Collection Guide
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California Stereograph Collection
MSS-2010-09-18
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Table of contents
Language of Material:
English
Contributing Institution:
SJSU Special Collections & Archives
Title: California Stereograph Collection, 1906-1925
creator:
Creators: Keystone Stereographic Company, Underwood and Underwood, The Union View Company, and others
creator:
Moreland Steven;
Identifier/Call Number: MSS-2010-09-18
Physical Description:
1 Box
(0.3 linear feet)
Date (inclusive): 1906-1925
Abstract: The California Stereograph Collection consists of seventy-eight cards published by the Keystone View Company, Underwood &
Underwood, the Union View Company, and other small publishing houses. Stereograph views were produced in the millions by photographers
all over the world. Stereographs provided a very popular entertainment medium predating television and film. The collection
represented here documents the natural landscape of California, San Francisco, and Yosemite. The images depicting San Francisco
include the 1906 Earthquake, the Cliff House, and Ferry Building. Images of California include Catalina Island, Mount Shasta,
various California Missions, including the Mission Santa Barbara, the Mission Hotel in Riverside, Mission Park San Diego,
Stanford University, agricultural processing and packing, and other miscellaneous views of California. The views of Yosemite
include some photographs taken by J.J. Reilly of Half Dome, Glacier Point, Bridal Veil, El Capitan, and Vernal Falls. The
collection is arranged into one series: Series I. California Card Stereographs, 1906-1925.
Collection is open for research.
Copyright is not assigned to the San José State University Special Collections & Archives. All of the images published before
1923 reside in the public domain. All requests for permission to publish or quote from the collection must be submitted in
writing to the Director of Special Collections. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the Special Collections &
Archives, as owners of the physical collection. Copyright restrictions may apply to digital reproductions of the original
materials. Use of digital files is restricted to research and educational purposes.
The California Stereograph Collection, MSS-2010-09-18, San José State University Library Special Collections & Archives.
Collection processed by Lisa Zakharova. Finding aid EAD encoded by Lisa Zakharova. Reviewed by Danelle Moon.
Stereographs became a very popular entertainment medium from the 1850s to the 1930s, though a few companies continued to produce
stereographic images until the 1970s. Many different photographic processes were used to produce stereographs, including daguerreotypes,
ambrotypes, wet plate glass positives, salt paper prints, albumen prints, and gelatin prints. Stereographs were formed of
two images placed side by side and mounted on cardboard. They were commonly produced with cameras that had two lenses side
by side. Stereographic cards were produced in the millions by photographers all over the world. Invented in England, the novelty
and attraction of stereograph formats spread across Europe and the United States.
Stereograph cards were first made available commercially In 1854 by the London Stereoscopic Company. The card view is a double-image
photograph mounted on cardboard. Noted photographers such as Edward Muybridge, B.W. Kilburn, and J.J. Reilly became well known
for their stereographic work, though only a few of the images in this collection can be attributed to J.J. Reilly, who later
became quite famous for his photography of Yosemite.
Stereographs provided a very popular entertainment medium predating television and film. Keystone and Underwood produced stereographic
sets packaged in box sets with spines that resembled classic book bindings, accompanied by descriptive guide books written
by recognized scholars, copyrighted maps depicting the exact location of the photograph, and the arrangement of sets by subject
intended for primary and secondary school instruction. Stereographic views cover a diverse range of subjects and include topographic
views, local history, events, industries and trade, urban and country life, portraits of famous people, and the production
of box sets of World War I and World War II. The box sets ranged in size from 50 to 200 images per box, and were viewed through
a stereoscope, which produced a unique three-dimensional (3-D) effect.
The collection represented here documents the natural landscape of California, San Francisco, and Yosemite. The images depicting
San Francisco include the 1906 Earthquake, the Cliff House, and Ferry Building. Images of California include Catalina Island,
Mount Shasta, various California Missions, including the Mission Santa Barbara, the Mission Hotel in Riverside, Mission Park
San Diego, Stanford University, agricultural processing and packing, and other miscellaneous views of California. The views
of Yosemite include some photographs taken by J.J. Reilly of Half Dome, Glacier Point, Bridal Veil, El Capitan, and Vernal
Falls. This set contains some hand-colored photographs, but the collection is an artificial collection, where the collector
purchased individual cards and organized them in similar subject categories defined by Keystone and Underwood. The cards are
contained in an Underwood Company box.
Scope and Content of Collection
The California Card Stereograph Collection consists of seventy-eight cards published by the Keystone View Company, Underwood
& Underwood, the Union View Company, and other small publishing houses. Stereograph views were produced in the millions by
photographers all over the world. Invented in England, the novelty and attraction of stereograph formats spread across Europe
and the United States. Stereograph cards were first made available commercially in 1854 by the London Stereoscopic Company.
The card view is a double-image photograph mounted on cardboard. Noted photographers such Edward Muybridge, B.W. Kilburn,
and J.J. Reilly became well known for their stereographic work, though only a few of the images in this collection can be
attributed to J.J. Reilly, who later became quite famous for his photography of Yosemite.
Stereographs provided a very popular entertainment medium predating television and film. The collection represented here documents
the natural landscape of California, San Francisco, and Yosemite. The images depicting San Francisco include the 1906 Earthquake,
the Cliff House, and Ferry Building. Images of California include Catalina Island, Mount Shasta, various California Missions,
including the Mission Santa Barbara, the Mission Hotel in Riverside, Mission Park San Diego, Stanford University, agricultural
processing and packing, and other miscellaneous views of California. The views of Yosemite include some photographs taken
by J.J. Reilly of Half Dome, Glacier Point, Bridal Veil, El Capitan, and Vernal Falls. The collection is arranged into one
series: Series I. California Card Stereographs, 1906-1925.
The collection is arranged into one series: Series I. California Stereocards, 1906-1925.
The Keystone View Company Stereocard Collection, MSS-2010-08-25
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Education--Geography
History--California
Keystone View Company
Natural Landmarks--History
San Francisco Earthquake and Fire, Calif., 1906.
Stereographs
Underwood & Underwood
Union View Company
Creators: Keystone Stereographic Company, Underwood and Underwood, The Union View Company, and others
Moreland Steven;