Finding aid to the San Francisco Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Records
1868-2011
SFH 75
San Francisco History Center staff
San Francisco History Center, San Francisco Public Library
2015
100 Larkin Street
San Francisco, CA 94102
sfhistory@sfpl.org
Title: San Francisco Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Records
Date (inclusive): 1868-2016
Identifier/Call Number: SFH 75
Creator:
San Francisco Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
Physical Description:
28 Linear Feet
(approximately 28 linear feet)
Contributing Institution:
San Francisco History Center, San Francisco Public Library
100 Larkin Street
San Francisco, CA 94102
(415) 557-4567
info@sfpl.org
Abstract: Log books, ledgers, subject files, reports, documents, ephemera, audiovisual recordings, and photographic materials of the
San Francisco SPCA, documenting its history, operations, programs, and services from its founding through the turn of the
millennium.
Physical Location: The collection is stored offsite.
Language of Materials: Collection materials are in
English.
Access
The collection is available for use during San Francisco History Center hours, with photographs available during Photo Desk
hours. Collections that are stored offsite should be requested 48 hours in advance.
Publication Rights
All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the City Archivist. Permission
for publication is given on behalf of the San Francisco Public Library as the owner of the physical items. The San Francisco
SPCA maintains copyright to all items in the collection, to the extent that it owns or licenses those rights. Some publications
and/or photographs may have additional copyright holders.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], San Francisco Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SFH 75), San Francisco History Center,
San Francisco Public Library.
Provenance
Donated by the San Francisco SPCA in 2009. Accession 2009-123.
Materials Transferred
Photographs have been transferred to the San Francisco Historical Photograph Collection and are available for use during Photo
Desk hours.
Issues of
Our Animals
Volume 8 Number 10 (Jan. 1915) through Volume 103 Number 3 (Fall 2009) and Volume 105 Number 2 (Summer 2011) through Volume
109 Number 5 (Fall 2016) have been transferred to the San Francisco History Center periodicals.
Materials Transferred
Issues of Our Dumb Animals (Sept. 1925-Dec. 1931, missing Oct. 1925, Feb.-June 1929, and Nov. 1930) have been de-accessioned
and offered to the Boston Public Library. 12/5/13
Accruals of Our Animals may be expected via the Magazines & Newspapers Center, or via future accessions from SF SPCA. Duplicate
loose issues remain filed with SFH 75 for use in exhibits, etc.
Biographical / Historical
Founded in 1868, the San Francisco Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SF SPCA) is one of the oldest welfare
agencies in the City and one of the oldest humane societies in the nation.
As both an advocacy and a direct service organization, it works for the protection and humane treatment of animals via shelter,
adoption, medical care, foster care, spay and neutering, and other services and programs.
In accordance with the history of the times, earlier years of the Society's work focused on horses (then a major source of
work and transportation) and livestock, with dogs and cats as pets becoming more prominent beginning in the mid-20th century.
The Society has always advocated for the protection of all animals, both wild and domestic.
The Society is still active today, with buildings at and expanded from its original location at 16th and Alabama Streets.
Scope and Contents
Log books, ledgers, subject files, reports, documents, ephemera, audiovisual recordings, posters, and photographic materials
of the San Francisco SPCA, documenting its history, operations, programs, and services from its founding through the turn
of the millennium. Early documents consist of officers' patrol logs and appointments, early City Pound records, photographs,
some financial and membership records, and miscellaneous files of Secretary Matthew McCurrie. Beginning in the mid-20th century
and into the 1990s and 2000s, materials related to programs and events predominate, along with coverage of capital projects.
Arrangement
The collection is organized into four series: Series 1: Administration; Series 2: Programs and Services; Series 3: Promotion;
and Series 4: Photographs.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Animal welfare -- California -- San Francisco.
Animal shelters -- California -- San Francisco.
Pets -- California -- San Francisco.
San Francisco Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
Series 1
Administration and operations
1868-2009
1900-1979
Physical Description:
2 cartons, 5 manuscript boxes, 5 volumes
(approximately 7 linear feet)
Scope and Contents
Financial records, membership rosters and dues, officer appointments, and other Internal files and documents pertaining to
administration of the SF SPCA as an organization. Photographs related to administrators, buildings, and operations are filed
in Series 4: Photographs.
