Collection Guide
Collection Title:
Collection Number:
Get Items:
Banning Family Collection of Photographs, Part I: Finding
Aid
photCL 180
View entire collection guide
Search this collection
Table of contents
Title: Banning Family Collection of Photographs, Part I
Dates (inclusive): 1850-1979
Bulk dates: 1880s-1910s
Collection Number: photCL 180
Creator:
Banning family.
Extent:
1078 photographs (including photographic prints and glass-plate negatives) and 1 scrapbook in 11 boxes (8.91 linear feet)
Repository:
The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens.
Photo Archives
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, California 91108
Phone: (626) 405-2191
Email: reference@huntington.org
URL: http://www.huntington.org
Abstract: The Banning Family Collection of Photographs, Part I, contains photographs, glass plate negatives, and one scrapbook collected
by the Banning Family of Southern California and depicting
various family members, friends, and family properties (both residential and commercial), with an emphasis on Wilmington
and Santa Catalina Island, California. Items date from
1855 to 1979 (bulk 1880s-1910s) and consist of 996 black-and-white photographs, 82 glass-plate negatives (5 x 7 inches
and 5 x 8 inches), and 1 scrapbook. Of special significance are the Catalina photographs
documenting the development of the island from a natural enclave with a few inhabitants to a thriving tourist resort.
Photographers represented in the collection include G.O. Ayer; Joseph Brent Banning; Boye;
Bradley and Rulofson; E.M. Brickey; Henry H. Buehman; Detroit Photographic Company; George N. Dewey; Ida M. Essery; Hervey
Friend; William H. Godfrey; A.C. Golsh; Lola L. Huddleston; Truman W. Ingersoll;
Charles Ironmonger; Keystone Photo Service; Theodore Marceau; Frank L. Park; J.R. Putnam; Putnam and Valentine; P.V. Reyes;
Frank G. Schumacher; Silas Selleck; Stagg Photography; George Steckel; Noren F. Swenson;
Isaiah W. Taber; Louis Thors; C.B. Waite; James D. Westervelt; and Charles A. Zimmerman.
Language: English.
Advance arrangements for viewing negatives must be made with the Curator of Photographs.
The collection is open to qualified researchers by prior application through the Reader Services Department. For more
information,
please visit the Huntington's website:
www.huntington.org.
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.
[Identification of item], Banning Family Collection of Photographs, Part I, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.
The majority of the collection was donated by Mrs. Richard W. Call, September 26, 1982. Glass plate negatives were donated
by Robert Banning and other family members, November 22, 1985 and December 5, 1985. Patton family photographs were donated
by Robert Banning, Elizabeth Banning Ames, and Hancock Banning III, April 3, 1989.
The glass plate negatives were transferred from the Manuscripts Division, March 1986. Item numbers 253-640 were transferred
from the Manuscripts Division, 1988.
The collection was arranged and numbered by Huntington Staff in the 1980s. In April 2007, Sue Luftschein completed the rehousing,
performed preservation photocopying, and created this finding aid.
Physical Characteristics or Technical Requirements
Copy prints exist for the glass plate negatives. Arrangements for viewing negatives must be made with the Curator of Photographs.
The Banning Family played a pivotal role in the development of Southern California. Phineas Banning (1830-1885) immigrated
to California from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1852, and soon became a
partner in a freight and stage-line business that ran between San Pedro and Los Angeles. He founded the settlement of Wilmington
near San Pedro, which served as the hub of the Banning
Company. Banning’s many business interests included shipping, warehousing, real estate, and transportation services to Los
Angeles and inland areas. The Banning Company continued under
the direction of Phineas’s sons, William, Joseph Brent (J.B.), and Hancock, until the company dissolved in 1920.
The Banning Company purchased the majority interest in Santa Catalina Island in 1892 with the intention of developing the
site as a resort. In partnership with Dr. Charles Frederick Holder,
the family turned Catalina into a renowned fishing destination. The Bannings controlled Catalina Island until 1919 when they
sold their controlling interest for $3.5 million dollars to
chewing gum magnate William Wrigley.
The Banning Family Collection of Photographs, Part I, contains photographs, glass plate negatives, and one scrapbook collected
by the Banning Family of Southern California and depicting
various family members and friends and family properties (residential and commercial), with an emphasis on Wilmington and
Santa Catalina Island, California. Items date from
1855 to 1979 (bulk 1880s-1910s) and consist of 996 black-and-white photographs, 82 glass-plate negatives (5 x 7 inches and
5 x 8 inches), and 1 scrapbook.
