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Arizona and Views Adjacent to the Southern Pacific Railroad

Description: The photographs in this album were made in 1880, mostly in Arizona Territory, with occasional views in California. They include mining sites, depots and bridges of the Southern Pacific Railroad, towns, desert landscapes, cactus, and the Spanish colonial mission San Xavier del Bac. Mining scenes are mostly overviews showing buildings, mine shafts, stamping mills, equipment, water reservoirs, and workers. There are several views of the Contention, Tough-nut and Lucky Cuss mines of the Tombstone Mill and Mining Company, established by prospector Edward Schieffelin, the founder of Tombstone, Arizona. A scene of the railroad roundhouse in Yuma prominently features a large locomotive with Native Americans and others posed next to the engine and an engine house in the background. There are a series of views of the railroad bridge over the Colorado River at Yuma that includes views of the U.S. Army's Fort Yuma on the California side of the river, along with Native American huts near the river. A group of unidentified men in western garb are posed in front of the Yuma railroad office, and a few figures and railcars are shown at Dos Palmas Station in the Colorado Desert. Other subjects include a bird's-eye-view of Tucson; architectural details and an interior view of Mission San Xavier del Bac; prehistoric stone ruins at Casa Grande; and a few railroad crossings.

Arizona and Views Adjacent to the Southern Pacific R. R

Rare Books

An album of 46 mammoth plate photographs by Carleton E. Watkins (1829-1916) depicting scenes in Arizona Territory and California, 1880. They include mining sites, depots and bridges of the Southern Pacific Railroad, towns, desert landscapes, cactus, and the Spanish colonial mission San Xavier del Bac. Mining scenes are mostly overviews showing buildings, mine shafts, stamping mills, equipment, water reservoirs, and workers. There are several views of the Contention, Tough-nut and Lucky Cuss mines of the Tombstone Mill and Mining Company, established by prospector Edward Schieffelin, the founder of Tombstone, Arizona. A scene of the railroad roundhouse in Yuma prominently features a large locomotive with Native Americans and others posed next to the engine and an engine house in the background. There are a series of views of the railroad bridge over the Colorado River at Yuma that includes views of the U.S. Army's Fort Yuma on the California side of the river, along with Native American huts near the river. A group of unidentified men in western garb are posed in front of the Yuma railroad office, and a few figures and railcars are shown at Dos Palmas Station in the Colorado Desert. Other subjects include a bird's-eye-view of Tucson; architectural details and an interior view of Mission San Xavier del Bac; prehistoric stone ruins at Casa Grande; and a few railroad crossings.

RB 137503

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Central Pacific Railroad and Views Adjacent

Rare Books

This album contains photographs made along the California-Nevada route of the Central Pacific Railroad, from ports in the San Francisco Bay Area to the Sierra Nevada mountain passes. The majority of views were made in 1876, with a few made later, approximately 1879-1880s. The album begins with a photograph of a locomotive that has just traveled across the continent and has arrived at the Oakland Long Wharf, followed by scenes of a train and its passengers being transported on a railroad ferry. Other Central Pacific Railroad views depict a massive wooden bridge being built over the American River, with one view prominently featuring Chinese workers hauling rock in wheelbarrows. Trains are shown navigating through a mountain pass at Cape Horn, and railroad workers are seen posed with locomotives. Other scenes on the Central Pacific route include Soda Springs recreation area, with views of Mark Hopkins' cabin, a man and two women under a gazebo, and a croquet game set up in a meadow. There are a series of views of Lake Tahoe, including two hotels with people posed outside; scenic views of the mountains, lake and surroundings from multiple viewpoints; Emerald Bay; Fallen Leaf Lake; boats and docks; and a lumber mill on the shore at Glenbrook. A narrow-gauge lumber railroad is shown in the mountains near Spooner Summit, and there are two bird's-eye-views of the town of Reno, Nevada, that include the train station, buildings and boardwalks. It is unclear whether these photographs were made under commission from the Central Pacific, but many of the 1876 railroad and landscape views were used, uncredited, in the railroad's official guidebook, The Pacific Tourist (Green, p. 323).

