Casey Kawamoto Collection
Scope and Content Note
The Casey Kawamoto Collection spans the years 1945-2001 and includes files documenting his life and work. The Collection is organized into four series: Personal Papers, Professional Papers, Office Records, and Project Records.
The Personal Papers contain biographical information as well as notes from his engineering classes, military service records, personal photographs and slides, and a letter from Thomas Church.
The Professional Papers series is brief and contains reference files on Thomas Church and landscaping as well as Kawamoto’s Expert Examiner award.
The Office Records contain administrative files, correspondence, a portfolio, and clip files related to various projects.
The Project Records make up the bulk of the collection and include drawings, photographs, and some correspondence.
Dates
- Creation: 1945-2001
Access Statement
Collection is open for research.
Publication Rights
All requests for permission to publish, reproduce, or quote from materials in the collection should be discussed with the Curator.
Biographical Note
Casey A. Kawamoto was born in Selma, California in 1919. He attended Monterey High School and received an AA degree from Hartnell College. Following graduation he worked for the California Division of Forestry for a year (1940-1941) before serving in the Army during World War II having attended the military intelligence school.
After the war, he worked briefly at the firm Holabird & Root before using the G.I. Bill to earn his B.A. in landscape architecture from the University of California at Berkeley. While completing his final year of the program at Berkeley he worked for faculty member Geraldine K. Scott in the firm of Imlay & Scott. Upon graduation in 1949 he began working for noted landscape architect Thomas D. Church until he opened his own practice in 1960.
While in Church’s office he drew the illustrations for the book, Gardens Are for People and worked closely with architects Germano Milono and George Rockrise. One of his significant projects was designing the landscape for the Guide Dogs for the Blind office in San Rafael, CA. He closed his practice in 1998 and passed away in 2010.
Sources:
Curriculum Vitae, Casey Kawamoto Collection, Environmental Design Archives, University of California, Berkeley.
Extent
28 Linear Feet: (22 cartons, 4 document boxes, 1 “shoe” box, 1 flat file drawer)
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
The Casey Kawamoto Collection spans the years 1945-2001 and includes files documenting his life and work. Includes drawings, photographs, correspondence, portfolios, and administrative files.
System of Arrangement
The Collection has been organized into four series (detailed below), which have then been further arranged into subseries in accordance with the guidelines published in the Standard Series for Architecture and Landscape Design Records (2000, Kelcy Shepherd and Waverly Lowell). Original order has been maintained when possible; however, the archivist has imposed an order in some cases. Material received following his death has been interfiled with the initial donation to complete partial projects, consistency, and to promote access.
Cultural context
Topical
- Title
- Casey Kawamoto Collection
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Iok Peng (Carol) Kuong, Cailin Trimble (reviser)
- Date
- May 2009
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Sponsor
- Arrangement and description of this collection was funded by the Department of Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning, University of California, Berkeley.
- Edition statement
- Includes additional donations with accession numbers 2009-11 and 2012-14.
Revision Statements
- May 2015: finding aid revision description not supplied
Repository Details
Part of the University of California, Berkeley. College of Environmental Design. Environmental Design Archives Repository