Coverage is spotty in this series. There are no minutes in the collection. Materials are concentrated in the late 19th century
and early 20th century, with some mid-20th century files. Office of the President files are from the 1990s-2000s.
Arrangement
Organized in five subseries: 1.1 Founding documents and annual reports; 1.2 Office of the Secretary; 1.3 Office of the President
subject files; 1.4 Membership; and 1.5 Finances; 1.6 Reference Books.
Subseries 1.1
Administrative documents and annual reports
1868- 2016
1877-1914
Physical Description: 3 folders (2 legal-size and 1 oversize)
Materials Transferred
Additional bylaws may be found in the Membership files, under: Bylaws and membership roster.
Related Materials
Additional annual reports for 1877, 1879, 1880, 1886, 1890, 1898, 1902, 1907 are available in the San Francisco History Center
Stacks, accessible via the San Francisco Public Library online catalog.
Scope and Contents
Broken run of Annual reports for 1877-1914, 2011-2016; 1868 bylaws and 1979 articles of incorporation; a list of contributors
to the Memorial Animal Shelter dedicated in 1963; a few drawings of the Memorial Animal Shelter and a building map for the
Leanne B. Roberts Animal Care Center.
box 1, folder 1
Bylaws, articles of incorporation, and annual reports
1868-1979
box 3, folder 5
Contributors to the memorial animal shelter, dedicated December 8, 1963
Material Specific Details: Dis-bound scrapbook consisting of 11 x 17 plastic pages with Dymlo label text.
box 21, oversize-folder 1
Drawings and building map
Subseries 1.2
Office of the Secretary
1890s-1968
Physical Description: 31 folders in carton, 1 volume
Scope and Contents
A mix of file types, mostly from the terms served by Matthew McCurrie (1895-1938), along with a few later reports and documents.
The largest and most complete file is the Officers' appointments.
box 1, folder 3-20
Officers' appointments
circa 1900-1915 and 1940s-1960s
Arrangement
1900-1915 are arranged as received, in two alphabetical series by last name of appointee.
box 2, folder 1
Officers' ephemera
1907-1933 and undated
box 1, folder 21-24
Secretary's reports
1956-1965
Scope and Contents
Monthly statistics on number and type of cases handled, animals rescued and/or treated, what neighborhood, and causes for
rescue or treatment--homelessness/unwanted, injuries, etc. Includes Treasurer's and Committee reports.
volume 1
Ephemera and supplies scrapbook
1914-1968
Matthew McCurrie miscellany
1890s-1936
Biographical / Historical
Matthew McCurrie served as Assistant Secretary (1895-1906) and Secretary (1906-1938) of the San Francisco SPCA. He died in
1938.
General
Pamphlets and ephemera file includes a 1909 Workhorse Parade Program, San Francisco.
Mrs. C. B. Holbrook, organizer of the Bands of Mercy, which raised animal awareness in public schools, was the wife of Secretary
Holbrook. The file includes correspondence, clippings, and her February 1874 copy of
The Animal's Friend.
box 2, folder 2
Matthew McCurrie clippings scrapbook
1890s-1913
box 3, folder 1
Monthly Bulletin
file
1908-1911
Scope and Contents
Paperbound issues of Vols. 2-5; and a board-bound file containing Vols. 1-5, together with the
Bulletin's
continuation as
Our Animals
, Vol. 5 Nos. 1-9. Each includes a typed index.
box 2, folder 3, box 3, folder 2
Pamphlets and ephemera
1908-1936
box 2, folder 4
Cockfighting correspondence
1916
Physical Description: 1 folder
box 2, folder 5
Be Kind to Animals Week clippings
1922
box 3, folder 3
Mrs. C.B. Holbrook papers
1900-1906
box 2, folder 6
Matthew McCurrie patent for lethal apparatus
1932
box 3, folder 3
Original Omar Chili pen and ink illustrations for an edition of Marshall Saunders' book,
Beautiful Joe
[1930s?]
