Collection context
Summary
- Creators:
- California State University, Northridge. University Library
- Abstract:
- Tourism and real estate promotion have been longtime means of encouraging people to vacation and settle in California. The California Tourism and Promotional Literature Collection includes county, regional, and statewide promotional literature used to promote tourism and real estate development across the state of California.
- Extent:
- 7.50 linear feet
- Language:
- English .
- Preferred citation:
-
For information about citing items in this collection consult the appropriate style manual, or see the Citing Archival Materialsguide.
Background
- Scope and content:
-
The California Tourism and Promotional Literature Collection consists of promotional material aimed at attracting visitors, settlers, and real estate investment to the state of California. The bulk of the material dates from 1880 to 1940, and includes tour and event booklets, travel guides, personal journals, street and real estate tract maps, posters, folded brochures, pamphlets, postcards, magazines, menus, drawings, photographs, and souvenirs. The collection is made up of fifty-five series arranged by region and county, the largest of which is for Los Angeles County. There are several series dedicated to statewide promotional literature, one series dedicated to California tours and excursions, and one series dedicated to souvenirs.
The collection offers a variety of materials illustrating many different reasons to travel to California including tourism, health, and agriculture. In terms of tourism, the collection includes many pamphlets from the late 19th and early 20th centuries, most of which are produced by the Southern Pacific Company, which advertise cross-country trips by railway from places such as Boston and New Orleans to California. These trips generally traveled throughout California and advertise the scenic beauty of Yosemite and the Sequoia forest; the vast diversity of climate; the plethora of outdoor activities; and famous hotels such as The Raymond in Pasadena, the Palace in San Francisco, the Hotel del Monte in Monterey, the U.S. Grant Hotel in San Diego, and the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles.
The collection also includes pamphlets containing information on the history and locations of the various California missions, including those in San Diego, San Juan Capistrano, San Fernando, and Santa Barbara. Additionally, there is much material describing the history of the California gold rush and the tours of numerous ghost towns and related locations. More recent items contain information regarding Hollywood and the film industry, the Cawston Ostrich Ranch in South Pasadena, San Francisco's Chinatown, Catalina Island, and Inyo County's Death Valley, as well as various posters and pamphlets for individual restaurants, hotels, and theaters.
California's weather is sometimes referred to as the "eternal spring," and is generally described to be a wonderland of health and goodness. Pamphlets issued by individual counties advertise the beautiful beaches of Los Angeles and Orange County and describe various areas as a wonderful respite from the harsher weather conditions in other parts of the country. There are also handouts advertising winter resorts in places like Palm Springs, where visitors may escape the cold of the winter months in order to spend time resting and recuperating.
The collection also includes pamphlets and booklets promoting immigration, migration, and settlement. These materials typically include information on agricultural in California, especially the cultivation of olives, figs, cherries, peaches, oranges, grapes, almonds, walnuts, and raising of livestock. Other economic opportunities described include oil, lumber, dairy, and viticulture, with information on average wages and cost of living. Also advertised are the various connecting railroads and, in the more modern booklets, the vast highway system covering the state.
- Biographical / historical:
-
The library created this collection of materials for study and research.
- Arrangement:
-
Series 1: California Tours and Excursions, 1881-1931
Series 2: Statewide Promotional Literature, 1860-1947
Series 3: California's Central Region, 1915
Series 4: Southern California, 1886-1940
Series 5: California Statewide Promotional Literature, 1886-1936
Series 6: Alameda County, 1901-1940
Series 7: Butte County, 1898-1926
Series 8: Calaveras Promotional Literature
Series 9: Colusa County
Series 10: Contra Costa County
Series 11: El Dorado County, 1940
Series 12: Fresno County, 1890-1925
Series 13: Glenn County, 1915
Series 14: Humboldt County
Series 15: Imperial County, 1910-1928
Series 16: Riverside County, 1902-1938
Series 17: Inyo County, 1912-1936
Series 18: Kern County, 1915-1934
Series 19: Lake County, 1898-1951
Series 20: Los Angeles County, 1885-1997
Series 21: Madera County, 1912
Series 22: Marin County, 1888-1919
Series 23: Mariposa County, 1915-1927
Series 24: Mendocino County
Series 25: Merced County, 1915
Series 26: Monterey County, 1891-1996
Series 27: Mono County
Series 28: Napa County
Series 29: Nevada County
Series 30: Orange County, 1949
Series 31: Placer County, 1880-1935
Series 32: Plumas County, 1910
Series 33: Sacramento County, 1911
Series 34: San Benito County, 1910-1915
Series 35: San Bernardino County, 1910-1937
Series 36: San Diego County, 1886-1935
Series 37: San Francisco, 1878-1947
Series 38: San Joaquin County
Series 39: San Luis Obispo County, 1940
Series 40: San Mateo County
Series 41: Santa Barbara County, 1906-1913
Series 42: Santa Clara County, 1871-1915
Series 43: Santa Cruz County, 1895-1938
Series 44: Shasta County
Series 45: Siskiyou County, 1910-1915
Series 46: Solano County
Series 47: Sonoma County, 1915-1931
Series 48: Stanislaus County, 1879-1925
Series 49: Sutter County, 1915
Series 50: Tulare County, 1920-1935
Series 51: Tuolumne County, 1888-1909
Series 52: Ventura County, 1915-1933
Series 53: Yolo County, 1915
Series 54: Yuba County, 1913
Series 55: Northern California, 1903-1933
- Rules or conventions:
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Access and use
- Restrictions:
-
The collection is open for research use.
- Terms of access:
-
Copyright for unpublished materials authored or otherwise produced by the creator(s) of this collection has not been transferred to California State University, Northridge. Copyright status for other materials is unknown. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.) beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owners. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.
- Preferred citation:
-
For information about citing items in this collection consult the appropriate style manual, or see the Citing Archival Materialsguide.
- Location of this collection:
-
18111 Nordhoff StreetNorthridge, CA 91330, US
- Contact:
- (818) 677-4594