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Von Blon (John L.) Photograph Collection
AR.2022.001
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Contributing Institution:
Gledhill Library
Title: Von Blon (John L.) Photograph Collection
Creator:
Von Blon, John L. (John Litchfield), 1871-1957
Creator:
Edgerton, Glenn
Creator:
Packwood, Dave
source:
Automobile Club of Southern California
source:
Von Blon, Henriette B. (Henriette Boeckmann), 1891-1961
Identifier/Call Number: AR.2022.001
Physical Description:
334 Photographic Prints
Date (inclusive): 1920-1940
Abstract: The John L. Von Blon Photograph Collection contains photographs of western landscapes, automobiles, buildings, construction
of a Mexican railroad, Santa Barbara, California, and portraits. The black and white photos were taken primarily by John L.
Von Blon.
Language of Material:
English
.
Container: 990.0
Three hundred thirty four (334) scenic black and white photographs, primarily of the Western United States, but includes some
images of a Mexican railroad under construction, mining, and possibly Argentina. Three (3) typewritten manuscripts accompany
Von Blon's photographs of Death Valley Junction (1922), a water lily garden in Bishop, California, and marble top picnic tables
at Texas Springs Campground in Death Valley.
John Litchfield Von Blon (1871-1957) was born in Ohio and later moved to California where he was city editor for the
Los Angeles Times and publicity editor for the Automobile Club of Southern California's
Touring Topics/Westways magazine from 1929-1934. Von Blon was also published in
Scientific American. He and his wife Henriette spent time on the Van Dyke Ranch near Barstow in early 1950s and then retired to Santa Barbara's
Riviera in 1954.
The John L. Von Blon Photograph Collection is arranged in six files:
1) People
2) Landscapes
3) Automobiles and Structures
4) Railroad Construction and Mining
5) Santa Barbara, 1922-1923
6) Postcards
Von Blon (Henriette B.) Collection, 1956-011, Gledhill Library, Santa Barbara Historical Museum, Santa Barbara, California.
The John L. Von Blon Photograph Collection was processed by Chris S. Ervin and Kerri Phillip in April 2022.
[Identification of file], John L. Von Blon Photograph Collection, AR-2022-001, Gledhill Library, Santa Barbara Historical
Museum, Santa Barbara, California.
Collection is open for research.
Property rights reside with the Santa Barbara Historical Museum. For permissions to reproduce or to publish, please contact
the Head Archivist of the Gledhill Library.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Adobe brick
Argentina
Bishop (Calif.)
Bishop Creek (Inyo County, Calif.)
Bridges -- Design and construction
Cattle herders
Charcoal kilns
Coachella Valley (Calif.)
Dams
Death Valley (Calif. and Nev.)
Death Valley Junction (Calif.)
Devils Postpile National Monument (Calif.)
Gold mines and mining
Long Valley (Mono County, Calif.)
Maps
Mammoth Lakes (Calif.)
Mexico
Mojave Desert
Mono Lake (Calif.)
National Park-to-Park Highway
Owens Lake (Inyo County, Calif.)
Owens River Gorge (Calif.)
Owens Valley (Calif.)
Pacific Coast Highway (Calif.-Wash.)
Railroads
Rhyolite (Nev.)
San Gabriel River Valley (Calif.)
Sunset Highway (Wash.)
Traffic congestion
Twenty-mule teams
Amargosa Opera House (Death Valley Junction, Calif.)
Carson and Colorado Railroad
Los Angeles County Fair (Los Angeles County, Calif.)
Santa Barbara Botanic Garden
Scott, Walter E., 1872-1954
Scotty's Castle (Calif.)
Sweeney Granite Mountains Desert Research Center (Calif.)
Automobile Club of Southern California
Von Blon, Henriette B. (Henriette Boeckmann), 1891-1961