Opening Hours
Daily: 10 A.M.–5 P.M.
Closed on Tuesdays
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108
Rare Books
The boss of eagle's nest
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Daily: 10 A.M.–5 P.M.
Closed on Tuesdays
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108
Image not available
Visual Materials
This is a collection primarily of negatives and photographic prints depicting the growth of Santa Monica and Los Angeles, California, from 1860s to 1980s. Many views are cityscapes or street views, showing buildings, storefronts, homes and roads, and documenting the use of railroads, trolleys, streetcars, and automobiles. There are many card photographs by early professional photographers, and also a number of snapshots made by amateurs, some in personal photo albums. The collection's scope also includes early views of many other communities in Southern California (and a few in other states); the beginnings of aviation in Santa Monica, including the first Douglas Aircraft Company buildings; a photo album of residents in Topanga Canyon, ca. 1913; automobile racing in Los Angeles and Santa Monica, 1920s; maritime views; a photo album of U.S. troops in France during World War I; a 1949 real estate development in Apple Valley, California, and others. Besides photographs, a portion of the collection consists of scarce publications and historical ephemera, primarily related to Santa Monica and Los Angeles, including brochures, advertising cards, menus, event programs and other materials. Highlights of the Santa Monica images are aerial views of the buildings along the coast and pier (1920s); several views of the Arcadia Hotel (1880s); the Long Wharf and adjoining railroad and train depot; the first bath houses on the beach; the beach club culture of the 1920s and 1930s; the amusement piers of Santa Monica, Ocean Park and Venice; and the beginnings of the Douglas Aircraft Company. There is a large set of promotional photographs made late 1920s-1930s by Powell Press Service depicting people enjoying Santa Monica's beaches, clubs and outdoor recreation. An important subset within the collection is 407 negatives made ca. 1890 - 1908 by Los Angeles historian and amateur photographer George W. Hazard (1842-1914). Hazard travelled around Los Angeles and vicinity photographing the adobes, houses, streets and storefronts that told the early history of the city. Many of Hazard's negatives have handwritten identifications, naming streets, former homeowners, ranchos, and other historical details. There are a large number of cabinet cards and other card-mounted prints and stereographs. There are 1,264 stereograph prints, highlighted by the works of photographic pioneers William M. Godfrey, Francis Parker, Hayward & Muzzall, and Carleton Watkins. Other formats represented are: glass and film negatives; panoramic prints; 7 photograph albums, photographic postcards, 20th-century color prints and transparencies; and a small number of tintypes, cyanotypes and a set of chromolithographs.
photCL 555
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Visual Materials
Photograph collection of prints and albums detailing the missionary work of William H. Weinland (1861-1930), a Moravian missionary, as well as his family and associates. Images include sites in Alaska among the Eskimo and southern California at the Morongo Reservation. Other images are from Arizona, possibly Montana, and the Great Plains. Photographs in Alaska are by Canadian missionary and Weinland associate Henry Hartmann, William H. Weinland, and commercial photographer M. Lorenz. Many of the southern California images are by William Weinland. Includes a cyanotype of native American school children in southern California and contact prints of Banning, Calif. and the surrounding area.
photCL 39
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Visual Materials
The Banning Family Collection of Photographs, Part II, 1814-1979, consists of 1204 photographs and 23 photographs albums. The three most substantial categories of images in this collection are views of Santa Catalina Island; Banning family properties and residences in southern California; and portraits of family members and relatives. Of special significance are the Catalina photographs documenting the development of the island from a natural enclave with a few inhabitants to a thriving tourist resort. Volume 7 in the Family Album section contains images of the devastating effects of the Catalina fire of 1915. Also of particular interest are photographs of the George S. Patton family.
photCL 451
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Visual Materials
The Banning Family Collection of Photographs, Part II, 1814-1979, consists of 1204 photographs and 23 photographs albums. The three most substantial categories of images in this collection are views of Santa Catalina Island; Banning family properties and residences in southern California; and portraits of family members and relatives. Of special significance are the Catalina photographs documenting the development of the island from a natural enclave with a few inhabitants to a thriving tourist resort. Volume 7 in the Family Album section contains images of the devastating effects of the Catalina fire of 1915. Also of particular interest are photographs of the George S. Patton family.
photCL 451