Subseries 1.3
Office of the President subject files
1953-2007
bulk
Physical Description: 1 carton
Scope and Contents
Strategic plans, correspondence, clippings, reports, ephemera, and other documents, almost all from the presidencies of Richard
Avenzino (1976-1998) and Edwin J. Sayers (1998-2003). There is also a small file on former President Archibald J. Cloud, who
died in 1957.
Arrangement
Alphabetical by file topic or type.
box 4, folder 2
Animal Care Center opening
box 4, folder 5
Avanzino correspondence and documents
box 4, folder 7
Board of Directors / Trustees
box 4, folder 8
Carriage horse regulations
box 4, folder 13
Dogs and cats, human consumption
box 4, folder 14
Feral cats on Treasure Island
box 4, folder 15
Forgotten Felines
video documentary
box 4, folder 16
Forms and fliers notebook
box 4, folder 21
Law and Advocacy Dept. correspondence and publications
box 4, folder 22
Live animal markets
Physical Description: 3 folders
box 4, folder 23
Long-range planning reports
box 4, folder 24
McCloud clippings and documents
1953-1957
box 4, folder 25
Maddie's Pet Adoption Center
box 4, folder 26
Mission Possible No-Kill policy
box 4, folder 28
Off-leash dog walking in the GGNRA
Physical Description: 5 folders
box 4, folder 29
Partnerships for Life fiscal year reports
box 4, folder 32
Proposed year-round closure at Ft. Funston
box 4, folder 34
Sayres biography and correspondence
Subseries 1.4
Membership
1868-1978
bulk
Physical Description: 6 folders
box 5, folder 1
Bylaws and membership roster book
1868-1978
box 6, folder 1
Membership register
1868-1881
General
Includes a few pages of officers' diary for July 30-Aug. 20, 1891, along with a small amount of correspondence.
box 6, folder 3
Membership book
May 1868-July 1909
box 6, folder 4
Membership book
Aug. 1920-June 1923
box 6, folder 5
Membership mailing packet
1968-1969
Subseries 1.5
Finances
1868-1932
bulk
Physical Description: 7 folders, 4 volumes
box 6, folder 7
Cash book
Oct. 1892-Feb. 1894
volume 2
Cash book
June 1895-Dec. 1909
box 7, folder 2
Cash received for animals,
Nov. 1, 1906-Dec. 31, 1909
volume 3
Cash book,
June 1913-Dec. 1915
box 7, folder 3
Subscriptions,
March 20, 1911-May 31, 1919
volume 4
Cash received and disbursed,
June 1915-Apr. 1922
box 7, folder 4
Assets,
1912-1918 and 1920s
box 8
Bookkeeping hospital book,
Oct. 1924-June 1928
Physical Description: 1 vol. in flat box
Scope and Contents
Fees and receipts for dog and cat examinations and treatment, baths, ambulance, hospital keep.
box 7, folder 5
Miscellaneous invoices and report on cost of administrative building,
1908 and 1932
Subseries 1.6
Reference Books
1884-1924
box 26, folder 5
Animal World: An Advocate of Humanity. Issued by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
1884
box 27
Human Society Leaders in America: With a Sketch of the Early History of the Humane Movement in England by Sydney H. Coleman
1924
Series 2
Programs and services
1877-2009
Physical Description: 7 manuscript boxes, 10 flat boxes, 1 volume (approx. 14.5 linear feet)
Scope and Contents
Internal documents produced by or related to SF SPCA services, chiefly documentation of animal patrol, protection, rescue,
and care (i.e. Officers' Diaries and Public Pound Records); together with smaller amounts of materials related to legal prosecution
and programs.
Program-related publications--including fliers, posters, brochures, and audiovisual materials-- are filed in Series 3: Promotion.
Program-related photographs are filed in Series 4: Photographs.
Arrangement
Organized by type in four subseries: 2.1 Officers' diaries; 2.2 Arrest and prosecution records; 2.3 Public Pound records;
and 2.4 Program files.