137500; 137501; 137502; 137503

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Carleton E. Watkins Mammoth Plate Photograph Albums

Rare Books

This collection contains four albums of mammoth plate photographs made approximately 1876-1889 by photographer Carleton E. Watkins (1829-1916). Prints are mounted on boards and are accompanied by labels with titles, descriptions, and Watkins' imprint. The albums are described briefly here, with expanded descriptions and photograph titles in the contents list: Photographic Views of Kern County, California (39 prints), approximately 1881-1889, focuses on agricultural production in California's Central Valley. Views include crops, details of irrigation dams built on a river, livestock, farm workers in the field, farming company ranch houses, and farm owners. Some views depict everyday farm work, such as men harvesting wheat and alfalfa with the aid of horses, tools, and large machinery. The Central Pacific Railroad and Views Adjacent (48 prints), approximately 1876-1880s, contains photographs of trains, lodging and scenery along the California-Nevada route of the Central Pacific Railroad, from ports in the San Francisco Bay Area to the Sierra Nevada mountain range. Summits of the Sierra (41 prints), 1879, contains photographs of the vistas, mountain peaks, lakes, and topography of the Sierra Nevada mountains. Watkins took the photographs in the summer of 1879 while accompanying a government survey team. Arizona and Views Adjacent to the Southern Pacific Railroad (46 prints), 1880, includes views of mining camps, railroad depots, towns, desert landscapes, cactus, and the Spanish colonial mission San Xavier del Bac. There are several views of mines near Tombstone, Arizona, and the railroad bridge spanning the Colorado River at Fort Yuma. Native Americans and others are seen posed with a large steam locomotive in the desert, and there are several views of the ancient stone ruins at Casa Grande.

137500; 137501; 137502; 137503

Central Pacific R.R. and views adjacent

Rare Books

An album of 48 mammoth plate photographs by Carleton E. Watkins (1829-1916) of scenes along the California-Nevada route of the Central Pacific Railroad, from ports in the San Francisco Bay Area to the Sierra Nevada mountain passes. The majority of views were made in 1876, with a few made later, approximately 1879-1880s. The album begins with a photograph of a locomotive that has just traveled across the continent and has arrived at the Oakland Long Wharf, followed by scenes of a train and its passengers being transported on a railroad ferry. Other Central Pacific Railroad views depict a massive wooden bridge being built over the American River, with one view prominently featuring Chinese workers hauling rock in wheelbarrows. Trains are shown navigating through a mountain pass at Cape Horn, and railroad workers are seen posed with locomotives. Other scenes on the Central Pacific route include Soda Springs recreation area, with views of Mark Hopkins cabin, a man and two women under a gazebo, and a croquet game set up in a meadow. There are a series of views of Lake Tahoe, including two hotels with people posed outside; scenic views of the mountains, lake and surroundings from multiple viewpoints; Emerald Bay; Fallen Leaf Lake; boats and docks; and a lumber mill on the shore at Glenbrook. A narrow-gauge lumber railroad is shown in the mountains near Spooner Summit, and there are two birds-eye-views of the town of Reno, Nevada, that include the train station, buildings and boardwalks.

RB 137501

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Photographic Views of Kern County, California

Rare Books

The 39 photographs in this album illustrate the agricultural industry of Kern County, California, and were made by Watkins on multiple trips to the area between 1881 and 1889. The album itself is not dated, but based on the dates of the photographs, it was most likely assembled in the early 1890s. Views include landscapes of agricultural crops, details of irrigation dams built on a river, livestock, farm workers in the field, farming company ranch houses, and farm owners. Some views depict everyday farm work, such as men harvesting wheat and alfalfa with the aid of horses, tools, and large machinery. Other photographs of note are a detail view of peaches in a crate, and men posed with a steam locomotive built at the Southern Pacific Railroad Shops in Kern County. The first two photographs in the album are interior views of promotional displays of Kern County produce and grains, exhibited in San Francisco in 1889.

137500; 137501; 137502; 137503

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[Building the Southern Pacific Railroad in Arizona.]

Visual Materials

This collection contains 430 albumen photographs by photographer Carleton E. Watkins that chiefly depict buildings, points of interest, and locales in Northern and Southern California in the 1870s and 1880s, as well as 223 card photographs by photographer Alfred A. Hart documenting the construction of the western half of the transcontinental railroad by the Central Pacific Railroad (CPRR) in the 1860s, which were later published by Watkins under his own imprint. Images by Watkins depict locations in Arizona and California including: Lake Tahoe, Los Angeles, the Mammoth Tree Grove, Paso Robles, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Gabriel, San Luis Obispo, San Pedro, Santa Monica, Soda Springs, Wilmington, and Yosemite, as well as views related to the Southern Pacific Railroad and of the Colorado River. There are a few images of Native Americans in Arizona and California, and several images related to trains and railroads. The photographs have been removed from the original album, which is a large leather album with brass bindings (Box 10). There are some handwritten identifications in the album pages, most likely written after if was received by the Library.

photCL 74

Arizona and Views Adjacent to the Southern Pacific Railroad

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Arizona and Views Adjacent to the Southern Pacific R. R

Central Pacific Railroad and Views Adjacent

Carleton E. Watkins Mammoth Plate Photograph Albums

Central Pacific R.R. and views adjacent

Photographic Views of Kern County, California

[Building the Southern Pacific Railroad in Arizona.]