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California Constitutional Centennial Celebration, 1949
ARC 557
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Title: California Constitutional Centennial Celebration, 1949
Dates: 1944-1954
Collection Number: ARC 557
Creator/Collector:
Extent: 2 scrapbooks; 56 x 44 x 11 cm.
Repository:
Monterey Public Library
Monterey, California 93940
Abstract: The 1949 centennial celebration of the California Constitutional Convention in Monterey went on for eight days. It was part
of a state-wide celebration to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Californiaʼs first constitutional convention held at Colton
Hall in 1849. Governor Earl Warren, Lt. Governor Goodwin Knight, and other public officials attended. Entertainers such as
Ginger Rogers, Jack Benny, Leo Carillo, Duncan Rinaldo, and the opera singer Florence Quartararo made public appearances and
performed. The celebration included historical pageants and dress, Spanish/Mexican dancing, parades, organ recitals, theatrical
performances, band concerts, a horse show and livestock exhibits at the Fairgrounds, adobe tours, the annual Merienda, lectures
on the history of Monterey, and a Grand Centennial Ball at the Naval Postgraduate (Line) School. A centennial village was
recreated at the Monterey Peninsula College football stadium, where many of the events took place.
Language of Material: English
Access by appointment only; contact Local History Librarian or designated staff.
Reproduction by Local History Librarian or other designated staff; may be restricted due to condition of the materials.
[Identification of item]. California Constitutional Centennial Celebration, 1949. Collection Number: ARC 557. Monterey Public
Library
Scope and Content of Collection
The two oversized scrapbooks contain a wide range of materials: programs, invitations, proclamations, newspaper and magazine
articles, press releases, newsletters, announcements, brochures, correspondence, posters, maps, postcards, and photographs.
All materials are related to the events and history surrounding the 1949 centennial of the California Constitutional Convention.
Volume I includes articles from the special issue of the Monterey Peninsula Herald (August 27, 1949) devoted to California
and Monterey Peninsula history, as well as the materials listed above. Also contains material on the concurring centennials
of the Monterey Post Office and the Monterey Public Library.
Volume II contains several programs: the Monterey Freedom Exhibit held at Colton Hall in 1948, the California Centennial Commissionʼs
Historical Caravan, the Gold Rush Centennial (1948), the historical pageant Beginnings of Statehood, and the Monterey Centennial
Program for the August 29-September 5 events. It also includes a brochure, California the Golden State, commemorating the
three designated centennial years, 1948, 1949, 1950; a Centennial calendar for 1950; a resolution by the Monterey City Council,
in February 1944, to establish a public museum on the second floor of Colton Hall; a reading list prepared by the Monterey
Public Library; the Centennial Executive Committee meeting minutes; and issues of Whatʼs Doing magazine for 1949.
California Centennial Celebration
California Constitutional Convention
Joseph R. Knowland
Monterey Centennial Celebration Executive Committee
Monterey Peninsula Herald
Monterey, California
Colton Hall
Scrapbooks