Month: November 2014

Hi Everyone!

This week I started a new collection filled with over 80 citrus labels. Many of these labels are quite rare and were generously donated by Alice Oglesby. The most interesting aspect of these labels from citrus boxes is that the majority of them are from Claremont and Pomona. I am currently a senior at one of the Claremont Colleges, so I have spent quite a bit of time in the area, but I never fully realized its rich history until now. Exactly where one of my favorite restaurants is today used to be a packing house that would ship local lemons, tangerines, navel oranges, ruby red grapefruits, and other citruses across the country. The citrus labels in the collection range from as early as the 1890s to the 1940s. After learning about this history, I decided to dig a little bit deeper.

The California Fruit Growers Association was established in 1893, only six years after the city of Claremont was founded. It wasn’t until 1909 when the Packing House was built. The Packing House became more than just a place for shipping of fruit. It became somewhat of a town center, selling other items useful for the citrus growers. The height of business in Claremont was between the 1920s and the 1950s. By 1972, the production halted and the building was sold.

The Claremont Packing House today

I have loved working on this collection. Through looking through the citrus labels, I have been able to see beautiful artistic renditions of what Claremont used to look like about 100 years ago. I feel as though I have gotten to know the city I have been living in for the past 3 years so much better.

Phoebe

Information found on: http://claremontpackinghouse.com/history.htm

Hi Everyone,

I am just finishing a new collection I began working on this week that I am very excited about! This new collection is about social movements throughout the 20th century in the United States, which is my area of study. It is the beginning of the collection and it will expand over time. As of right now, there are materials from the Civil Rights movement from as early as 1938, the Chicano movement, the United Farm Workers, Zoot Suit riots, and the Young Lords Movement. Some of my favorite materials are paños hand drawn by prisoners. These paños have stunning details and are beautifully presented.

I was very excited to begin learning more about these documents and materials. At first, it was difficult to find an arrangement that is suitable for an expanding collection; however, after some work, we decided to arrange it based on the social movement the material belonged to. In order to help preserve some of these materials, I placed the posters and photographs in mylar sleeving. This technique will prevent people from touching the original material too often. I then arranged everything into folders, some of which I had to make myself, and labeled them. I then entered the information onto Archivists Toolkit.

My favorite aspect of working with this collection is that it presents the struggles people experienced in order to create a better society. Often times, the 1960s are represented as a time full of hippies and great music; however, much of the social change we see today stems from the efforts of people in the 1960s. It took great effort and resistance to make the difference we see in the world today. Although there is a great way to go, the people of the 1960s and before have allowed us to be able to create a better world.

See you all next week!

Phoebe

Hi Everyone!

This past week has been very exciting while working in Special Collections. I began working on a new collection about punk flyers from San Francisco and Rancho Cucamonga in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s. There were over 80 flyers with names of local bands, bands from the U.K. and Canada, and some pretty famous bands. There were also flyers from a large variety of venues all around San Francisco, like the Mabuhay (Fab Mab), On Broadway, Berkeley Square, The Savoy, and more. Not only were the venues and acts very interesting, but the art on each of the flyers was unique and dramatic.

While looking through the flyers, I was able to get a little more insight into the Punk scene during this time in San Francisco. I was able to learn a little bit more about this little pocket of counterculture during the 1970s and 1980s, which had a large impact on music and culture today. Also, I got to learn a little more about some popular bands before they became super famous, like the B52’s, the Dead Kennedys, U2, and the Talking Heads, and about the venues they performed at, and the flyers that were used to advertise them. I also learned about some smaller bands that had great names, like Psychedelic Furs, Peter Accident and the Duck Revolution, and Shankin’ Babylonians. I had a great time looking through all of the art on the flyers and understanding more about this counterculture. Next, I will be working on a collection about Social Movements, which is very exciting!

Phoebe