Historical Society of Southern California Collection -- Leuschner Collection of Photographs: Finding
Aid
Finding aid prepared by Jessica Gambling.
The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens
Photo Archives
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, California 91108
Phone: (626) 405-2191
Email: reference@huntington.org
URL: http://www.huntington.org
© July 18, 2006
The Huntington Library. All rights reserved.
Overview of the Collection
Title: Historical Society of Southern California Collection -- Leuschner Collection of Photographs
Dates (inclusive): approximately 1893-1905
Collection Number: photCL 400 Volume 29
Collector:
Leuschner, Herbert.
Extent:
83 photographs in 1 box (0.42 linear feet)
Repository:
The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens.
Photo Archives
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, California 91108
Phone: (626) 405-2191
Email: reference@huntington.org
URL: http://www.huntington.org
Abstract: Collection of 83 loose card photographs primarily depicting Los Angeles, California, from circa 1893 to 1905.
The photographs were originally donated to the Historical Society of Southern California by Herbert Leuschner. The collection
includes a number of photographs by
the Garden City Foto Company and F. H. Maude and Company depicting Los Angeles parks, homes and buildings; California missions;
the Fiesta de los Flores of 1901;
Mount Lowe attractions; and Catalina Island.
Language: English.
Access
Open to qualified researchers by prior application through the Reader Services Department. For more information, contact Reader
Services.
Administrative Information
Publication Rights
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
Historical Society of Southern California Collection -- Leuschner Collection of Photographs. The Huntington Library, San Marino,
California.
Provenance
Donated to the Huntington Library by the Historical Society of Southern California, 1992.
The collection, identified by Huntington Library catalogers as "Volume 29," was received as a part of the Historical Society
of Southern California Collection.
The photographs had been given to the Historical Society by Herbert Leuschner.
There is no additional information regarding the donor or the circumstances of the donation.
Processing Information
The collection was rehoused by Huntington Library volunteers prior to 2006. In April 2006, Jessica Gambling organized the
photographs, assigned numbers and created this finding aid.
Related materials in the Huntington Library
The sub-collections of the Historical Society of Southern California Collection (photCL 400) are
individually cataloged in the
Huntington Online Catalog.
Historical Note
Founded in 1883, the Historical Society of Southern California (HSSC) is the oldest historical society in California. As part
of its mission to collect and preserve Southern California’s history,
the HSSC amassed a photo archive over many decades. The HSSC shifted its emphasis to programs and publications in the 1980s
and, in 1992, the organization donated its photo archive to The Huntington Library.
The Historical Society of Southern California Collection contains approximately 15,000 photographs and negatives focused on
Southern California from approximately 1870 to 1980. As such, it is an
important visual record of the growth and history of the region. The collection represents a variety of donations made to
the Society over many years. It is organized into discrete sub-collections
(each with a unique “volume” number) within the overall collection, which is identified by call number photCL 400.
Scope and Content
Collection of 83 loose card photographs primarily depicting Los Angeles, California, from circa 1893 to 1905.
The photographs were originally donated to the Historical Society of Southern California by Herbert Leuschner. The images
consist of 22 (9-1/2 x 6-3/4 inch) mounted photographs and 61 (5 x 8 inch and smaller) mounted photographs. The collection
includes a number of photographs by
the Garden City Foto Company and F. H. Maude and Company depicting Los Angeles parks, homes and buildings; California missions;
the Fiesta de los Flores of 1901;
Mount Lowe attractions; and Catalina Island.
Number 1-48 are almost exclusively by the Garden City Foto Company and F. H. Maude and Company. They depict Los Angeles parks,
homes and buildings; California missions; the Fiesta de los Flores of 1901;
Mount Lowe attractions; and Catalina Island.
Number 49-68 are predominantly images of the Fiesta de los Flores of 1901 taken by the Garden City Foto Company. Photographs
show participants in the Fiesta parade, including children, as well as flower
decorated carriages, wagons, floats, automobiles, and bicycles. Unidentified marching bands, military and civilian groups,
and spectators are also depicted. There are also unidentified floral parade
photographs which may be depictions of participants in the same event. The Fiesta de los Flores was a later embodiment of
the Fiesta de Los Angeles which had been cancelled for three years due to
insecurities about its Spanish character during the Spanish-American War. Like the Fiesta de Los Angeles, the celebration
was meant to attract tourists and stimulate commerce for the city of Los Angeles
and the surrounding communities, but its themes focused less on California's Spanish Colonial past and highlighted its more
contemporary and patriotic attributes. The first Fiesta de los Flores coincided
with President William McKinley's visit to Los Angeles in 1901.
Number 69-78 are miscellaneous images. This group includes photographs by the Garden City Foto Company, one portrait by
the Dewey Company, and one stereo image published by Underwood and Underwood.
Arrangement
The photographs are organized by subject:
Los Angeles parks; general Los Angeles views; California missions and historic sites; Pasadena, Santa Monica, and Catalina
Island; Fiesta de los Flores; unidentified flower parade images; and miscellaneous.
Index Terms
Organizations:
Fiesta de las Flores, Los Angeles, Calif.--Photographs.
F.H. Maude and Co.
Garden City Foto Company.
Places:
Lowe, Mount (Los Angeles County, Calif.)--Photographs.
Santa Catalina Island (Calif.)--Photographs.
Subjects:
Commercial buildings--California--Los Angeles--Photographs.
Dwellings--California--Los Angeles--Photographs.
Missions--California--Photographs.
Parades--California--Los Angeles--Photographs.
Document Types:
Photographs.
Box 1, Items 1-13
Los Angeles parks. Westlake; Eastlake; Hollenbeck Park; Elysian, undated
Box 1, Items 14-26
Los Angeles. City views and buildings, ca. 1890s, undated
Box 1, Items 27-42
California missions; the marriage place of Ramona; General Fremont's Los Angeles Headquarters, ca. 1890s, undated
Box 1, Items 43-47
Pasadena and Santa Monica, ca. 1890s-1900s, undated
Box 1, Items 48-50
Catalina Island, ca. 1890s, undated
Box 1, Items 51-60
Fiesta de los Flores Parade, 1901
Box 1, Items 72-81
Miscellaneous, 1894, 1897, 1906, undated