Subseries 2.1
Officers' diaries
1877-1905
Physical Description: 21 volumes in 5 manuscripts boxes and 5 flat boxes
Scope and Contents
Logs kept by SF/SPCA humane officers reporting on their daily rounds. Entries describe situations encountered, including physical
injuries or abuses of animals, particularly horses, along with actions taken. Also documents citations given and police court
cases attended on behalf of animals that were abused or mistreated. This subseries predates the SF/SPCA taking over the duties
of the City Pound in 1905.
Arrangement
Each volume runs June - May and includes name index in front.
Subseries 2.2
Arrest and prosecution records
1878-1971
Physical Description: 2 folders, 1 volume
Scope and Contents
A volume of prosecutions compiled for the years 1878-1971, together with a folder documenting arrests and fines for 1889-1913
and a few miscellaneous case file documents from the mid-20th century.
box 1, folder 25
Record of arrests and fines collected from prosecutions
March 6, 1889 - Oct. 31, 1913
Arrangement
Chronological by date of arrest.
volume 5
Record of prosecutions
1878-1971
bulk
Scope and Contents
Chronological documentation of cases of animal cruelty brought to trial by the SF/SPCA. Entries include name and address of
the accused, nature of the offense, type of animal involved, instrument of cruelty used, name and address of complaintant
and witnesses, name of arresting officer, date of trial, court where tried (mostly police court), verdict, and penalty. The
volume was likely compiled from earlier records.
box 23, folder 1
Miscellaneous case file documents
1949-1970
Subseries 2.3
Public Pound Records
1897-1951
Physical Description: 7 volumes in 5 flat boxes
Biographical / Historical
In 1891, SF/SPCA Trustee John Partridge was named City Poundmaster after a citizens' petition to the Board of Supervisors
received 18,000 signatures protesting abuses of animals by the City-run pound. In 1905, a court order gave the SF/SPCA full
responsibility for animal control services in San Francisco. The SF/SPCA continued in this capacity until 1989, when it turned
over animal control functions to the newly-created San Francisco Animal Care and Control department.
Scope and Contents
Three types of record books documenting Public Pound activities, beginning a few years after an SF/SPCA Truestee began serving
as CIty Poundmaster, and continuing into the middle of the period when the SF/SPCA was fully responsible for administering
the City Pound.
There is one volume recording licenses issued for dogs.
There are four consecutive volumes (1916-1951) that document dogs and cats held at the Pound; the first volume is nominally
a record of dogs, with cats gaining representation by the second volume. Occasionally, other animals are included. Entries
include date, breed and gender of animal, names and addresses of owners, and licensing fees collected; they may also document
whether an animal was released on license, sold, destroyed, and/or held for observation by the Department of Public Health.
There are two animal stock books (1911-1946), listing large and small stock animals (horses, cows, goats) caught and apparently
either killed or "redeemed," i.e. claimed. Lists when and where animal was caught and by whom, who claimed it, and payment
received.
box 8
License for dogs
1897-1900
Scope and Contents
Name and address of owner, license number, type and name of dog.
box 19
Record of dogs
May 1, 1916-Dec. 29, 1927
box 20
Record of dogs [and cats]
Jan. 1, 1928-Dec. 22, 1938
box 20
Record of dogs and cats
Dec. 16, 1939-June 21, 1946
box 21
Record of dogs and cats
June 17, 1946-Sept. 27, 1951
Scope and Contents
No Subnote Content
box 22
Animal stock book
Dec. 17, 1911-Jan. 27, 1919
box 22
Animal stock book
Feb. 1, 1919-Oct. 26, 1946
Subseries 2.4
Program files
1920s-2009
bulk
Physical Description: 10 folders, 1 manuscripts box
Scope and Contents
Documents and files kept by SF/SPCA programs staff on specific SF/SPCA programs, including planning and training material.
Most files are from the 1980s-2000; the Horse Retirement Farm file begins in the 1920s.
Related Materials
For additional material related to programs, see Series 3: Promotion and Series 4: Photographs.
box 23, folder 2
Animal Assisted Therapy
2000s
box 23, folder 3
BAASICS (Bay Area Agencies and Shelters in Common Service)
1980s or early 1990s
box 23, folder 4
Cat Behavior Program
undated
box 23, folder 5
Dog training and Doggy Daycare Center
1990s-2000s
box 23, folder 6-7
Feral Cat Program
1990s-2000s
Scope and Contents
Correspondence, reports, minutes, policy documents, brochures, and a video on feral cat management. Includes materials on
feral cat colonies in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA) and the maintenance yard at Golden Gate Park.
box 23, folder 8
Foster Care Program
2000s
box 23, folder 10
Hearing Dog Program
circa 1978-2001
Biographical / Historical
The Hearing Dog Program ran from 1978-2008.
