Rare Books
"El Alisal", the place of sycamores
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[Sycamore Grove, El Monte Road];
Manuscripts
The collection consists of maps, field books, legal documents, business papers, and diaries related to the work of surveyors George Hansen, Alfred Solano, Sidney B. Reeve, and others. The maps and surveys in the collection are of the city of Los Angeles, Southern California ranchos, and subdivisions of the city of Los Angeles and neighboring towns. The collection contains over maps and sketch maps. Other subjects represented in the collection include: civil engineering, land subdivision, mines and mineral resources, and daily life in Los Angeles and Los Angeles County.
mssSolano
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Historical Society of Southern California Collection - El Alisal Museo Windows Photographs
Visual Materials
The collection consists of copy negatives, interpositives, and photographs of the glass transparencies taken by author and editor Charles Fletcher Lummis to decorate the windows in the museo (living room and exhibit hall) of his home, El Alisal, in the Highland Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Around the windowpane at the left are scenes of Mexico, around the center pane are views of the American Southwest, and around the right pane are scenes of Bolivia and Peru. In 1983, the glass plates were removed, restored, and/or replaced. The negatives and interpositives in this collection were created during the restoration process.
photCL 400 volume 5
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Charles F. Lummis photographs of El Alisal, family members, and other subjects
Visual Materials
This collection of photographs by Charles F. Lummis consists of 383 glass plate negatives and 5 autochromes (glass plate color photographs), dating from approximately 1888-1923. A large portion of the images document the construction of Lummis' stone residence, El Alisal, in what is now Highland Park, Los Angeles, which he began building in 1898 and finished in 1913. Exterior and interior progress views show details of construction, such as a window Lummis made of a collage of glass photographic plates. Lummis also photographed the land he bought for his house, which shows a largely untouched Arroyo Seco dotted with oak trees and a few other houses. The collection also contains numerous portraits of Lummis' four children with his second wife, Eve, seen at various ages: Turbesé (born 1892), Amado (born 1894), Jordan "Quimu" (born 1900), and Keith (born 1904). Other portraits include Eve Lummis and several notable Western writers and artists: John Muir, Charles M. Russell, Ed Borein, John T. Doyle, Vicente Blasco Ibañez, Eugene Manlove Rhodes, Julia Bracken Wendt, and Thomas Moran. The five autochrome portraits of art collector and dealer Grace Nicholson show her in different poses, wearing a pink fancy dress and hat, and in a Chinese robe. Based on the different format and professional appearance of the Nicholson images, there is some doubt as to whether Lummis took them or they just came into his possession. Lummis is seen in several self-portraits, at various ages, 1877-1909, and in some family groupings. A few images are photographs of photographs or paintings. Lummis also appears in some scenes at Rancho Camulos, Ventura County, with members of the Del Valle family. Various other subjects include: Lummis' earlier home on Forester Avenue, Los Angeles (1890s); California missions; Eve Lummis and others at Isleta pueblo, New Mexico, where she taught school; Native Americans from Isleta at El Alisal with Lummis' family; and miscellaneous unidentified scenes. The bulk of glass plates are 5 x 7 inches, with some 8 x 10 inches, and many have names or dates written at the bottom in Lummis' hand, with his initials.
photCL 72
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'El Alisal' Charles F. Lummis Home. 1 item. before 1997
Manuscripts
The collection has several strong subject points for the purpose of research including journalism and the writing process and the history of Los Angeles. There are many letters written during World War II that discuss life in America as well as abroad, especially Iwo Jima. The bulk of the collection includes correspondence to Smith from his readers, many of whom were persons of note, and Smith's own subject files of topics often discussed in his columns. The manuscripts include a number of Smith's notebooks as well as drafts of essays and monographs. The ephemera includes appearances of Smith's columns, photographs of Smith's work and family, and printed materials related to Smith's work and family life.
mssSmith, Jack papers
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[Drive through the sycamores in Santa Monica Canyon]
Visual Materials
Stereographic photograph of a path framed by large sycamore trees in Santa Monica Canyon, California.
photST Fletcher