Eugene Swarzwald Pictorial California and the Pacific Collection of Photographs

The Eugene Swarzwald Pictorial California and the Pacific Collection consists of 9,674 black and white photographs, negatives, a photograph album, magazine mock-ups, letters, and ephemera, 1909-ca. 1968, collected by Eugene Swarzwald and the Swarzwald family for considered use in the magazine Pictorial California and the Pacific. Images depict California and the West with some coverage of the rest of the United States and international destinations. The collection contains photographs depicting general city views of communities in California, scenic views of wilderness areas, images of parks, schools and universities, museums, and points of historic interest (including California mining towns and missions). The collection is strong in subjects related to leisure and social and recreational activities, with particular emphasis on hotels, golf courses and country clubs, amusement parks, zoos, and beaches.

A large part of the collection is made up of images depicting communities in Los Angeles County including the City of Los Angeles; Bel Air (including views of the Bel Air Country Club, and many homes and gardens); Hollywood (including an event at the Hollywood Bowl for Chinese relief efforts after World War II attended by Madame Chiang Kai-Shek, Grauman's Chinese Theater, and Barnsdall Park and Hollyhock House); Lincoln Heights (including the Alligator and Ostrich Farms); Pacific Palisades; San Fernando Valley; Alhambra and Arcadia (including images of Gay's Lion Farm and Santa Anita Park); Beverly Hills (including Pickfair, the home of Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks); Claremont (including images of the Padua Hills Theater); Glendale (including images of Forest Lawn Memorial Park and the Grand Central Air Terminal); Inglewood (including the Forum and Hollywood Park); La Canada-Flintridge (including Descanso Gardens and the Flintridge Hotel); Long Beach (including aerial views of the city, beaches, and damage from the earthquake of 1933); Pasadena (including the Arroyo Seco, Colorado Street Bridge, the Rose Bowl, and Rose Parades), Catalina Island and Avalon; the San Gabriel Mountains (including Mount Wilson Observatory, the Mount Lowe Trolley and Tavern, Switzer's Camp, and Big Pines Recreation Area); and Santa Monica (including depictions of beach scenes and activities; beach clubs such as the Bel Air Bay Club, Breakers, Casa del Mar, Deauville, Edgewater, Gables, the Jonathan Club, Beverly and the Santa Monica Tennis Club; the Palisades and Palisades Park; and the Pacific Coast Highway).

The collection contains views of other California counties and sites, including views of Orange County; Alameda County; Inyo County and Death Valley; Monterey County and the Monterey Peninsula; Riverside County (especially Palm Springs and the Sherman Institute in Riverside); Santa Barbara County; San Bernardino County; San Diego County; the City and County of San Francisco; the Channel Islands; Lake Tahoe; the Redwood Highway; the California State Water Project; California state parks; Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Park; and Yosemite National Park. There are also a large number of images of California's redwood and sequoia forests in Del Norte and Humboldt Counties.

Also depicted are aircraft produced by various airplane manufacturers in California, including Boeing and Lockheed.

Hotels and resorts in California are prominently featured. In Los Angeles County these include the Ambassador, Bel Air, and Biltmore hotels in the City of Los Angeles; the Green, Maryland, Huntington, and Vista del Arroyo Hotels in Pasadena; and the Grand Hotel and Miramar Hotel in Santa Monica. Images of hotels in Orange County include depictions of the Saint Anne Hotel in Santa Ana. In Inyo County the Death Valley resorts of Stove Pipe Wells and the Furnace Creek Inn are depicted. Included in Riverside County are depictions of the Norconian Resort in Norco; Desert Inn and El Mirador Hotel in Palm Springs; and the Mission Inn in Riverside. In Santa Barbara County are images depicting the Santa Barbara Biltmore; the Samarkand; and El Encanto hotels. In San Bernardino County are images of the Arrowhead Springs Resort. Images of San Diego County include depictions of the Hotel del Coronado; Casa de Mañana in La Jolla; and the Del Mar Hotel in Del Mar. In San Francisco, the Saint Francis, Mark Hopkins, Fairmont, and Sir Francis Drake hotels are depicted. The Tahoe Tavern Hotel at Lake Tahoe is depicted as is the Ahwanee Hotel in Yosemite National Park.