Related Materials
For additional materials related to the Hearing Dog Program, see also Series 3: Promotion and Series 4: Photographs.
box 1, folder 26
Horse Retirement Farm
1920s-2005
Biographical / Historical
The Horse Retirement Farm is a 40-acre ranch in Sonoma County, CA, where police and fire horses, as well as burros from Golden
Gate Park, go to retire. The service was started as a police horse retirement farm in 1918.
Related Materials
For additional materials on the horse retirement farm, please see also Series 4: Photographs.
box 24
Humane Education Program Animal Awareness Club curriculum
1990s
Series 3
Promotion
1905-2009
Physical Description: 53 manuscript boxes, 3 flat boxes, 3 shoeboxes, 3 folders, 1 volume, and
1 flat file (approx. 8 linear feet)
Materials Transferred
Bound and unbound copies of the SF SPCA's publication
Our Animals
, 1915-2009, as well as SF SPCA posters and realia, have been transferred to the San Francisco History Center's Bound Periodicals,
Poster, and Realia Collections, respectively.
Our Animals
includes an unpublished topical index for 1976-2002.
Scope and Contents
Published and unpublished publicity, educational, advertising, and promotional materials produced by or about the SF SPCA.
Includes both general and program-specific or event-specific materials. Photographic materials produced by or related to promotion
and publicity are filed in Series 4: Photographs.
Arrangement
Organized by type into five subseries: 3.1 Clippings; 3.2 Newsletters; 3.3 Ephemera; and 3.4 Audiovisual materials; 3.5 Posters;
and 3.6 Our Animals (loose copies - keep for exhibit).
Subseries 3.1
Clippings
1905-1978
Material Specific Details: HANDLE WITH CARE. Many clippings have come loose from their pages.
Physical Description: 2 manuscripts boxes, 2 flat boxes
Scope and Contents
Clippings of images used in SF SPCA publications.
Arrangement
Volumes are organized by the date clippings were originally used for publication. Arrangement of clippings within each volume
is by "cut number." Each clipping has a number and notes indicating date used and in which publication.
box 25, folder 2
1932-1951
Physical Description: In a former 1915 ledger of bills and receipts of the Pound.
box 28
Dec. 4, 1977-Dec. 17, 1978
box 26, folder 2
Richfield "Success Story," KGO-TV
1957
Material Specific Details: Scrapbook has been disbound and materials re-housed.
Scope and Contents
Scrapbook documenting KGO-TV's coverage of SF/SPCA on their program "Success Story." Includes clippings service clippings,
[script/transcript of shots], and 8" x 10" black-and-white photographs.
Materials Transferred
One folder of photographs have been transferred to the San Francisco Historical Photograph Collection.
box 26, volume 3
Clippings used in
Our Animals
Magazine
1969-1974
Subseries 3.2
Newsletters
1998-2001
Physical Description: 3 folders
Related Materials
See Subseries 2.4: Program Files, for staff notebook containing
The Bond
, the Animal Assisted Therapy Program newsletter.
Scope and Contents
A handful of miscellaneous issues of newsletters of the Hearing Dog Program, Humane Education, and SF SPCA Volunteers.
box 23, folder 11
Animal Times
(Humane Education Program)
1998
box 23, folder 12
Canine Listening Post
(Hearing Dog Program)
1998-1999
box 23, folder 13
Creature Comforts
(Volunteers)
2000-2001
Subseries 3.3
Ephemera
1913-2009
bulk
Physical Description: 1 manuscripts box, 1 flat box, 1 volume
Scope and Contents
Chiefly program brochures, with some pamphlets and other printed matter published for SF SPCA programs, services, and events.
