Collected photographs and postcards of Los Angeles, California and vicinity, ca. 1857-1940.

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Collected photographs and postcards of Los Angeles, California and vicinity, ca. 1857-1940.

http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/78776396

This collection primarily comprises black-and-white photographs of early California (1857-1940s) collected by J. Paul Getty. The images reflect Mr. Getty's interest in Los Angeles and the coastal region of Santa Monica and Malibu, where he spent much of his life. The bulk of the images trace the development of Los Angeles from a small pueblo to a bustling city and show the Santa Monica coastline, canyons, and mountains prior to their development. The collection also contains several photographs of waterfront communities and resorts to the north and south of Los Angeles, a few shots of California missions, and one of the Redwoods. It also includes a small set of non-photographic postcards of California (1885). Among this collection are also a few photographs of New York City, a photograph of an unidentified weightlifting competition, and a color photogravure of Château de Pierrefonds (France). Many of the photographs in this collection were originally collected by Charles C. Pierce (1861-1946), a notable photographer of early California, who sold photographs out of his store on Spring Street in Los Angeles. Although many of these images are stamped on the verso with the name C. C. Pierce, they were not necessarily created by Pierce. Pierce assembled an impressive library of historic California photographs (and negatives), removed the original photographers' signatures from the works, and stamped his own name on the images. Several other photographs in this collection are attributed to Adelbert Bartlett (1887-1966), a photographer based in Santa Monica, who was known locally and abroad for his images of Southern California.

0.6 linear feet (3 boxes)

Getty Research Institute

Information

SNAC Resource ID: 8221003

Getty Research Institute

Related Entities

There are 3 Entities related to this resource.

Getty, J. Paul (Jean Paul), 1892-1976

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6x355m8 (person)

American oil tycoon and art collector Jean Paul Getty was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota on December 15, 1892 to George Franklin Getty (1855-1930) and Sarah Catherine McPherson Risher Getty. Around 1906 the Getty family moved to Los Angeles. J. Paul Getty eventually persuaded his father to shift the focus of the family petroleum business to the Los Angeles basin. Beginning in the early 1930s Getty lived in a house he built next to William Randolph Hearst's on the beach in Santa Monica. During Wo...

Bartlett, Adelbert, 1885-1946,

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6542wxc (person)

Pierce, C. C. (Charles C.), 1861-1946

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w60009cg (person)

Charles C. Pierce migrated to Southern California in 1886 and began his photographic career in Los Angeles. In addition to establishing a studio and selling photographic supplies, Pierce also amassed a vast picture library over the course of three decades. Pierce acquired the negatives and prints of other regional photographers, eradicated their signatures from the prints, stamped his name on the verso of the image, and organized the lot into subject files. Some of the photographers from whom he...