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Los Angeles Railway Corporation Collection of Photographs: Finding Aid
photCL 58  
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Collection Details
 
Table of contents What's This?
  • Overview of the Collection
  • Access
  • Administrative Information
  • Historical Note
  • Scope and Contents
  • Arrangement
  • Related materials in the Huntington Library
  • Index Terms

  • Overview of the Collection

    Title: Los Angeles Railway Corporation Collection of Photographs
    Dates (inclusive): 1851-1939
    Collection Number: photCL 58
    Creator: Lewis, Edwin L.
    Extent: 1261 photographs and negatives + ephemera and paper files in 28 boxes
    Repository: The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens. Photo Archives
    1151 Oxford Road
    San Marino, California 91108
    Phone: (626) 405-2191
    Email: reference@huntington.org
    URL: http://www.huntington.org
    Abstract: The collection consists of 1165 black-and-white photographs, 97 glass negatives, clippings, correspondence, manuscripts, notes, a card file, and a ledger book related to the Los Angeles Railway, 1851-1939, collected and created by Edwin L. Lewis, a longtime employee of the Los Angeles Railway Corporation. The collection provides a broad pictorial overview of the development of the railway systems in Los Angeles, California, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, as well as information on the physical development of the city itself.
    Language: English.

    Access

    Open to qualified researchers by prior application through the Reader Services Department. For more information, contact Reader Services.

    Administrative Information

    Publication Rights

    The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from or publish images of this material, nor does it charge fees for such activities. The responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and obtaining necessary permissions rests with the researcher.

    Preferred Citation

    Los Angeles Railway Corporation Photographs. The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

    Provenance

    Donated to the Huntington Library by Edwin L. Lewis, June 1939. The collection includes a number of manuscripts and scrapbooks, which are in the custody of the Manuscripts Department.

    Processing Information

    The collection was rehoused in 2005 by Jessica Gambling, which included sleeving all photographs and preservation photocopying clippings. Duplicate photographs (some are contemporary to the collection, others are copy photographs) have new numbers based on the existing system (e.g., 75a, 75b, 75c, etc.). Original clippings are in boxes 21 and 22; preservation photocopies of these clippings have been inserted into the original locations within the collection. This finding aid was created in January 2006 by Sue Luftschein.

    Historical Note

    The Los Angeles Railway Corporation (LARy) was the product of mergers and consolidations of numerous local and interurban railways in Los Angeles and adjacent communities. In 1910, Henry E. Huntington yielded his interests in the Pacific Electric Company to the Southern Pacific Railroad Company, which subsequently controlled the interurban lines, and he incorporated the Los Angeles Railway Company and other railway interests to form the Los Angeles Railway Corporation, which operated the Los Angeles city lines.
    This collection was compiled by Edwin L. Lewis (died 1943), who began working for the Los Angeles Cable Railway Company in 1888. Lewis became vice-president and manager of the Los Angeles Railway Land Company and manager of the Los Angeles Railway Building in 1921. He retired in 1939. Lewis collected the material as background information for his proposed book on the railway systems of Los Angeles. The two-volume history was never published, but exists in manuscript form and is housed in the Huntington's Manuscript Department.

    Scope and Contents

    The collection consists of 1165 black-and-white photographs, 97 glass negatives, clippings, correspondence, manuscripts, notes, a card file, and a ledger book related to the Los Angeles Railway, 1851-1939, collected and created by Edwin L. Lewis, a longtime employee of the Los Angeles Railway Corporation (LARy). The collection provides a broad pictorial overview of the development of the railway systems in Los Angeles, California in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, as well as information on the physical development of the city itself.
    Lewis began collecting the photographs and related clippings and correspondence as background information for his history of the railway systems of Los Angeles. The materials depict and describe views of Los Angeles, primarily downtown, but also some of the neighborhoods that grew as a result of the construction of the street car system; methods and modes of transportation and transportation-related subjects, primarily with regard to the Los Angeles Railway; and employees of the Railway and of the Los Angeles business community, and individuals who were in some way connected with the development of the railroad in Southern California.
    The collection is particularly strong in city scenes and panoramic views, primarily of downtown Los Angeles. These include "then and now" comparisons of various Los Angeles neighborhoods; business districts; hotels; city halls; school buildings; commercial and industrial buildings; post office buildings; churches; hospitals; holiday celebrations; and outlying areas (such as Catalina Island and San Diego). The transportation images include, but are not limited to, views of the railway; railway, street and cable cars; stations and station locations; and maps of rail lines. Also included are images of bicycles, carriages, and automobiles.
    The material related to individuals consists of biographical files and includes biographical sketches, notes on interviews conducted by Lewis, and/or correspondence, and describes LARy and other railroad employees, individuals who worked in industries connected with transportation, and business leaders in Southern California. The interviews are essentially oral histories, and provide a great deal of information on the development of both the railways in Los Angeles and the development of the city itself. The photographs included in the biographical files are portraits.
    The majority of the photographs are annotated on the reverse with location information, a short description, and/or identification of individuals. Some images include annotations on the front. Many of the photographs have clippings taped to the reverse. Some of the photographs exist in duplicate form; however, many of the duplicates are annotated with information not found on the original copy. Some photographs are missing.

