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Steele (Walter Henry Clarence) photographs
SC 001
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Title: Walter Henry Clarence Steele photographs
Date (inclusive): circa 1849-1979, undated
Date (bulk): circa 1900-1950
Collection Number: SC 001
Creator:
Walter Henry Clarence Steele
Extent:
3.0 Linear Feet
(6 document boxes)
Repository:
Pfau Library. Special Collections & University Archives
San Bernardino, CA 92407
Abstract: This collection contains historical
photographs of San Bernardino, CA and the Inland Empire region of Southern California taken
and collected by notable local photographer, Walter Henry Clarence Steele.
Languages: The collection is in English.
This collection is open for research.
Copyright Unknown: Some materials in these collections may be protected by the U.S.
Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.). In addition, the reproduction, and/or commercial use, of
some materials may be restricted by gift or purchase agreements, donor restrictions, privacy
and publicity rights, licensing agreement(s), and/or trademark rights. Distribution or
reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use requires
the written permission of the copyright owners. To the extent other restrictions apply,
permission for distribution or reproduction from the applicable rights holder is also
required. Responsibility for obtaining permissions, and for any use rests exclusively with
the user.
This collection was processed by Eric Milenkiewicz, University Archivist, with assistance from Janeth
Cisneros, Student Assistant (2022).
Walter Henry Clarence Steele photographs (SC 001). John M. Pfau Library. Special
Collections & University Archives. California State University, San Bernardino.
In 1974 professor Bruce Golden sent Pfau Library Director, Art Nelson, information on
Walter Steele's collection of historical photographs. Over the years Director Nelson
purchased over 600 of the photographs for Pfau Library Special Collections & University
Archives.
Collection Scope and Content Summary
This collection contains more than 600 historical photographs of San Bernardino, CA and the
Inland Empire region of Southern California taken and collected by notable local
photographer, Walter Henry Clarence Steele, in the late nineteenth to mid twentieth
centuries. The photographs primarily document the city of San Bernardino including buildings
of historical interest such as City Hall, the Arrowhead Springs Hotel, and Santa Fe Depot
along with numerous street views and city scenes. Additional photographs of cities in San
Bernardino County and beyond including Redlands, Riverside, Big Bear, Lake Arrowhead, Los
Angeles, and San Francisco are also present in the collection.
Walter Henry Clarence Steele was born in Berlin, North Dakota in 1897. His initial interest
in photography was sparked by his father and he later received formal training as a
photographer from the Eastman and Ansco companies, two of the major camera manufacturers of
that era. Steele came to San Bernardino, California in 1920, after serving in the United
States military, and began working in his father's photo studio located in Urbita Springs
Park (an area in San Bernardino). While there he met his future wife Beatrice Preston and
the couple was married in 1923. Together they had two daughters, Eloise Coats and Evelyn
Cranston. The couple operated Steele's Photo Service in San Bernardino for decades, and
Walter became known as the unofficial "official photographer" of San Bernardino. He was the
first official photographer of the National Orange Show, serving in that capacity for 30
years, and was also the only photographer for the San Bernardino County Sun newspaper in its
early years. Walter documented the growth of San Bernardino through his photography,
capturing the city as it changed and evolved over the years. Walter Steele passed away on
February 5, 1985 at the age of 87. Five years later in 1992, the family closed down Steele's
Photo Service. A few years after the business was closed Beatrice Steele passed away at the
age of 97 on December 19, 1996.
This collection is arranged into the following three series:
- Series 1: City of San Bernardino, circa 1849-1979, undated.
- Series 2: Other Cities in San Bernardino County, circa 1850-1963, undated.
- Series 3: Other Cities in California/Nevada, 1912-1961.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the
library's online public access catalog.
Buildings
Inland Empire (Calif.)
Landscapes
People
San Bernardino (Calif.)
Steele's Photo Service
Streets
Walter Henry Clarence Steele
Photographs