Description
Photographs, videos, printed materials, papers, and a small amount of audio and film documenting the San Francisco-based department
store, from its early days as a local shop through its expansion into a regional and then a national chain via mergers with
Bullock's, Federated Department Stores, and Macy's. Includes extensive files on individual I. Magnin stores, designers, advertising
and publicity, and events, as well as a small amount of Magnin family papers.
Background
The story of I. Magnin department store, with its ascension from a simple notion store of modest investment to a multi-million
dollar Pacific coast store chain, as well as its financial decline in its last decades, signifies one of the great romances
of the retail trade world.
Extent
46 boxes, 14 unboxed portfolios
(75.83 cubic feet)
Restrictions
Copyright has been assigned to the San Francisco Public Library. All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts
must be submitted in writing to the City Archivist. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the San Francisco Public
Library as the owner of the physical items and the copyright.
Availability
The collection is available for use during San Francisco History Center hours, with photographs available during Photo Desk
hours. Collections that are stored offsite should be requested 48 hours in advance.