Last (Jay T.) Collection of Politics and Social Issues Prints and Ephemera, approximately 1802-1952, bulk 1850-1910

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Summary

Title:
Jay T. Last Collection of Politics and Social Issues Prints and Ephemera
Dates:
approximately 1802-1952, bulk 1850-1910
Creators:
Last, Jay T.
Abstract:
The Jay T. Last Collection of Politics and Social Issues Prints and Ephemera contains approximately 400 printed items related to American political figures and activists of the 19th and early 20th centuries along with social causes and issues often linked to political activities, most notably the temperance movement. Materials date from the early 1800s to the 1950s, with the bulk of the items dating from 1850 to 1910. Most of these items are lithographed portraits and political cartoons.
Extent:
approximately 400 items
Language:
English.
Preferred citation:

[Item title, Call number]. Jay T. Last Collection of Politics and Social Issues Prints and Ephemera, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Background

Scope and content:

The Jay T. Last Collection of Politics and Social Issues Prints and Ephemera contains approximately 400 printed items related to politics and social issues in the United States from the 1800s to the 1950s, with the bulk of the items dating from 1850 to 1910. Most of these items are lithographs, but engravings and woodcuts are also included.

Materials are arranged in two series: small-size items (11 x 14 inches or less) and large-size items (more than 11 x 14 inches). Small-size items are described broadly at the series level; large-size items and select small-size items are fully inventoried with printers, artists, and publishers indexed by name. The collection includes over 130 large-size items comprised mainly of lithographed commemorative portraits of United States presidents, political cartoons and caricatures, views of civic buildings and correctional facilities, and portraits of political candidates. Small-size items number approximately 270 and contain a variety of materials, including small-format portraits, album card sets, trade cards, election or rally tickets, and ribbons.

The collection highlights both well-known and less recognized American political figures and activists of the 19th and early 20th centuries along with social causes and issues often linked to political activities, most notably the temperance movement. The images provide a rich visual resource for studying the history of American governance of citizens including national, state, and local laws, issues, elections, and causes, as well as a perspective on portraiture, caricatures, and political cartoons of the 19th and early 20th centuries. As graphic materials, the prints and ephemera offer evidence of developing techniques and trends in printmaking, and of the artists, engravers, lithographers, printers, and publishers involved in the creative process.

Biographical / historical:

The Jay T. Last Collection is an unparalleled archive of printed paper artifacts that documents American lithographic, social, and business history. The collection began in the early 1970s when physicist and Silicon Valley pioneer Jay Last moved to Southern California and started collecting citrus box labels he found at local flea markets and rummage sales. As his collection grew, Last realized that these labels conveyed important information about commercial printing, graphic design, and social history, and he expanded his collection to include other forms of American visual culture. Today this collection contains more than 200,000 lithographic prints, posters, and ephemera of mostly nineteenth- and early twentieth- century American origin and represents works by more than five hundred lithographic companies.

Acquisition information:
This collection forms part of the Jay T. Last Collection of Graphic Arts and Social History, which was donated to the Huntington Library by Jay T. Last in 2005 as a gift in progress. The bulk of the Politics and Social Issues prints and ephemera were transferred to the Library between 2010 and 2012 .
Arrangement:

The collection is arranged in the following two series:

  • Series I. Politics and Social Issues Prints and Ephemera (small size)
  • Series II. Politics and Social Issues Prints and Ephemera (large size)

Items are arranged numerically by call number and described in the following format:

  • Title of print. Date
  • Artist(s) (when known). Printer(s). Publisher(s)

Rules or conventions:
Finding aid prepared using Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Note:

Finding aid last updated on July 24, 2020.

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Finding aid prepared by Charla DelaCuadra.
Date Prepared:
© 2015
Date Encoded:
Machine readable finding aid encoded by Charla DelaCuadra in July 2015 .

Access and use

Restrictions:

Open to qualified researchers by prior application through the Reader Services Department. For more information, contact Reader Services.

Terms of access:

The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from or publish images of this material, nor does it charge fees for such activities. The responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and obtaining necessary permissions rests with the researcher.

Preferred citation:

[Item title, Call number]. Jay T. Last Collection of Politics and Social Issues Prints and Ephemera, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Location of this collection:
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108, US
Contact:
(626) 405-2191
reference@huntington.org
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