Most of the material is from the 1990s-2000s; however, there is included also a scrapbook containing announcements, clippings,
ribbons, programs, and correspondence about SF SPCA's organization of and participation in Children's Pets Exhibitions in
California in the early 1900s, particularly the one held at the Panama-Pacific International Exposition in 1915.
Arrangement
Files are arranged alphabetically by topic.
box 29, folder 1
Animal Wingding celebration
1996-2000
box 29, folder 2
Bark & Whine Ball
1999-2004
box 29, folder 3, volume 6
Children's Pets Exhibition scrapbook and loose ephemera
1913-1916 and 1931
box 29, folder 4
Feral Cat Program brochures
2000-2009
box 29, folder 6
Gump's Christmas Window
1987
box 29, folder 7-8
Hearing Dog Program
circa 1978-2008
box 29, folder 9
Kinship with All Life conference
2000-2001
box 29, folder 10
Leanne B. Roberts Animal Care Center
2009
box 29, folder 11
Maddie's Pet Adoption Center
1990s
box 24, folder 3
Miscellaneous ephemera
1990s-2000s
box 24, folder 4
Miscellaneous pamphlets
[1913]-1968
box 29, folder 12
Miscellaneous program brochures
1990s-2000s
oversize-folder 1, box 26, folder 4
Proclamations and certificates
1960s-2000s
box 29, folder 14
Spay / Neuter
circa 1990s
box 29, folder 15
St. Francis Terrier Program
circa 1996
General
The St. Francis Terrier program was introduced in 1996. The term "St. Francis terrier" is another word for pit bull.
A St. Francis terrier is a pit bull who has been trained and socialized to interact at home, in public, and with other dogs.
box 29, folder 17
Work horse Parade Association entry forms
undated
box 29, folder 18
Miscellaneous public relations and publications-related correspondence and ephemera
1990s-2001
box 21, oversize-folder 2
Promotional Posters of Various Events and Programs
Circa 1990
box 30-31
Subseries 3.4
Audiovisual materials
1991-2009
bulk
Physical Description: 34 VHS tapes, 2 16mm films, 21 audiocassettes
in 2 plastic cases, 3 DVDs, and 1 CD-ROM
Publication Rights
Various copyright holders.
Scope and Contents
Chiefly VHS videorecordings (1991-2008), along with three commercial DVDs, two 16mm films on the Hearing Dog Program, and
two sets of audiocassette recordings for the the Kinship with All Life Conference (2000 and 2001). The VHS tapes consist mostly
of network news segments, with a few SPCA-produced videos. Topics include pet adoption, canine behavior and training, dog
bite prevention, SPCA anniversaries, cat art, shelter animals, and the opening of the Leanne B. Roberts Animal Care Center
in 2009.
drawer 35, oversize-folder 1
Subseries 3.5
Posters
1911-2000s
Physical Description: 1 oversize flat file folder
Scope and Contents
Topics include: Computa-Cat and Digital Dog; SF SPCA Foster Care Program; American Red Star Animal Relief; How to Kill Animals
Humanely; Bark & Whine Ball; American Humane Association 92nd Annual National Convention in 1911; assorted proclamations and
certificates.
box 39-40
Subseries 3.6
Our Animals (loose copies for exhibit)
1916-1974
Series 4
Photographs
circa 1890s-2009
Physical Description: 4 cartons, 1 flat box, 1 manuscript box (5 linear feet)
Scope and Contents
Photographs chiefly taken for use in SF SPCA publications, exhibits, and promotional materials, as well as for administrative
purposes. Includes prints (8 x10, 5 x7, and 35 mm prints, and other sizes), proof sheets, slides, and negatives. Mostly black-and-white,
with a few color.
SF SPCA building construction and vehicles; rescue, treatment, and care of animals; and shots of various types of animals,
alone, together, and with human companions, are well-represented. Horses, cats, and dogs are animals most frequently pictured
in the collection. Specific SF SPCA programs and events--particularly the Hearing Dog Program and Poochie Parade--are represented
to a lesser but still significant extent. Another highlight of this series is an album of photographs of the Work Horse Parade
of 1909.
Most of the animal subject files are from the mid-late 20th century. Older photographs, going back to the 19th and early 20th
century, are clustered in the Ambulances and vehicles, Buildings, Cruelty, and Horses files.
