Guide to the Clark B. Waterhouse Photograph Collection, 1915-1916

Guide prepared by Leilani Marshall

Sourisseau Academy for State and Local History

San Jose State University

One Washington Square

San Jose, CA 95192-0147

Email: research@sourisseauacademy.org

URL: http://www.sourisseauacademy.org

2006

Guide to the Clark B. Waterhouse Photograph Collection, 1915-1916

ECS01.01

Sourisseau Academy for State and Local History

Contact Information:

Sourisseau Academy for State and Local History
San Jose State University
One Washington Square
San Jose, CA 95192-0147
Phone: (408) 808-2064
Email: research@sourisseauacademy.org
URL: http://www.sourisseauacademy.org/

Descriptive Summary

Title: Clark B. Waterhouse Photograph Collection,

dates: 1915-1916

Collection Number: ECS01.01

Creator: Waterhouse, Clark B.

Extent: 305 photographs Selected online items available

Repository: Sourisseau Academy for State and Local History, San Jose State University

San Jose, California 95192

Abstract: The Clark B. Waterhouse Photograph Collection is comprised of 305 black and white photographs that were originally organized in a scrapbook. It is assumed that Waterhouse was the photographer of the collection, as the bulk of the photos are from a six-week trip he took with classmates and professors from the University of California (Berkeley) during the summer of 1916.

Language of Material: All material is in English.

Access

Collection is open for research.

Publication Rights

Copyright has not been assigned to the Sourisseau Academy. Neither the original photographs nor the digital images held by the Sourisseau Academy may be reproduced, published, or used on the Internet without the expressed, written permission of the Executive Secretary. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the Sourisseau Academy as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the researcher. The credit line, "Courtesy of the Edith C. Smith Trust Collection, Sourisseau Academy for State and Local History" must accompany any such use.

Preferred Citation

[Title of photograph], Clark B. Waterhouse Photograph Collection, Edith C. Smith Photograph Collection, Sourisseau Academy for State and Local History

Acquisition Information

The Clark B. Waterhouse Photograph Collection was acquired by the Sourisseau Academy in 2004.

Biographical Note

Clark Booth Waterhouse was born in Chicago, Illinois on June 8, 1893, the son of George B. and Leof Mills Waterhouse. His family moved from Illinois to Nevada before continuing on to California, where they settled in the small town of Saratoga in January, 1896.

Waterhouse attended the Saratoga grammar school and Campbell High School, from which he graduated in 1912. After graduation, he enrolled in the University of California (Berkeley), where he studied landscape engineering. During his course work, Waterhouse spent six weeks traveling through California with five other students and two of their professors, Drs. John W. Gregg and Ralph Tallant Stephens. Their travel was devoted to studying landscapes, gardens, and many famous private estates in California, such as the Huntington Estate in Pasadena; the Peabody Estate in Montecito; the Crocker Estate in Burlingame; the Gillespie Estate in Santa Barbara; and the Silent Estate in San Gabriel Valley.

Waterhouse spent the winter of 1915-1916 working in Santa Barbara, and also worked for several summers in forestry work at Lake Tahoe. He enlisted in the army as a corporal in October 1917 and was stationed in Washington, D.C., with the 3rd Battalion of the 20th Engineers (Forestry) Regiment. He was sent to Camp American University, a training station on the campus of American University, where the US Army, with the US Forest Service, trained foresters and lumbermen for their upcoming service in the forestlands of France. While in D.C., Waterhouse contracted pneumonia and died in December of that same year. He was buried in Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia.

Scope and Content of Collection

The Clark B. Waterhouse Photograph Collection is comprised of 305 black and white photographs that were originally organized in a scrapbook. It is assumed that Waterhouse was the photographer of the collection, as the bulk of the photos are from a six-week trip he took with classmates and professors from the University of California (Berkeley) during the summer of 1916.

The collection primarily details the landscape designs of many famous California estates during the late 1910s, such as the Huntington Estate in Pasadena; the Peabody Estate in Montecito; the Crocker Estate in Burlingame; the Gillespie Estate in Santa Barbara; and the Silent Estate in San Gabriel Valley. Some of Waterhouse's comments, such as "Poor arrangement of sidewalk and lawn;" "Example of spotted planting;" and "Planting to obtain axis and hide county road" reminds the researcher that the photo was taken by a student of landscape engineering who was interested in the preservation of forests and keeping the outdoors beautiful.

The subjects of the photographs include early Japanese gardens, estate gardens, garden statuary, courtyards, landscapes, fountains, pools, lily ponds, garden malls, houses, mansions, roadways, early subdivided neighborhoods, and garden architecture such as pergolas and arbors. Another subject covered in the photographs is the 1915 Panama-California Exposition that was held in San Diego, in which Waterhouse primarily took photos of the buildings and grounds. Other subjects in the photographs include a beach on La Jolla, a Greek temple in San Diego, and the great oak tree that stood near the Waterhouse home in Saratoga.

The arrangement of the collection was established by Waterhouse, when he placed all the photos in a scrapbook. The photos were carefully removed and numbered, but no other arrangement was imposed on the collection. Their arrangement in the finding aid reflects Waterhouse's organization in the scrapbook, which seems to be in broad categories such as Japanese gardens, pools, interior courtyards, malls, etc.

Indexing Terms

The following terms may be used to index this collection.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

Cravens, John S., Estate of

Crocker, William H., Estate of

de Sabla, Eugene J., Estate of

Gardens, Japanese

Gillespie, J. Waldron, Estate of

Gould, Edwin, Estate of

Grant, Joseph D., Estate of

Gregg, John William (1880-1969)

Huntington Estate

Knapp, George O., Estate of

Landscape architecture

Letts, Arthur, Estate of

Newhall, George A., Estate of

Panama-California Exposition (1915: San Diego)

Peabody, Frederick Forrest, Estate of

Stephens, Ralph Tallant

Silent, Charles K., Estate of

Spinks, William A., Estate of

University of California, Berkeley

Wattles, Gurdon W., Estate of

Whitman, Jennie Crocker, Estate of

ecs001 Huntington Japanese Garden, Pasadena