Crow, Leslie, 1954-2006

Biography / Administrative History

Stockton, California, resident Leslie Ellen Crow was a local historian, archivist, and civic activist. Born in Kenosha, Wisconsin, on April 11, 1954, she graduated from high school in Des Plaines, Illinois, in 1972, and moved to California the following year. After attending Santa Monica College from 1973 to 1975, she entered the University of the Pacific in 1976. Two years later, she received a bachelor's degree in history with honors.

In 1979, Crow entered the graduate program in history at the University of the Pacific. Although she never finished, the program led to her involvement in an oral history project conducted by the California Youth Authority. This launched her career in public history, or the practice of history in non-scholarly settings. In subsequent years, she held jobs as Historic Inventory Coordinator for the City of Vacaville (1979-80), Historic Preservation Specialist for the Central Sierra Planning Council (1980-82), and Archivist for the Bank of Stockton (1991-98). From 1980 to 2006, she also worked intermittently as a freelance researcher and consultant.

As a consultant, Crow conducted research to designate as Stockton City Landmarks the First Church of Christ, Scientist; the Philomathean Club; and Stockton Children's Home. Among other projects, she also spearheaded efforts to nominate as California Historical Landmarks the Lockeford, California, Schoolhouse, and Stockton's Western Pacific Depot. Crow's efforts also proved crucial in placing on the National Register of Historic Places the California Building (Stockton); Commercial and Savings Bank (Stockton); Quarters A, Albert Lindley Residence, U.S. Navy, Rough and Ready Island; Stockton's Little Manila neighborhood and Sikh Temple, and the Woodbridge, California, Masonic Lodge. In addition, she conducted surveys of historic resources for the City of Ripon, California, and Sacramento, and did historical studies of Stockton's City Hall and Stockton State Hospital's Superintendent's Residence in preparation for renovation.

In 1989, Crow was appointed to Stockton's Cultural Heritage Board, which she chaired from 1990 to 2006. Her appointment exposed her to revitalization efforts aimed at Stockton's aging inner city and waterfront. It also gave her a platform to promote historic preservation and plunged her into a period of civic activism. During the 1990s, she served on Stockton's Women Veterans' Memorial Task Force, the Friends of the Fox Theatre, the Mayor's Waterfront Revival Task Force, the Stockton Waterfront Committee, the Fundraising Committee for the Weber Point Events Center, the City of Stockton Sesquicentennial Committee, and Stockton Mid-Town Task Force. Meanwhile, she also held membership on the College of the Pacific Alumni Advisory Council and served in a variety of voluntary positions at the San Joaquin County Historical Society.

Crow died in May 2006, at the zenith of her career.

From the guide to the Leslie Crow papers, 1850-2006, 1978-2006, (University of the Pacific. Library. Holt-Atherton Dept. of Special Collections)