Arrangement
Photographs were originally received in a partially-organized state: some were in labeled folders, and some were loose. Some
folders were marked "Administration," "Program," or "Promotion/Events," with subheadings specifying subject, program, or event.
"Administration" often had the subheading "Historical misc." Other folders were labeled with different handwriting, inks,
or types of folder, indicating that they may have been organized later or by a different department.
For consistency, the following system of arrangement has been supplied: Where images have been identified (via original order,
visual evidence, and/or received notation) as pertaining to a particular SF SPCA program, promotional campaign, or event,
they are filed under a heading by that name; otherwise, images are arranged according to animal or general subject. Formats
are interfiled.
Administration
Scope and Contents
Presidents Charles W. Friedrichs, Richard Avanzino (1976-1998), Ed Sayers (1998-2003); Secretary Matthew McCurrie; and miscellaneous
Board members, trustees, and benefactors, both identified and unidentified.
8x10, 5x7 portraits and group shots, with a few smaller snapshots or cropped prints; black-and-white from the 1950s-1970s,
with some color prints from the 1990s-2000s. A few proof sheets and negatives. Includes a set of 4x6 color snapshots of Ed
Sayres at work with cats from 1998.
Includes a few shots of SPCA administrators from outside San Francisco.
Arrangement
Arranged by office, then roughly chronological.
box 33, folder 6
Secretary Matthew McCurrie
box 33, folder 7
Adopted cat correspondence
2001-2006
box 33, folder 8
Adoption outreach
1968-1998
Ambulances and vehicles
circa 1880s-1960s
Scope and Contents
Horse ambulances, small animal ambulances, motorized ambulances, ambulance vans, Public Pound ambulances, and other official
SPCA horse-drawn and motorized vehicles of the 19th and 20th centuries, serving the animal shelter, hospital, and officers.
Includes the first motorized ambulance from 1915.
Includes 8x10, 5x7, and smaller black-and-white prints, with a few proof sheets and negatives.
box 33, folder 10
Horse ambulances
Related Materials
Horse ambulances used in World War I are filed under "War."
box 37, box 33, folder 13
American Humane Association National Convention
1911
box 33, folder 14-16
Angel Island deer feeding, relocation, and sterilization
1976-1984
box 33, folder 17
Animal Assisted Therapy
1979-1989
box 33, folder 20
Anniversaries
Scope and Contents
Includes materials on the SF SPCA 100th, 125th, and 135th anniversaries.
Behavior and training
circa 1980s-1990s
box 33, folder 23
Flyball intermediate course (dog training)
Buildings
1890s-1998
Scope and Contents
Photos of the two wood buildings at 16th and Alabama that were erected in 1890, the addition of an animal hospital in 1924;
and the replacement of the original buildings in the late 1920s/early 1930s with a block-long Spanish Mission-style concrete
building. Some building photographs feature vehicles parked in front. The Mission-style additon includes administration, kennel,
and garage.
The bulk of the buildings files document the construction and opening of the New Memorial Animal Shelter of 1962-1963, which
includes press photographs featuring people and animals. The construction and opening of Maddie's Pet Adoption Center in 1998
is also represented. Formats include 8 x 10 and 5 x 7 black-and-white prints, proof sheets, 35mm color prints, and smaller
prints in various dimensions in both black-and-white and color; also a few 4 x 5 negatives; strip negatives (many with corresponding
prints and many unidentified); and a few slides.
Photographs of the exhibition building erected for the Panama-Pacific International Exposition is filed under "Panama-Pacific
International Exposition."
box 37, box 33, folder 26
Original headquarters at Alabama and 16th Streets (Animals' Home and kennel)
box 33, folder 27
Animal hospital
circa 1924
Maddie's Pet Adoption Center
1998
box 33, folder 33
Mission-style additions (constructed 1926-1932)
New Memorial Animal Shelter
circa 1963
box 37, box 33, folder 34
New Memorial Animal Shelter-- general
Scope and Contents
Includes in situ shots of staff and clientele at work in the building.
