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Railroad tracks and Long Wharf in distance along Santa Monica beach, California



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  • Railroad tracks and bluff along Santa Monica beach, California

    Railroad tracks and bluff along Santa Monica beach, California

    Visual Materials

    View of railroad tracks running next to the bluffs in Santa Monica, California, with a few telephone poles visible. The Southern Pacific Railroad ran steam engines along these tracks between Los Angeles and the Long Wharf.

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    Railroad tracks along beach, with Long Wharf in distance, Santa Monica. View of the lower part of California Incline (road) where it meets the tracks

    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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    Santa Monica coastline, with houses and buildings on beach

    Visual Materials

    View of the California Incline, Beach Road, houses and clubs on beach with the Santa Monica Pier and La Monica Ballroom at the end of it, in distance in Santa Monica, California. Palisades Park is on the bluff at left. Railroad tracks can be seen running along the beach road, below.

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  • Wharf at Santa Monica, Cal

    Wharf at Santa Monica, Cal

    Visual Materials

    A man is seen working on railroad tracks, with train cars lined up at the right.

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  • Santa Monica Hotel with railroad tracks

    Santa Monica Hotel with railroad tracks

    Visual Materials

    Image of the Santa Monica Hotel on Ocean Avenue with railroad tracks visible in the foreground in Santa Monica, California. A sign that reads "sea shells" is painted on a building at right.

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  • Beach at Santa Monica Cal. with Long Wharf in the distance

    Beach at Santa Monica Cal. with Long Wharf in the distance

    Visual Materials

    Image of the North Beach Bath House, boardwalk and camera obscura on the beach in Santa Monica, California, with the Long Wharf in the distance. A sign on the bath house reads "Pool Room, Bowling Alley, Shooting Gallery."

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