This finding aid describes the collection both as a box list and according to subject. The first section of the subject list
contains portraits and snapshots of a number of Banning family members, including: Phineas Banning; "Captain" William Banning;
Hancock Banning,
Sr.; Joseph Brent Banning, Jr.; Katharine Mary Banning; Joseph Brent Banning, Sr.; William Phineas Banning; Hancock Banning,
Jr.; Mrs. Anne (Hancock) Banning; William Lowber Banning; and
Katharine Stewart Banning. The most numerous are those of "Captain" Banning and Hancock Banning, Sr. Among these are photographs
of "Captain" Banning and his various carriages and
stagecoaches (including his "six-in-hand" featured at La Fiesta de Los Angeles in 1895 and at Yosemite National Park, the
"Captain" and Will Rogers atop a stagecoach, and the "Captain" and
Philip K. Wrigley atop a stagecoach); and photographs of Hancock Banning at Bohemian Grove gatherings. Family portraits are
followed by images of various Banning residences, with an
emphasis on the house in Wilmington, California; and views of Wilmington and San Pedro, California, with many early views
of these communities and many views of Banning properties.
Following the family images are views of Santa Catalina Island. These images document the development of the island from
a natural enclave with few inhabitants to a thriving tourist resort.
Included are views of Avalon, from its beginnings as a tent city to a fully developed tourist destination; the Isthmus; the
fire at Avalon in 1915; Arch Rock and Sugar Loaf; roads and road
construction at various sites on the island; El Descanso, the home of Hancock Banning and later the site of the Hotel St.
Catherine (also depicted in this section); the incline cable car;
Middle Ranch; rock quarries; stage roads and stagecoaches, including the Santa Catalina Island Stage Company; and various
ships, steamers, and glass bottom boats.
The next section depicts Banning family friends. Depicted are members of the Vail family (including Walter Vail); the Patton
family and their home, Lake Vineyard, in San Marino, California;
the Ayer family; and a portrait of Howard Huntington and his family.
The final two sections described contain miscellaneous images: miscellaneous individuals (such as Christine Mueller, daughter
of William Banning's shipbuilder, William Mueller, and Thaddeus
Lowe in a Mount Lowe incline railway cable car); various ships and boats; and views of Long Beach.
Many photos have annotations (often anecdotal) by Hancock Banning, Jr., on the verso.
Photographers represented in the collection include G.O. Ayer, Boston; Joseph Brent Banning; Boye; Bradley and Rulofson; E.M.
Brickey; Henry H. Buehman, Tucson; Detroit Photographic Company;
George N. Dewey, Los Angeles; Ida M. Essery, St. Paul; Hervey Friend; William H. Godfrey; A.C. Golsh; Lola L. Huddleston;
Truman W. Ingersoll, St. Paul; Charles Ironmonger; Keystone Photo
Service; Theodore Marceau, San Francisco; Frank L. Park; J.R. Putnam; Putnam and Valentine; P.V. Reyes; Frank G. Schumacher;
Silas Selleck, San Francisco; Stagg Photography; George Steckel;
Noren F. Swenson; Isaiah W. Taber; Louis Thors, San Francisco; C.B. Waite; James D. Westervelt; Charles A. Zimmerman, St.
Paul.
The collection also contains some ephemeral materials, primarily notes penned by Hancock Banning, Jr. These materials have
been preservation photocopied, the copies inserted into the
collection, and the originals filed in Box 8.
The photographs were originally arranged and numbered in no apparent order. They have been arranged in this finding aid by
subject to facilitate access.
Subjects are: Banning family members; Banning family residences; views of Wilmington and San Pedro, California; views of
Santa Catalina Island; friends of the Banning family;
miscellaneous individuals; and miscellaneous images.
Related Material in the Huntington Library
- Interior and exterior views of the William Banning Residence on Hoover Street, Los Angeles (photCL 64)
- Banning Family Collection of Photographs, Part II (photCL 451)
- Patton Family Collection of Negatives and Photographs (photCL 282)
- Records of the Banning Company (mssBanning Company), Manuscripts Department.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the
Huntington Library's Online Catalog.
Ayer, G. O.
Banning, Hancock, 1865-1925--Photographs.
Banning, Hancock, 1865-1925--Homes and haunts--Photographs.
Banning, Hancock, 1892-1982--Photographs.
Banning, Joseph Brent, 1861-1920, photographer.
Banning, Joseph Brent, 1889-1969--Photographs.
Banning, Katharine Mary--Photographs.
Banning, Katharine Stewart--Photographs.
Banning, Phineas, 1830-1885--Photographs.
Banning, Phineas, 1830-1885--Homes and haunts--Photographs.
