Collections by Topic: History
American Occupation of Japan, Voices of the Key Participants
The Pacific Basin Institute produced a 10-part documentary series The Pacific Century, in 1993. This collection contains digitized video from Part 5, "Reinventing Japan," which focuses on post-World War II Japan. Key figures of the American occupation government were interviewed about their contributions and views.
Boynton Collection of Early Claremont
Morrill G. Boynton, Pomona College 1904, was an amateur photographer. His collection of glass plate negatives, housed in Honnold/Mudd Special Collections, candidly and personally capture aspects of life in Southern California, especially Los Angeles, Claremont, and Pomona College. Most of these images in the Boynton Collection were shot between about 1900 and 1905.
City of Claremont History Collection
The City of Claremont History Collection documents the development of Claremont from its boom years at the end of the nineteenth century to the present day. Composed of photographs over a one hundred year span, the collection provides a glimpse of Claremont’s past through photographs of its buildings, neighborhoods, local landscape, and daily life. This project is a work in progress, so please check back for updates.
Claremont Colleges Photo Archive
Historical photographs from the five undergraduate colleges and two graduate universities of The Claremont Colleges are housed in the Libraries' Special Collections. As part of an ongoing digitization project, photographs depicting aspects of college life, buildings, and landscapes are digitized to provide online access to The Colleges' archival photographs for teaching and research.
Dr. Walter Lindley Scrapbooks
The Lindley Scrapbooks were assembled by Dr. Walter Lindley (1852-1922), early resident of Los Angeles and prominent physician. Covering the period from 1861 to 1921, the scrapbooks are a testament to the impact Lindley had on the development of the city of Los Angeles. Included are letters from noteworthy members of Los Angeles society, clippings from regional newspapers, photographs, pamphlets, leaflets, and booklets.
Edward Vischer Drawings, Photographs and Other Material
A German born artist who immigrated first to Mexico and then to California, Edward Vischer (1809-1878), sketched and photographed California missions, trees, mountains, rural scenes, and mining operations in the second half of the 19th century. Honnold/Mudd Library Special Collections houses one of the largest collections of Vischer drawings, lithographs, albumen prints, and bound volumes.
Guides to Manuscript Collections
Guides to Manuscript Collections at the Libraries of The Claremont Colleges provide access to detailed descriptions of various personal papers and manuscript collections held in Honnold/Mudd Library Special Collections and Ella Strong Denison Library. Special collections at the Libraries hold several hundred separate collections of literary and historical manuscripts, college records, and personal papers. They include a wide variety of materials, such as letters, diaries, photographs, literary manuscripts, and ephemera.
Handbook of the Indians of California
Originally published in 1925, this monograph is a representative work of Alfred L. Kroeber’s (1876-1960) contributions to American Indian ethnology. Kroeber’s handbook provides a comprehensive look at the Indians of California and offers a foundation for the ethnographical study of California’s Native American cultures.
Honnold Library Record
The Honnold Library Record was published by the Honnold Library Society between 1958 and 1975. The Record gives a glimpse at the collections and history of the Libraries of The Claremont Colleges.
Library Research, Publications and Events at The Claremont Colleges
Library Research, Publications and Events at The Claremont Colleges contains a variety of videos, and related materials, about the different activities that occur at the Libraries. