Opening Hours
Daily: 10 A.M.–5 P.M.
Closed on Tuesdays
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108
Rare Books
The Fugitive : clippings and comment about the magazine and the members of the group that published it
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Rare Books
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Daily: 10 A.M.–5 P.M.
Closed on Tuesdays
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108
Image not available
Rare Books
This collection of railroad ephemera, photographs, prints and posters concerns only streamliner trains--the wind-resistant, "streamlined" designs first appearing on major U.S. railroads in 1934 and peaking in the glamour years of the American streamliner, late 1930s to 1955. The sleek, fast trains were promoted for their speed, luxury and comfort compared to older, heavyweight steam locomotives. The bulk of the collection is composed of passenger brochures, with especially extensive files on Union Pacific; Southern Pacific; New York Central; Chicago, Burlington and Quincy ("the Burlington"); and the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe ("the Santa Fe") railroads. There are also many materials on Amtrak (formed in 1971), and foreign railroads, particularly in Canada, Europe and Japan. Besides brochures, other printed materials include: manufacturer's pamphlets, employee newsletters, press releases, blueprints of railcars, copies of U.S. Patent Office design applications, menus, lounge car stationery, baggage stickers and other items. The photographs are mostly railroad-issued 8 x 10-inch prints showing train exteriors and richly designed dining cars, lounge cars, sleeping cabins and domed observation cars. There are also many high-quality small-format photographs made by Leslie Merrill and other amateur photographers, 1938 to 1960s. The prints and posters mostly consist of promotions for U.S. railroads, with several notable pre-World War II posters for European railroads. An important section of the collection covers early streamlining experiments of the late-19th century: Samuel R. Calthrop's "air-resisting" train of 1865; Frederick U. Adams's "Windsplitter" of 1893; Joe V. Meigs' "Meigs Elevated Railway" monorail in 1880s Boston; and William Riley McKeen Jr.'s aerodynamic McKeen Motor Car of the 1900s. In addition to railroad history, other topics of social and cultural historical interest are: Depictions of African Americans and Native Americans in mass-marketed train travel brochures. There are many examples that reflect American cultural and class stereotypes in the early- to mid-20th century. History of food and drink: See numerous dining car and beverage menus (not always noted in container list). History of advertising, graphic design and typography represented in 20th-century railroad print advertising.
646607
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Manuscripts
The Alexander Z. Kruse papers contain documents relating to Kruse's career as an artist, art critic, and author. The time frame covered is 1890 to 1975 with the bulk of the material originating from the 1930s to 1960s. The material is arranged by functional series and includes: literary manuscripts and notebooks; correspondence; photographic materials--photographs and slides; ephemera--clippings, catalogs, and biographical material; and books. The majority of the collection is in its original format with a few being photocopies. The photographic materials are in good condition. However, much of the ephemera (especially the newspaper clippings) is extremely fragile. Most of the clippings are from Kruse's columns with the Brooklyn Eagle and the New York Post.
mssKruse papers
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Manuscripts
The collection is semi-catalogued and arranged alphabetically by author. The collection contains 60 manuscripts, three of which are oversized. Most of the manuscripts are poems written by Jennie Cook Davis. Most of these poems were written for publication and were inspired by everyday occurrences or newsworthy people. The collection also contains a draft of Davis's autobiography and a copy of a biography written by Karen Neset Smith in 1995. The collection contains 130 pieces of correspondence, two of which are oversized. The letters mainly consist of originals and copies of letters from Jennie Cook Davis to her eldest daughter, Winifred Davis McDowell in the later years of her life. The letters of greatest interest are the four from Jack London discussing literary matters and from Charmian London regarding Jack London's death. There are also five letters from Charles Fletcher Lummis and one from his wife Eve. Other artists local to Southern California wrote to Jennie Cook Davis including John Burroughs, Maynard Dixon and John Steven McGroarty. The ephemera collection consists of a few pieces that relate to Jennie Cook Davis's life and many examples of her sketches. Also, her scrapbook contains more samples of her poetry and newspaper articles. The file labeled "Ephemera: Miscellaneous" consists of: a 1887 Official List Officers, Agents, and Stations for the Wisconsin Central Line; four brochures for Devore, Calif. [1915]; and a Camp Cajon "Souvinir [sic] Program" dated July 4, 1919. The photographs of Jack and Charmian London are pictures taken of watercolor reproductions made by Donald McDowell in the 1980s and 1990s. The collection does not contain actual photographs of Jack or Charmian London. In all, the ephemera totals 166 pieces.
mssDavis papers
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Rare Books
297986
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Manuscripts
The Alexander Z. Kruse papers contain documents relating to Kruse's career as an artist, art critic, and author. The time frame covered is 1890 to 1975 with the bulk of the material originating from the 1930s to 1960s. The material is arranged by functional series and includes: literary manuscripts and notebooks; correspondence; photographic materials--photographs and slides; ephemera--clippings, catalogs, and biographical material; and books. The majority of the collection is in its original format with a few being photocopies. The photographic materials are in good condition. However, much of the ephemera (especially the newspaper clippings) is extremely fragile. Most of the clippings are from Kruse's columns with the Brooklyn Eagle and the New York Post.
mssKruse papers