Banning, William, 1858-1946--Photographs.
Banning, William Phineas--Photographs.
Boye, photographer.
Brickey, E. M., photographer.
Buehman, Henry, 1851-1912, photographer.
Dewey, George N., photographer.
Essery, Ida M., photographer.
Friend, Hervey, photographer.
Godfrey, W. M. (William Mollock), 1825-1900, photographer.
Golsh, A. C., photographer.
Huddleston, Lola L., photographer.
Ingersoll, T. W. (Truman Ward), 1862-1922, photographer.
Ironmonger, Charles, photographer.
Lowe, T. S. C. (Thaddeus Sobieski Coulincourt), 1832-1913--Photographs.
Marceau, Theodore C., 1860-1922, photographer.
Park, Frank L, photographer.
Patton, George S. (George Smith), 1856-1927--Homes and haunts--Photographs.
Patton, George S. (George Smith), 1856-1927--Photographs.
Patton, George S. (George Smith), 1885-1945--Photographs.
Putnam, J. R., photographer.
Reyes, P. V., photographer.
Rogers, Will, 1879-1935--Photographs.
Schumacher, Frank G., 1861- photographer.
Selleck, Silas.
Steckel, Geo. (George), 1864- photographer.
Swenson, Noren F., photographer.
Taber, I. W. (Isaiah West), 1830-1912, photographer.
Thors, Louis, photographer.
Waite, C. B. (Charles Betts), 1861-1927, photographer.
Westervelt, James D., 1844- photographer.
Wrigley, Philip K. (Philip Knight), 1894-1977--Photographs.
Zimmerman, Charles A., 1844-1909, photographer.
Bradley and Rulofson.
Detroit Photographic Co.
Fiesta de Los Angeles--Photographs.
Hotel St. Catherine (Santa Catalina Island, Calif.)--Photographs.
Keystone Photo Service.
Middle Ranch (Santa Catalina Island, Calif.)--Photographs.
Putnam and Valentine.
Stagg Photographers (Los Angeles, Calif.).
Ayer family--Photographs.
Banning family--Homes and haunts--Photographs.
Huntington family--Photographs.
Patton family--Photographs.
Patton family--Homes and haunts--Photographs.
Vail family--Photographs.
Avalon (Calif.)--Photographs.
Bartlett Springs (Calif.)--Photographs.
Bohemian Grove (Calif.)--Photographs.
Long Beach (Calif.)--Photographs.
San Marino (Calif.)--Photographs.
San Pedro (Los Angeles, Calif.)--Photographs.
Santa Catalina Island (Calif.)--Photographs.
Wilmington (Los Angeles, Calif.)--Photographs.
Two Harbors (Calif.)--Photographs.
Ventura County (Calif.)--Photographs.
Walnut (Calif.)--Photographs.
Yosemite National Park (Calif.)--Photographs.
Boats and boating--California--Santa Catalina Island--Photographs.
Breakwaters--Design and construction--California--San Pedro (Los Angeles, Calif.)--Photographs.
Children--Photographs.
Chinese--California--Wilmington (Los Angeles, Calif.)--Photographs.
Disasters--California--Avalon--Photographs.
Fires--California--Avalon--Photographs.
Fishing--California--Santa Catalina Island--Photographs.
Glass bottom boats--California--Santa Catalina Island--Photographs.
Golf courses--California--Santa Catalina Island--Photographs.
Harbors--California--San Pedro (Los Angeles, Calif.)--Photographs.
Harbors--California--Wilmington (Los Angeles, Calif.)--Photographs.
Mountain railroads--California--Santa Catalina Island--Photographs.
Passenger ships--California--Santa Catalina Island--Photographs.
Quarries and quarrying--California--Santa Catalina Island--Photographs.
Recreation--California--Santa Catalina Island--Photographs.
Roads--California--Santa Catalina Island--Photographs.
Roads--Design and construction--California--Santa Catalina Island--Photographs.
Ships--California--Photographs.
Shipyards--California--Wilmington (Los Angeles, Calif.)--Photographs.
Stagecoaches--California--Santa Catalina Island--Photographs.
Stagecoaches--California--Wilmington (Los Angeles, Calif.)--Photographs.
Storm surges--California--Avalon--Photographs.
Streets--California--Wilmington (Los Angeles, Calif.)--Photographs.
Warehouses--California--Wilmington (Los Angeles, Calif.)--Photographs.
Yachts--California--Santa Catalina Island--Photographs.
Cabinet photographs.
Clippings.
Cyanotypes.
Ephemera.
Negatives.
Notes.
Photographs.
Portraits.
Postcards.
Stereographs.