Professionally-photographed views of the Mission Inn in Riverside, Calif., taken by various photographers, chiefly at the turn of the 20th century.

Patrick J. Rafferty’s collection on Riverside’s Mission Inn is the result of a life-long passion for the historic hotel. He first saw the inn at age seven, on a visit to his grandmother who lived nearby. As a teen in the 1970s he began spending significant time exploring the property. He endeared himself to generations of inn managers, staff, family members (e.g. Miller family member Roberta Richardson), and fellow “Friends” by learning as much as he could, not only about the architecture and guestrooms, but also the magic shop, book bindery, music room and stained glass studios. As the youngest member of the Artifacts Committee, under the leadership of Esther Klotz, the teenage Patrick was actively involved in securing, preserving and restoring art and artifacts from the Mission Inn's collection. His first professional position with the inn was as Executive Housekeeper, at age 20, overseeing a staff of six along with 20 guestrooms, 137 apartments and multiple public spaces. The Mission Inn and its history became the focus of Patrick Rafferty's collecting. He amassed historic postcards, ephemera, photographs, and other artifacts over decades, while pursuing a career in the hospitality industry as a manager of properties in San Francisco and Hawaii.

37 photographs in 3 boxes : lantern slides and glass negatives ; sheets 22 x 17 cm or smaller

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