    Arrangement

    The original arrangement of the collection is numerical (see the Container List), based on Lewis's numbering scheme. Each photograph is inscribed with a number that corresponds to the numbers in Lewis’s original ledger (located in box 21). The collection remains in numerical order, and is described at the folder level. Lewis also created a card file (box 27) arranged by subject, which was used to describe and access specific photographs. Item-level access is available through this card file in consultation with the Curator of Photographs. Every attempt has been made to be as inclusive as possible in the description of the folder contents; however, some folders contain images that span two or more subjects.
    In addition to photographs, each folder may contain correspondence, clippings and/or notes, and their presence is noted. The biographical files contain primarily textual materials; if photographs are present, they are noted.
    The collection has also been intellectually described in four broad subject areas in the Subject List following the Container List: Views of Los Angeles and vicinity; Transportation; Individuals; and Miscellaneous. Within the Views of Los Angeles, Transportation, and Miscellaneous subject areas, the arrangement is numerical. The individuals are listed alphabetically.
    The majority of the clippings and printed materials included with the photographs are preservation photocopies.

    Related materials in the Huntington Library

    Index Terms

    The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the Huntington Library's Online Catalog.  

    Persons:

    Beaudry, Prudent, d. 1893
    Bicknell, John D., d. 1911
    Child, Ozra W.
    Clark, Eli P., 1847-1931
    Crank, James Fillmore, d. 1935
    Downey, John Gately, ca. 1827-1894
    Eaton, Frederick, 1855-1934
    Garland, William May, b. 1866
    Griffith, Griffith Jenkins, Colonel, 1850-1919
    Harriman, Edward Henry, 1848-1909
    Haynes, John Randolph, b. 1853
    Hellman, Isaias W. (Isaias William), 1842-1920
    Hollenbeck, John Edward, 1829-1885
    Howland, Charles H., d. 1894
    Huntington, Henry Edwards, 1850-1927
    Huntington, Howard.
    Kuhrts, George J., 1869-1932
    Mellus, James J., d. 1935
    Pontius, David W.
    Randolph, Epes.
    Robinson, Henry Mauris, 1868-1937
    Sachse, Richard, b. 1881
    Sherman, Moses H., General, 1853-1932
    Weid, Ivar, 1837-1903
    Weid, Otto, d. 1934
    Widney, R. M. (Robert Maclay), 1838-1929
    Workman, Boyle, b. 1868
    Workman, Elijah H., 1835-1906
    Workman, William H., d. 1918

    Organizations:

    Los Angeles Railway
    Pacific Electric Railway Company

    Subjects:

    Business districts -- California -- Los Angeles
    Cable cars (Streetcars)
    Cityscapes -- California
    Church buildings -- California -- Los Angeles
    Commercial buildings -- California -- Los Angeles
    High Schools -- California -- Los Angeles
    Hotels -- California
    Panoramas -- California -- Los Angeles
    Railroad bridges
    Railroad stations -- California -- Los Angeles
    Railroads -- California
    Railroads -- Photographs
    Street-railroads -- Buildings and structures
    Street-railroads -- California -- Los Angeles
    Street-railroads -- Employees
    Street-railroads -- California -- Los Angeles -- Employees -- Biography
    Street-railroads -- Design and construction
    Street-railroads -- Maintenance and repair
    Vehicles -- California -- Los Angeles

    Document Types:

    Photographs.
    Correspondence.
    Clippings.
    Notes.
    Ledgers.
    Manuscripts.
    Card files.
    Negatives.