South Bay Photograph Collection

Collection

Identifier: SPC-1900-024

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The collection covers all areas of the South Bay, as well as communities in the Los Angeles area, including Glendale, Burbank, Santa Monica, and downtown Los Angeles. A majority of the photos 5x7 or 8x10 in black and white. Many of the photographs of people are professional portraits, including two tin-types. Most of the negatives have been created from the photographs and are not original film. All of the aerial photos were shot professionally, the second set being created by Pacific Air Industries.

Dates

circa 1880-1967

Creator

California State University, Dominguez Hills (Organization)

Conditions Governing Access

There are no access restrictions on this collection.

Conditions Governing Use

All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Director of Archives and Special Collections. Permission for publication is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical materials and not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.

History

The South Bay Photos Collection was created from the photographs originally collected in the Compton History Collection, the Heritage House Collection, and the South Bay History Collection. Many of the photos are assumed to be from the collections of Robert Gillingham and other local historians of Compton and the South Bay. These photographs were then arranged to parallel the South Bay History and Compton History Collections.

The South Bay is defined in this collection as the area south of the Los Angeles International Airport and the Glenn Anderson Freeway (CA 105) and west of the San Gabriel River Freeway (CA 605). Generally, the cities in this collection are within the borders of the Rancho San Pedro land grant, made in 1784.

Extent

520 Photographic Prints (7 linear feet; 10 boxes)

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

The collection consists of color and black and white photographs, negatives, postcard-backed photos, and tin-types. Subjects of the photographs include people, businesses, churches, houses, schools, farming, transportation, and natural disasters. Communities covered in this collection include Compton, Torrance, Carson, Dominguez, Redondo Beach, Lynwood, Lakewood, San Pedro, Wilmington, Los Angeles, Terminal Island, and the Palos Verdes Peninsula. Material from the collection is available online by visiting the South Bay Photograph Digital Collection.

Arrangement

The collection has been organized into 12 series:

Series I. Carson, circa 1944
Series II. Compton, circa 1880-1967
Series III. Dominguez, undated
Series IV. Lakewood, 1945
Series V. Lynwood, 1913, 1921, 1926, 1928
Series VI. Palos Verdes, circa 1920s, undated
Series VII. Redondo Beach, circa 1880-1925
Series VIII. Regional, 1932-1959
Series IX. San Pedro, 1883-1932
Series X. Terminal Island, 1933
Series XI. Torrance, 1902, 1910, 1924
Series XII. Wilmington, circa 1880s, undated

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Photos were acquired over many years through donations and collecting by Archives staff.

Related Materials

For material related to the South Bay please consult: South Bay History Collection, Compton Earthquake Postcards Collection, Compton History Collection, Rancho San Pedro Collection, South Bay Photograph Collection, South Bay Photograph Digital Collection, James H. Osborne Photograph Collection , Ira Clark Collection, Charles Blanton Collection, Heritage House Collection, Robert C. Gillingham Papers, Rozelle Family Collection, Dennis Kroll Collection, Jim Brown Collection, Compton Newspaper Collection, Long Beach Fireman’s Historical Museum Photographs, Long Beach Fireman’s Historical Museum Photographs Digital Collection, Charles H. Eilers Collection, Gardena Valley Chamber of Commerce Collection, Gardena Valley News Collection, Donald Greaton Gardena Collection, James Osborne History of Lawndale Collection, Hotel Redondo Photograph Collection, Leuzinger High School Collection, and others.