Ben Evans Recreation Program Collection
Series, 5801-02
- Record Group
- 5800-00
- Dates
- 1906 – 1995
- Extent
- 20.4 cubic_feet (51 boxes)
- Description
- The Ben Evans files comprise a wide range of records, personal papers, and ephemera accumulated by Evans during and after his 43-year tenure as a Parks Department employee. Following his death in 1988, the Evans family returned the records to the Department, recognizing their value to the City. The collection was under the care of Alan Hovland, who ensured its security and provided for the initial arrangement of the collection by a local historian. In 1996, the Evans collection was transferred to the custody of the Seattle Municipal Archives.
The collection dates from 1906 to 1995 and comprises 20.4 cubic feet in 51 boxes. The collection documents both the history of recreation programs within the Parks Department and reflects the history and philosophy behind recreation programs nationally. The collection is also a good source for biographical information on Parks Department employees. The collection is arranged in eleven subseries: I. Parks and Recreation Facilities; II. Sports Programs; III. Health and Safety Files; IV. Cultural Arts Programs; V. Christmas Ship Files; VI. Youth Organizations and Programs; VII. Administrative Subject Files; VIII. People/Biographical Files; IX. Regional, National, International Recreation Programs and Associations; X. Notebooks; XI. Photographs.
Photographs have been physically separated from the textual records in the Evans collection. The photographs date from 1917 to 1984; many photographs are undated. The images document employees, participants, and facilities in the Parks Recreation Program. Included are images of kite contests, the Old Oswald and Old Woodenface contests, skiing at Snoqualmie, and Aqua Theater productions. Also included are images of other Parks Department employees, King County Parks Department employees and National Recreation Association members. There are also some images of recreation facilities, especially swimming pools, in other cities. Although physically separated from the rest of the collection, the photographs are included in this guide as a subseries of the Ben Evans Collection. More than 400 images have been digitized and are available on our digital collections site. - Encoded Archival Description (EAD)
- Go to full EAD guide