Visual Materials

Banning Family Collection of Photographs, Part I

Description

The Banning Family Collection of Photographs, Part I, contains photographs, glass plate negatives, and one scrapbook collected by the Banning Family of Southern California and depicting various family members and friends and family properties (residential and commercial), with an emphasis on Wilmington and Santa Catalina Island, California. Items date from 1855 to 1979 (bulk 1880s-1910s) and consist of 996 black-and-white photographs, 82 glass-plate negatives (5 x 7 inches and 5 x 8 inches), and 1 scrapbook.

This finding aid describes the collection both as a box list and according to subject. The first section of the subject list contains portraits and snapshots of a number of Banning family members, including: Phineas Banning; "Captain" William Banning; Hancock Banning, Sr.; Joseph Brent Banning, Jr.; Katharine Mary Banning; Joseph Brent Banning, Sr.; William Phineas Banning; Hancock Banning, Jr.; Mrs. Anne (Hancock) Banning; William Lowber Banning; and Katharine Stewart Banning. The most numerous are those of "Captain" Banning and Hancock Banning, Sr. Among these are photographs of "Captain" Banning and his various carriages and stagecoaches (including his "six-in-hand" featured at La Fiesta de Los Angeles in 1895 and at Yosemite National Park, the "Captain" and Will Rogers atop a stagecoach, and the "Captain" and Philip K. Wrigley atop a stagecoach); and photographs of Hancock Banning at Bohemian Grove gatherings. Family portraits are followed by images of various Banning residences, with an emphasis on the house in Wilmington, California; and views of Wilmington and San Pedro, California, with many early views of these communities and many views of Banning properties.

Following the family images are views of Santa Catalina Island. These images document the development of the island from a natural enclave with few inhabitants to a thriving tourist resort. Included are views of Avalon, from its beginnings as a tent city to a fully developed tourist destination; the Isthmus; the fire at Avalon in 1915; Arch Rock and Sugar Loaf; roads and road construction at various sites on the island; El Descanso, the home of Hancock Banning and later the site of the Hotel St. Catherine (also depicted in this section); the incline cable car; Middle Ranch; rock quarries; stage roads and stagecoaches, including the Santa Catalina Island Stage Company; and various ships, steamers, and glass bottom boats.

The next section depicts Banning family friends. Depicted are members of the Vail family (including Walter Vail); the Patton family and their home, Lake Vineyard, in San Marino, California; the Ayer family; and a portrait of Howard Huntington and his family.

The final two sections described contain miscellaneous images: miscellaneous individuals (such as Christine Mueller, daughter of William Banning's shipbuilder, William Mueller, and Thaddeus Lowe in a Mount Lowe incline railway cable car); various ships and boats; and views of Long Beach.

Many photos have annotations (often anecdotal) by Hancock Banning, Jr., on the verso.

Photographers represented in the collection include G.O. Ayer, Boston; Joseph Brent Banning; Boye; Bradley and Rulofson; E.M. Brickey; Henry H. Buehman, Tucson; Detroit Photographic Company; George N. Dewey, Los Angeles; Ida M. Essery, St. Paul; Hervey Friend; William H. Godfrey; A.C. Golsh; Lola L. Huddleston; Truman W. Ingersoll, St. Paul; Charles Ironmonger; Keystone Photo Service; Theodore Marceau, San Francisco; Frank L. Park; J.R. Putnam; Putnam and Valentine; P.V. Reyes; Frank G. Schumacher; Silas Selleck, San Francisco; Stagg Photography; George Steckel; Noren F. Swenson; Isaiah W. Taber; Louis Thors, San Francisco; C.B. Waite; James D. Westervelt; Charles A. Zimmerman, St. Paul.

The collection also contains some ephemeral materials, primarily notes penned by Hancock Banning, Jr. These materials have been preservation photocopied, the copies inserted into the collection, and the originals filed in Box 8.

Type

Visual Materials(Opens in new tab)

Date

1850-1979

Call number

photCL 180

Creator

Banning (Family)(Opens in new tab)

Provenance

Gift of Mrs. Richard W. Call, September 26, 1982.

Gift of Robert Banning, November 22, 1985.

Gift of Robert Banning, December 5, 1985.

Gift of Robert Banning, April 3, 1989.

Gift of Elizabeth Banning Ames, April 3, 1989.

Gift of Hancock Banning III, April 3, 1989.

