Description
Collection consists of one photograph
album and 57 photographic prints taken by photographer Laura Adams Armer in the San
Francisco Bay Area between 1899 and 1939. The photograph album includes portraits of family
and community members, political candidates, artists, photographers, sculptors and writers.
The mounted photographic prints depict various locations in San Francisco, including
Chinatown, the waterfront, Telegraph Hill, downtown, and general views of the city. Most
photographs show scenic views with people, particularly children. Mounted photographic
prints also include portraits of subjects known to Laura Adams Armer.
Background
Laura Adams Armer was born in Sacramento, California in 1874, and moved with her family to
San Francisco sometime before 1880. Armer attended the California School of Design in the
Mark Hopkins Institute, but left school in 1899 to open a photographic studio in the Flood
Building. Adams enjoyed a short career as a published and exhibited photographer before
marrying Sidnery Armer and relocating to Berkeley. Armer continued to photograph in the
early 1900s, becoming particularly fascinated with the Hope and Navajo of the American
Southwest who she documented in both photographs and writings. She died in 1963.
Restrictions
The California Historical Society (CHS) has no information about copyright ownership for
this collection and is not authorized to grant permission to publish or reproduce materials
from it.
Availability
CHS is not taking appointments for research at this time. Please check the Library's website updates: https://californiahistoricalsociety.org/collections/north-baker-research-library/