Bass Family Correspondence

The Bass family, originally from Nebraska, were involved in early American socialism and the labor movement. This collection documents their history through correspondence, family documents, and photographs, from the perspective of descendant Jeanne Morgan. Jeanne Morgan was born in 1926 and was raised primarily by her grandparents, Vern and Clara Bass, on their farm in Nebraska. After her grandmother’s death in 1940, she moved to Denver to live with her mother and stepfather. She eventually moved to New York, where she became an artist and got involved with the socialist movement. In 1948, she relocated to Los Angeles, earning her MFA at Otis College of the Arts and becoming involved in the civil rights movement. She was a founding member of the Committee for the Preservation of Simon Rodia’s Towers in Watts (CSRTW), where she worked for over 60 years to protect and conserve the Watts Towers. Meanwhile, she worked as the Managing Editor for LA Free Press, published several books, and continued to create artwork. Throughout her adult life, Jeanne Morgan was interested in her family’s history, thoroughly researching her family’s genealogy and corresponding with extended family across the country. Through these letters, she gathered family documents and hundreds of photographs, compiling a thorough history of the Bass family.