Los Angeles Flower Festival Society Records: Finding Aid mssFlower
Finding aid prepared by Xiaofei Wang.
The Huntington Library
© 2008
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, California 91108
Business Number: (626) 405-2191
reference@huntington.org
Note
Last updated by Brooke M. Black in August 2024.
Contributing Institution:
The Huntington Library
Title: Los Angeles Flower Festival Society records
Creator:
Los Angeles Flower Festival Society.
Identifier/Call Number: mssFlower
Physical Description:
0.4 Linear Feet
(1 box)
Date (inclusive): 1885-1891
Abstract: This collection contains correspondence, festival and fair programs, newspaper clippings, photographs, a notebook, a list
of donations, and other documents about the Flower Festival Society, a women's association in Los Angeles, California, dating
from 1885 to 1891. The records provide a unique perspective to view California women's history and leisure activities at the
end of the nineteenth century.
Language of Material: The records are in English.
Access
Open to qualified researchers by prior application through the Reader Services Department. For more information, contact Reader
Services.
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
[Identification of item]. Los Angeles Flower Festival Society records, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.
Provenance
Purchased from Dawson's Book Shop, March 1958.
Historical Note
The Flower Festival Society was a Los Angeles women's association active in the late 19th century. In 1885, it was established
to "give the protection and comfort of home life at a reasonable rate to working women, also to furnish situations to those
seeking employment, and engage in such benevolent work as the Board may agree upon," as the constitution of the Society stated.
The Society's Advisory Board was composed of the presidents of several local non-governmental organizations such as the Los
Angeles YMCA.
Mrs. R. M. Widney was the founding and only president of the Society. In 1889, the position of president was replaced by
a three-member executive committee without Widney. Miss Mary E. McLellan served as the Financial Secretary when the Society
was founded. Since 1885, each April the society would host a flower exhibition, which was named the "Flower Festival" from
1887. As one of the managers of the 1888 Flower Festival, McLellan was in charge of inviting important guests to the Festival's
opening ceremony. From 1889 to 1891, members of the Society also organized the Annual Chrysanthemum Fairs. While the first
and the third Fair were held in October, the second Fair in 1890 commenced on October 29 and closed on November 7.
Scope and Content
This collection contains records of the Flower Festival Society, a women's association in Los Angeles, California, dating
from 1885 to 1891. The records include correspondence, festival and fair programs, newspaper clippings, photographs, a notebook,
a list of donations, and other documents about the Flower Festival Society. The records provide a unique perspective to view
California women's history and leisure activities at the end of the nineteenth century. In addition, newspaper clippings about
the Chrysanthemum Fair include some women's favorable perceptions of Japanese and Chinese art and culture.
Subjects in the records include Arrowhead Springs (Calif.), Chinese Art objects, Chinese culture and civilization, Chrysanthemums
– China, Chrysanthemums – Japan, Japanese Art objects, Los Angeles times, Southern Pacific Transportation Company, and the
YMCA of the USA.
Arrangement
The folders are arranged in chronological order. The items in each folder, whenever possible, are also arranged chronologically.
General
Former call number: mssFlower Festival.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Art objects, Chinese.
Art objects, Japanese.
Chinese culture & civilization.
Chrysanthemums -- China.
Chrysanthemums -- Japan.
Clubs -- California -- Los Angeles -- Archives
Clubs -- California -- Los Angeles -- History -- 19th century -- Sources
Flower shows -- California -- Los Angeles
Women -- Societies and clubs -- California -- Los Angeles
Arrowhead Springs (Calif.)
Los Angeles (Calif.) -- History -- 19th century -- Sources
Ephemera California Los Angeles 19th century
Letters (correspondence) California Los Angeles 19th century
Photographs California Los Angeles 19th century
Programs California Los Angeles 19th century
Reports California Los Angeles 19th century
Los Angeles Times (Firm)
YMCA of the USA.
Southern Pacific Transportation Company
Box 1
Los Angeles Flower Festival Society Records
Box 1, Folder 1
Flower Festival Society Rules. 3 items.
1885
Box 1, Folder 2
Handwritten Speech. 1 item.
after 1885
Box 1, Folder 3
Correspondence. 4 items.
1886-1888
Box 1, Folder 4
Simpson Tabernacle and Chrysanthemum Fair. 23 items.
1886-1895
Box 1, Folder 5
Letters to Mrs. R. M. Widney. 6 items.
1887-1888
Box 1, Folder 6
Flower Festival Programs. 6 items.
1887-1890
Box 1, Folder 7
Letters to Mary E. McLellan. 14 items.
1888
Box 1, Folder 8
Notebook by Mrs. R. M. Widney. 1 item.
1888
Box 1, Folder 9
Newspaper Clippings. 43 items.
1888-1891
Box 1, Folder 10
Photographs of the First and Third Annual Chrysanthemum Fair. 12 items.
1889-1891
Box 1, Folder 11
List of Donations. 1 item.
undated
