Leisure World Historical Society
The photo above shows six of the founders of the Historical Society. Left to right: George Brown, Ethel Anderson, Ken Walker, Thea Neil, Dorcas McCormick, and Claire Walker.
The Historical Society was founded in 1993 by two History Professors, Kenneth and Claire Walker. The Walkers had a strong desire to start a Historical Society in Leisure World. They met with Fred Cooper in late 1992. Fred was head of the Recreation Department and had been an employee of the Golden Rain Foundation since 1971. He also had a strong interest in History. Together the Walkers and Fred Cooper worked and laid the foundation for our current Historical Society.
Fred Cooper had kept a number of items of historical importance. He agreed to give those items to the new Historical Society as the start of a collection. He also provided space for storage of items as they were collected. This became the foundation of the Museum's Collection. The Historical Society's collection represents the lives of Leisure World residents. We have books written by authors who lived in Leisure World. Victor and Mae Ruwe, who were original move-ins and very active in a multitude of Leisure World activities until their deaths, gave us a large collection. Victor took thousands of pictures of Leisure World activities. He was a member of the committee that developed Mutual 17 and had many pictures of the Mutual's construction.
In addition to personal history, at our UCI Archive we have a copy of every edition of the Golden Rain NEWS. At the museum we have over three hundred pieces of the original Leisure World China and documents and records of over 100 Leisure World Clubs and Organization. There is a large collection of videos of Leisure World activities. Many items from the last fifty years of Leisure World activates are on display in the Museum.
The Historical Society held community meetings four times a year during the 1990s and 2000s. These meetings featured a discussion on some phase of Leisure World History. Many of the histories of Leisure World clubs and organizations have been presented at these meetings. Some of the meetings were taped and stored as part of our video collection or our oral history project. The Museum contains over 30 oral histories of clubs and organizations, as well, as many recorded personal histories.
In May 2019 the Historical Society partnered with the UCI Orange County Regional Archives. The board was concerned about the deterioration of the archives in Clubhouse One and the lack of climate controlled storage that was accelerating that deterioration. The Leisure World newspapers (1962 – 2019 ) and 130 boxes of club records, photos, and slides were donated to the UCI Archives in Irvine to start a special collection in the UCI Archives for Seal Beach Leisure World. The UCI Archives are open to the public Monday through Friday at the Langson Library.
There are Artifacts and Materials at the Historical Society Museum in Clubhouse One for people to view. We have artwork, 1962 sales materials, original maps, photo collections, the LW News on microfilm from 1962 to 1999 and digital copies of the LW News from 2009 to the present. We also have digitized copies of Golden Rain minutes from 1962 to 1972, court records from some of the past lawsuits such as the Golden Rain Foundation versus the Leisure World Foundation 1965, digital copies of construction photos of Seal Beach Leisure World being built, and so much more.
The Leisure World Historical Society & Museum is located in Clubhouse One.
501(c)3 Educational Corporation
The Historical Society is 501(c)3 educational corporation, California Corporate ID C1927364. We are supported by donations from the community. All donations are tax-deductible. Our board and docents are volunteers. See our Sponsors page for ways in which you can support our organization.
American Association for State and Local History Membership
The Seal Beach Leisure World Historical Society is a member of the American Association for State and Local History. We use this membership to connect with other history groups and learn how community historians all over the country are serving their communties and preserving the past so we can improve our own work. The Seal Beach Leisure World Historical Society and Museum are listed with the AASLH so people all over the country can learn about us.
Laguna Woods History Center
The Laguna Woods History Center (renamed from Historical Society of Laguna Woods in 2015) is a California domestic nonprofit corporation founded in 1977 as the Leisure World Historical Society of Laguna Hills to be the official repository for community archives. They have mentored the Seal Beach Leisure World Historical society for many years. Ross Cortese's offices were at Laguna Woods for many years after his company left Seal Beach. The Laguna Woods History Center was opened in 1977 when the community was still young. Their archives are comprehensive and worth visiting. The LWHC is a purpose-designed building completed in 1997 from restrictive donations and is separate from yet adjacent to the Library across the parking lot from Laguna Woods Village Clubhouse One. Visit their web site at https://lagunawoodshistory.org/ for a virtual tour of their amazing space.