Transferred from Manuscripts Division, March 1986.

Transferred from Manuscripts Division, 1988.

Associated people

Ayer, G. O., (1861-1920,)

Banning, Joseph Brent, (1851-1912,)

Boyé, (1825-1900,)

Brickey, E. M., (1862-1922,)

Buehman, Henry, (1859-1922,)

Dewey, George N., (1861-)

Essery, Ida M., (1864-)

Friend, Hervey, (1830-1912,)

Godfrey, W. M. (1861-1927,)

Golsh, A. C., (1844-)

Huddleston, Lola L., (1844-1909,)

Ingersoll, T. W.

Ironmonger, Charles,

Marceau, Theodore C.,

Park, Frank L.,

Putnam, J. R.,

Reyes, P. V.,

Schumacher, Frank G.,

Steckel, Geo.

Swenson, Noren F.,

Taber, I. W.

Thors, Louis,

Waite, C. B.

Westervelt, James D.,

Zimmerman, Charles A.,

Associated organizations

Bradley & Rulofson,

Detroit Photographic Co.,

Keystone Photo Service,

Putnam & Valentine,

Stagg Photo Service,

Find out more

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Banning Family Collection of Photographs, Part II
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The Banning Family Collection of Photographs, Part II, contains 1204 photographs and 23 photograph albums collected by the Banning family of Southern California from 1814 to 1979 (bulk 1880-1920). The most substantial categories of photographs in the 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 few inhabitants to a thriving tourist resort. The collection also includes views of the Banning family properties in Wilmington, their Conejo Ranch in Ventura County, and a camp at Pomona. Other categories include the Ayer Family; the Horn/Russell Family; Banning Family Employees; Miscellaneous and Unidentified Portraits; Banning Family Trips; George S. Patton Family; Oversized Photographs; Ephemera; and Family Albums. This final category focuses primarily on Banning properties, family portraits, and especially Catalina, including one album documenting the devastating Catalina fire of 1915 (Volume 7). Of particular interest are the images of the George S. Patton family who were close friends of the Bannings. There are a significant number of photographers represented in the collection, chief among them Joseph Brent Banning or "J.B.B.," as he signed his images. J.B. Banning's amateur views are noteworthy as the earliest and largest body of visual documentation of Catalina and other Banning holdings. Many of southern California's most notable commercial portrait and landscape photographers are represented in the collection including: Bertrand and Co.; Bradley and Rulofson; C.T. Colliers; B.F. Conaway; Dewey Bros.; Hervé Friend; William M. Godfrey; Jarvis Studios; A.L. Mojonier; Payne, Stanton, and Co.; Putnam Studios; Reyes; F.G. Schumacher; Stanton and Burdick; Steckel Studios; Steckel and Lamson; and I.W. Taber.
photCL 451
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Banning Family
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The Banning Family Collection of Photographs, Part I, consists of 996 black and white photographs, 82 glass plate negatives (5 x 7 inches and 5 x 8 inches), and 1 scrapbook, 1855-1979 (bulk 1880s-1910s), collected by the Banning family and depicting various family members and friends and family properties (residential and commercial), with an emphasis on Wilmington and Santa Catalina Island, California. 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. Photographers represented in the collection include G.O. Ayer; Joseph Brent Banning; Boye; Bradley and Rulofson; E.M. Brickey; Henry H. Buehman; Detroit Photographic Company; George N. Dewey; Ida M. Essery; Hervey Friend; William H. Godfrey; A.C. Golsh; Lola L. Huddleston; Truman W. Ingersoll; Charles Ironmonger; Keystone Photo Service; Theodore Marceau; Frank L. Park; J.R. Putnam; Putnam and Valentine; P.V. Reyes; Frank G. Schumacher; Silas Selleck; Stagg Photography; George Steckel; Noren F. Swenson; Isaiah W. Taber; Louis Thors; C.B. Waite; James D. Westervelt; and Charles A. Zimmerman.
photCL 180
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Friends of the Banning Family
