Andreas Brown Collection, 1683-1984

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Summary

Creators:
Brown, Andreas
Abstract:
The collection is comprised of San Diego related materials collected by Andreas Brown, a San Diego native and one-time owner of Gotham Book Mart in New York City.
Extent:
5.5 Linear feet (9 boxes)
Language:
and Collection materials are in English and Spanish.
Preferred citation:

Andreas Brown Collection, MS 270, San Diego History Center Document Collection, San Diego, CA.

Background

Scope and content:

The collection consists primarily of ephemera related to San Diego history, events, people, and organizations, but also includes original documents, including correspondence. There are maps related to specific San Diego neighborhoods, like Coronado, and advertisements for prominent businesses. Administrative materials regarding San Diego city departments are present, as are documents about transportation, including the San Diego Trolley and the major San Diego railways. There are also publications and announcements of local school activities.

A large portion of the collection relates to tourist information, especially the two major exhibitions held in San Diego: the Panama-California Exposition (1916-1916) and the California Pacific International Exposition (1935-1936). Other tourism materials include guidebooks, travel maps, and pamphlets about local attractions, including the San Diego Zoo.

Of particular interest are original documents Brown collected, including an 1846 inventory of the San Diego Mission and a copy of a 17th century map of California by famous map maker Alain Manesson Mallet.

Biographical / historical:

Andreas Brown grew up in Coronado, San Diego. He graduated from Hoover High School in 1951and then earned a degree in economics from San Diego State University. After graduating, he pursued law school at Stanford University, but quickly abandoned the idea after a brief stint with the U.S. Army’s Judge Advocate General Corps. After returning to San Diego where he taught speech at SDSU for 3 years, he moved to San Francisco, where he started working as an appraiser for rare books and manuscripts.

Brown frequently visited New York on business, and became a regular at Gotham Book Mart and friends with the bookstore’s owner, Frances Steloff. Steloff later sold the store to Brown in 1967. Brown went on to run the Gotham Book Mart until it closed in 2007. Throughout his tenure there, Brown collected a large variety of materials related to his hometown, much of which he passed on to San Diego Historical Society.

Acquisition information:
Accession numbers 840519A, 860703B, 870113A, 880329A, 900724, 910612, 971201, 980909a-h.
Processing information:

Collection processed by Lauren Rasmussen on May 21, 2012.

Collection processed as part of grant project supported by the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) with generous funding from The Andrew Mellon Foundation.

Arrangement:

The collection is arranged into eight series:

Series I: San Diego City and County

Series II: Business

Series III: Transportation

Series IV: Tourism

Series V: Schools

Series VI: Organizations and Activities

Series VII: Literature, Music, and Entertainment

Series VIII: Original Documents

Items in each series are arranged by subject.

Physical / technical requirements:

Some paper documents are fragile. (May 3, 2012)

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

This collection is open for research.

Terms of access:

The San Diego History Center (SDHC) holds the copyright to any unpublished materials. SDHC Library regulations do apply.

Preferred citation:

Andreas Brown Collection, MS 270, San Diego History Center Document Collection, San Diego, CA.

Location of this collection:
1649 El Prado, Suite 3
San Diego, CA 92101, US
Contact:
(619) 232-6203
Website