Daily: 10 A.M.–5 P.M.
Closed on Tuesdays
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108
Visual Materials
Portal Powerhouse - Water spout - temporary opening in 12' diameter pipe.
photCL SCE 02 - 44599
Visual Materials
Portal Powerhouse - Water spout - temporary opening in 12' diameter pipe.
photCL SCE 02 - 44600
Visual Materials
Portal Powerhouse - Water spout - temporary opening in 12' diameter pipe.
photCL SCE 02 - 44601
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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.
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Visual Materials
This collection contains seven volumes of photographs and text covering activities of the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services from 1930 to 1932. The Bureau of Housing and Bureau of Inspection are two of the divisions represented. The 457 photographs depict housing, schools, water supply, swimming pools, sewage disposal, dairy farms and milk plants, garbage and refuse disposal, and general sanitation, among other topics. Of particular interest is volume 1, documenting the "Hoovervilles" that sprang up throughout Los Angeles during the Great Depression. In contrast is the volume showcasing the state-of-the-art housing for Olympic athletes who were in Los Angeles for the Tenth Olympiad held in 1932. Titles of the volumes are: The Habitations of Unemployed in Los Angeles County, 1932 (volume 1); Activities of the Bureau of Inspection, 1932 (volume 2); Sewage Disposal Methods in Los Angeles County (volume 3); Picture Story of Milk in Los Angeles County (volume 4); Olympic Village, Los Angeles, 1932 (volume 5); Miscellaneous Scenes of Los Angeles County Department of Health Activities (volumes 6-7). Volume 4 was compiled by Richard A. Koch and volume 5 was compiled by C. G. Kahlert.
photCL 396
photCL 555