Charles Lummis photographs
Scope and Content of Collection
The Charles Lummis Photographs are a mixture of cyanotypes and albumen prints taken between 1888 and 1905. There are 316 unique images in the collection with many of the prints having multiple copies. The photographs were taken by Charles Lummis, with the exception of a noted few that appear to have been given to Lummis by friends or acquaintances.
The bulk of the photographs cover Lummis' trip to Peru with the archaelogist, Adolph Bandelier, Native Americans in New Mexico, central Mexico, the San Fernando Mission in California, and portraits of friends and acquaintances of Lummis.
Dates
- Creation: circa 1888-1905
Creator
- Lummis, Charles Fletcher (Photographer, Person)
Access
Collection open for research.
Publication Rights
All requests for permission to publish must be submitted in writing to Special Collections.
Biography
Lummis, Charles Fletcher (1 Mar. 1859-25 Nov. 1928), author, editor, and explorer was a lifetime supporter of Native American culture and worked to preserve national landmarks such as the California missions. Lummis is known for numerous undertakings, including city editor of the Daily Times, chief librarian of the Los Angeles Public Library, editor of Land of Sunshine (later retitled Out West), and founder of the Southwest Museum. Charles Lummis was also an avid and prolific photographer, documenting his travels across the Southwest and trips south of the American border. His most commonly printed cyanotypes, a process that was relatively portable and easy to do. Many of his photographs regularly appeared in Land of Sunshine and Out West.
Extent
5 boxes (3.5 linear feet)
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
The bulk of the Charles Lummis Photographs are of Peru, Native Americans in New Mexico, central Mexico, the San Fernando Mission in California, and portraits of friends and acquaintances of Lummis.
Arrangement of the Photographs
The photographs are divided by geographic location or subject mater with the following series:
Physical location
Please consult repository.
Acquisition Information
Gift of Don Meadows, 1985
Processing Information
The Charles Lummis Photographs originally came to Honnold/Mudd Library Special Collections as part of the Marion Parks Papers. For clarity between the Parks and Lummis materials, it was decided to divide the Parks collection two distinct collections: Marion Parks Papers and Charles Lummis Photographs.
The majority of the photographs were identified by captions or inscriptions on verso of the print, usually in Charles Lummis' writing. Photographs that did not have a caption or any clues that revealed the location or individual were identified, when possible, through matching the image in publications of Lummis' photographs.
Sources referenced: Autry National Center, Southwest Museum of the American Indian. "Collections Online" http://www.autrynationalcenter.org/collections/ (visited July 19, 2006). Fiske, Turbese Lummis and Keith Lummis. Charles F. Lummis: The Man and his West. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1975. Gordon, Dudley. Charles F. Lummis: Crusader in Corduroy. [Los Angeles] Cultural Assets Press [1972]. Moneta, Daniela P., ed. Chas. F. Lummis: the centennial exhibition commemorating his tramp across the continent. Los Angeles : Southwest Museum, 1985.
Topical
- Civic leaders -- California -- Los Angeles -- Archival resources.
- Editors -- California -- Los Angeles -- Archival resources.
- Historians -- California -- Los Angeles -- Archival resources.
- Librarians -- California -- Los Angeles -- Archival resources.
- Lummis, Charles Fletcher, 1859-1928 -- Archives.
- Title
- Guide to the Charles Lummis Photographs
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Kelley Wolfe Bachli
- Date
- © 2006
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in: English
Repository Details
Part of the 01 - Special Collections & Archives, The Claremont Colleges Library Repository
800 North Dartmouth Ave
Claremont CA 91711 United States
Email: specialcollections@claremont.edu