box 33, folder 35
New Memorial Animal Shelter-- opening
box 33, folder 36-39
New Memorial Animal Shelter-- construction
circa 1963
box 33, folder 40
New animal hospital
circa 1968
box 33, folder 41
Leanne B. Roberts Animal Care Center
box 34, folder 1-3, box 37
box 34, folder 6
Cats and dogs together--general
box 34, folder 7
Cats and dogs together (photographer Jane Lindtz)
box 34, folder 10
Charitable Chow
circa 1990s
box 34, folder 12
Children's Pets Exhibition
box 34, folder 13
Cinderella cats
1987-1990s
General
Cinderella cats and dogs are rescued and medically rehabilitated by the SPCA so that they are adoptable. Funded by the Cinderella
Fund, supported by CLAW.
box 34, folder 14
Cinderella dogs
1987-1990s
General
No Subnote Content
Circus and other captive animals
box 34, folder 15
Circus and other captive animals--Pennie the Elephant, San Francisco Zoo
box 34, folder 16
Circus and other captive animals--general
box 34, folder 17
C.L.A.W. (Critter Lovers at Work)
1980s-1990s
box 34, folder 25
Doggie Daycare
circa 1990s
box 34, folder 29
Dogs--Lady, the two-legged dog
box 34, folder 31
Donations
1949-1993
Scope and Contents
Mostly automobiles.
box 34, folder 37
Feral cat program--general
box 34, folder 38
Feral cat program--Land's End
box 35, folder 3
Foster care
circa 1980s-1990s
box 35, folder 4
Great SF/SPCA Cat and Dog Fair
1987
box 35, folder 5
Grooming school
1980s
General
the Grooming School, also referred to as the Grooming College, was started in 1979.
box 37, box 35, folder 7-11
Hearing Dog Program
circa 1978-2008
Scope and Contents
Includes advertising campaign shots of Penny the hearing dog next to a rotary phone; 8x10 and 5x7 shots of individuals, couples,
and families with their hearing dogs; and several 8x10 color shots of individuals with their hearing dogs, showing the Golden
Gate Bridge in the background.
Holiday Windows
1987-1990s
Scope and Contents
Includes a folder of the first Holiday Window, at Gump's in 1987.
box 35, folder 13
Holiday Windows--Gumps
1987
box 35, folder 14
Holiday Windows Neiman Marcus
Dec. 1999
box 35, folder 16-17
Horse Retirement Farm
circa 1918-1960s
Scope and Contents
Horse retirement farm photos include Charlie, "the last pensioned fire horse," as well as burros.
box 35, folder 18-19, box 37
box 35, folder 20, box 37
Humane Education Program
1990s
box 37
National Humane Alliance Fountain dedication
1911
box 35, folder 29
Panama-Pacific International Exposition (PPIE)
box 35, folder 31
PetCam Baseball
March 26, 1999
box 35, folder 32
Pet Overpopulation Assembly
circa 1980s
box 36, folder 8
Press conferences
undated
box 36, folder 14-15, box 37
Rescues
circa 1930s-1990s
box 36, folder 16
Rescues, 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake
box 36, folder 17
Richfield "Success Story" KGO-TV
1957
box 36, folder 20
Ruth Asawa Fountain
June 1973
box 36, folder 24
SFPD
Scope and Contents
Bullet-proof vests for K-9 dogs (1998), Mounted Police unit (various dates).
box 36, folder 28
Spay-Neuter Program, including Feral Fix
circa 1990s
box 36, folder 31
St. Francis Terrier Program
1990s
box 36, folder 33
Super Pet Sunday
May 8, 1988
box 36, folder 37
Veterinary care
circa 1940s-2003
box 36, folder 38
Volunteers
1980s-2009 (bulk 1980s)
bulk
box 36, folder 39
War
Scope and Contents
Includes American Red Star Relief in World War I.
box 36, folder 44
Unidentified photographs and slides
undated
box 38
Various Photographs (Duplicates)
box 32
Series 5
Realia
Physical Description: 1 carton (1 linear foot)
Scope and Contents
Assorted pins, humane officer badges, a centennial flag, Hearing Dog Program items, and a framed sheet of Spay/Neuter postage
stamps from 2002.