Other well represented states include Alaska, Arizona, Hawaii, Oregon, and Utah. Images in Alaska include the Keystone Canyon Trail, and Distance Early Warning System radar network. In Arizona subjects depicted are primarily hotels and resorts, including the Arizona Biltmore, and Camelback Inn, and tourist destinations such as the Grand Canyon. Native Americans in Arizona, and ancient sites (such as the Betakin Ruins) are also present. Images of Hawaii mainly depict sites on the Island of Oahu such as Waikiki Beach and hotels such as the Ilikai, Royal Hawaiian, and Kahala Hilton. Also depicted in Hawaii are tourist destinations on the islands of Kauai and Maui, including the Hotel Hana-Maui. Native Hawaiian people and culture are also represented to some extent as are some aspects of agriculture, including the Dole pineapple plantation. In Oregon and Utah are many scenic views of national parks such as Crater Lake National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park, and Zion National Park.

Areas outside the United States which are particularly well represented include Canada (predominantly British Columbia); China; French Polynesia, and Mexico. Images in British Columbia include homes, gardens, and golf courses in the capital of Victoria, and the Malibu Club in Canada resort. Images of China include not only tourist destinations such as the Forbidden City, but also a number of United Nations photographs depicting efforts in China supported by United China Relief during World War II. Subjects in French Polynesia primarily depict likely tourist destinations on Moorea and Tahiti but also include film stills and production photographs related to F.W. Murnau's 1931 film "Tabu". Images of Mexico depict various regions, including Mexico City and the National Autonomous University of Mexico, and the Agua Caliente Resort and Racetrack in Tijuana.

There are a significant number of U.S. Military photographs mostly depicting activities in the Pacific Theater during World War II, including the Guadalcanal Campaign.

A significant number of images pertaining to Herbert Hoover are present. These include images depicting Hoover around the time of his presidential win in 1928, his supporters ("Hooverites"), his family, and his home in Palo Alto, California.

The collection includes many other images depicting people, usually used in the magazines "Personalities" section. These include images depicting heads of state and industry, society figures, celebrities, civic leaders and other prominent persons. Individuals depicted include Howard Ahmanson, Brigadier General H.H. Arnold, Gene Autry, Warren M. Dorn, Amelia Earhart, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Charles de Gaulle, Kenneth Hahn, Conrad Hilton, Henry Kaiser, Douglas MacArthur, Richard and Pat Nixon, Edwin W. Pauley, Ronald and Nancy Reagan, Mark Taper, Norman Topping, and Rufus B. Von Kleinsmid.

Also included in the collection are three mock-ups of Pictorial California, created around the time the magazine began publication.

Many of the photographs were produced by the Keystone Photo Service, a company founded by Eugene Swarzwald in Los Angeles in 1919. Other photographers include Chuck Abbott, Adelbert Bartlett, Lionel T. Berryhill, Lil and Al Bloom, Hal Boucher, Campbell-Ricco-Mazzuchi Photography, Caroll Photo Service, Garth Chandler, Walter J. Collinge, Fairchild Aerial Surveys, George O. Fales, Frasher's, J.P. Graham, Dean Hesketh Company, Charles M. Hiller, Pat and G.E. Kirkpatrick, Don Knight, Albert J. Kopec, Ward Linton, Lothers and Young, Hubert A. Lowman, David M. Mills, Don Milton, Gabriel Moulin Studios, Karl Obert, Earle O'Day, Pacific Air Industries Aerial Photography, Dave Packwood, Padilla Studios, Maynard L. Parker Modern Photography, Jack W. Patterson, Julius Shulman, Spence Air Photos, H.W. Steward, Thiem, Harry Vroman, Whithurse Aerial Photos, and Steven H. Willard.

There are also photographs from companies and government agencies including American Airlines, California Department of Public Works Division of Highways, Caterpillar, Santa Fe Railway (many by Don Erb or R.C. Bradley), State of California Department of Water Resources California State Water Project, the United States Navy, the United States Army, Union Pacific Railroad (many by Don Lidikay), United Airlines, and Western Pacific Railroad (by H.S. Lawton).

The collection also includes non-photographic material. Tear sheets from other publications feature photographs produced by Keystone Photo Services. Manuscript material included with the collection consists of letters of support to Swarzwald and subscription requests.

Some images exist in duplicate and many are accompanied by identifying information or captions.