ever-growing list represents many of the sources consulted for this project. Thank you to all those who have helped contribute sources or personal histories: this project could not happen with out you.

Interested in more resources? A tremendous amount of information on the history of Agua Dulce is available from the Santa Clarita Valley Historical Society, located in Newhall, California. Their online archive contains the largest collection of digitized materials on the Agua Dulce and surrounding areas, and the organization has been very supportive of works to further investigate and explore the history of Agua Dulce. Click below to visit their site:

SCV Historical SOCIETY

Personal Interviews/Correspondences: Personal interviews are probably the best part of doing this research. I am so grateful to see so much support by members or past members of the community who are willing to share their stories and knowledge for this project. Just a few of those who have been interviewed include but are not limited to:

Jo Ellen Rismanchi, excellent local historian and long term visitor to Agua Dulce, who conducted various interviews with early Agua Dulce residents before their deaths.
Jeff Asher, previous owner of Asher Ranch/Western portion of Vasquez Rocks Park. First came to Agua Dulce in 1934 when he was 10 years old.
Chuck and Dick Wright, members of the Johnson and Wright families who homesteaded the Agua Dulce area in the 1910s, provided the town with its first church and school, and in general were integral members of the community during its development in the first quarter of the 1900s. These two have provided much information, as well as documents such as old letters, scrapbooks, newspaper clippings and photographs.

Ray and Linda Brown, long-term caretakers at Lannan Ranch.
Jim Jennings, long-term resident of Agua Dulce who has extensive knowledge of various aspects of Agua Dulce history, namely about the mining period and of Vasquez Rocks.
Eddie and Stella Varela, long-term residents of Agua Dulce.
Tim Ruddell, long-term resident of Agua Dulce who visited the area beginning in the 1950s.
Bob and Elva Bryzelak- long-term residents of Agua Dulce, with extensive knowledge on the Held homestead family.
Bob Buechner - long-term resident and founder of the Acton Historic Society.
Toni Pearlman - long-term resident of Agua Dulce, with various knowledge of natural resources.
David Jones - grew up in Agua Dulce/Soledad Canyon in the 1960s, offering many family photos and memories.
Marc Wanamaker - noted film historian and archivist with tremendous knowledge of filming in California; creator of Bison Archives.

Books (primary and secondary)

Adams, Meryl. Heritage Happenings: Our Pioneers in Acton, Agua Dulce, Antelope Valley and Elsewhere, U.S.A.. Santa Barbara: Kimberly Press, Inc., 1988.
Boston, John and the Santa Clarita Valley Historical Society. Images of America: Santa Clarita Valley. Charleston: Arcadia Publishing, 2009.
Maher, Neil M. Nature's New Deal: The Civilian Conservation Corps and the Roots of the American Environmental Movement. New York: Oxford University Press, 2008.
Murdoch, Joseph, and Robert Wallace Webb. Minerals of California: Centennial Volume (1866-1966). San Francisco: California Division of Mines and Geology, 1966.
Reynolds, Jerry. Santa Clarita: Valley of the Golden Dream. Granada Hills: World of Communications, Inc., 1992.
Robinson, John W.. The San Gabriels: The Mountain Country from Soledad Canyon to Lytle Creek. Arcadia: Big Santa Anita Historical Society, 1991.
Robinson, W W. Southern California Local History: A Gathering of the Writings of W.w. Robinson. Edited by Doyce B. Nunis. Los Angeles: Historical Society of Southern California, 1993.
Roderick, Kevin. The San Fernando Valley. Los Angeles: Los Angeles Times Books, 2001.
Sitton, Tom and William Deverell (eds). Metropolis in the Making: Los Angeles in the 1920s. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2001.
The Federal Writer’s Project of the Works Progress Administration. The WPA Guide to California: The Federal Writer's Project Guide to 1930s California. New York: Pantheon Books, 1939.
The Federal Writer’s Project of the Works Progress Administration. Los Angeles in the 1930s: The WPA Guide to the City of Angels. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2011.
Travis, Norman J., and E J. Cocks. The Tincal Trail: A History of Borax. London: Harrap, 1984.

Academic Journal Articles

Maher, Neil M. “A New Deal Body Politic: Landscape, Labor, and the Civilian Conservation Corps.” Environmental History 7, no. 3 (July 1, 2002): 435-61.

Lewis, W.S. “Gem Collecting in California.” Hobbies 47, no. 4 (1942): 116-17

Thrall, Will H. “The Haunts and Hide-Outs of Tiburcio Vasquez.” The Quarterly:
Historical Society of Southern California 30, no. 2 (June, 1948): 80-96.

Schwartz, J. “Agates and the Horse.” Rocks and Minerals 19, no. 10 (1944): 311-12.
Schwartz, J. “Southern California Localities, 1: Tick Canyon.” Rocks and Minerals 17, no. 1 (1942): 384.
Berkholz, M.F. “The Ser'kerigan Gem Beds.” Gems and Minerals 237 (1957): 42-44.

Master's Theses

Caruso, Terry Lee. “Trade Among the Tataviam: A Thesis Submitted in Partial Satisfaction of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in Anthropology.” Master's thesis, California State University, Northridge, 1988.
Garza, Sebastian Cristobal. “Social Complexity at Vasquez Rocks: A Bioarchaeological Study of a Middle Period Cemetery.” Master's thesis, California State University, Northridge, 2012.