Book Club of California

The Book Club of California, founded in 1912, is a non-profit organization of book lovers and collectors who have a special interest in Pacific C oast history, literature, and fine printing. Its chief aims are to further the interests of book collectors and scholars and to promote an understanding and appreciation of fine books.

Organizational History

The Book Club of California, founded in San Francisco in 1912, is a non-profit organization of book lovers and collectors who have a special interest in Pacific Coast history, literature, and fine printing. Its chief aims are to further the interests of book collectors and scholars and to promote an understanding and appreciation of fine books. The club publishes fine press books on California and the West and hosts book-related events and exhibitions.

From its inception, the Book Club of California has welcomed both men and women. Phoebe Hearst was a charter member. The Club's first officers included Edward Robeson Taylor (President), W.R.K. Young (Vice-President), Albert M. Bender (Treasurer), and Will Sparks (Secretary). The first book published by the club in 1914 was Robert E. Cowan's Bibliography of the History of California and the Pacific West. Over the years, the club's membership has included some of the most distinquished men and women in California arts and letters, including Ansel Adams, Faith Baldwin, Merle Armitage, Oscar Lewis, Lawrence Clark Powell, Witter Bynner, Alfred A. Knopf, Franklin D. Murphy, Carl I. Wheat, Francis P. Farquhar, A. Edward Newton, Ward Ritchie, Norton Simon, John Henry Nash, and Kevin Starr.