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The Banning Family Collection of Photographs, Part I, consists of 996 black and white photographs, 82 glass plate negatives (5 x 7 inches and 5 x 8 inches), and 1 scrapbook, 1855-1979 (bulk 1880s-1910s), collected by the Banning family and depicting various family members and friends and family properties (residential and commercial), with an emphasis on Wilmington and Santa Catalina Island, California. 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. Photographers represented in the collection include G.O. Ayer; Joseph Brent Banning; Boye; Bradley and Rulofson; E.M. Brickey; Henry H. Buehman; Detroit Photographic Company; George N. Dewey; Ida M. Essery; Hervey Friend; William H. Godfrey; A.C. Golsh; Lola L. Huddleston; Truman W. Ingersoll; Charles Ironmonger; Keystone Photo Service; Theodore Marceau; Frank L. Park; J.R. Putnam; Putnam and Valentine; P.V. Reyes; Frank G. Schumacher; Silas Selleck; Stagg Photography; George Steckel; Noren F. Swenson; Isaiah W. Taber; Louis Thors; C.B. Waite; James D. Westervelt; and Charles A. Zimmerman.
photCL 180
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Banning family members
Visual Materials
The Banning Family Collection of Photographs, Part I, consists of 996 black and white photographs, 82 glass plate negatives (5 x 7 inches and 5 x 8 inches), and 1 scrapbook, 1855-1979 (bulk 1880s-1910s), collected by the Banning family and depicting various family members and friends and family properties (residential and commercial), with an emphasis on Wilmington and Santa Catalina Island, California. 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. Photographers represented in the collection include G.O. Ayer; Joseph Brent Banning; Boye; Bradley and Rulofson; E.M. Brickey; Henry H. Buehman; Detroit Photographic Company; George N. Dewey; Ida M. Essery; Hervey Friend; William H. Godfrey; A.C. Golsh; Lola L. Huddleston; Truman W. Ingersoll; Charles Ironmonger; Keystone Photo Service; Theodore Marceau; Frank L. Park; J.R. Putnam; Putnam and Valentine; P.V. Reyes; Frank G. Schumacher; Silas Selleck; Stagg Photography; George Steckel; Noren F. Swenson; Isaiah W. Taber; Louis Thors; C.B. Waite; James D. Westervelt; and Charles A. Zimmerman.
photCL 180
Image not available
Banning family members
Visual Materials
The Banning Family Collection of Photographs, Part I, consists of 996 black and white photographs, 82 glass plate negatives (5 x 7 inches and 5 x 8 inches), and 1 scrapbook, 1855-1979 (bulk 1880s-1910s), collected by the Banning family and depicting various family members and friends and family properties (residential and commercial), with an emphasis on Wilmington and Santa Catalina Island, California. 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. Photographers represented in the collection include G.O. Ayer; Joseph Brent Banning; Boye; Bradley and Rulofson; E.M. Brickey; Henry H. Buehman; Detroit Photographic Company; George N. Dewey; Ida M. Essery; Hervey Friend; William H. Godfrey; A.C. Golsh; Lola L. Huddleston; Truman W. Ingersoll; Charles Ironmonger; Keystone Photo Service; Theodore Marceau; Frank L. Park; J.R. Putnam; Putnam and Valentine; P.V. Reyes; Frank G. Schumacher; Silas Selleck; Stagg Photography; George Steckel; Noren F. Swenson; Isaiah W. Taber; Louis Thors; C.B. Waite; James D. Westervelt; and Charles A. Zimmerman.
photCL 180
Image not available
Banning family members
Visual Materials
The Banning Family Collection of Photographs, Part I, consists of 996 black and white photographs, 82 glass plate negatives (5 x 7 inches and 5 x 8 inches), and 1 scrapbook, 1855-1979 (bulk 1880s-1910s), collected by the Banning family and depicting various family members and friends and family properties (residential and commercial), with an emphasis on Wilmington and Santa Catalina Island, California. 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. Photographers represented in the collection include G.O. Ayer; Joseph Brent Banning; Boye; Bradley and Rulofson; E.M. Brickey; Henry H. Buehman; Detroit Photographic Company; George N. Dewey; Ida M. Essery; Hervey Friend; William H. Godfrey; A.C. Golsh; Lola L. Huddleston; Truman W. Ingersoll; Charles Ironmonger; Keystone Photo Service; Theodore Marceau; Frank L. Park; J.R. Putnam; Putnam and Valentine; P.V. Reyes; Frank G. Schumacher; Silas Selleck; Stagg Photography; George Steckel; Noren F. Swenson; Isaiah W. Taber; Louis Thors; C.B. Waite; James D. Westervelt; and Charles A. Zimmerman.
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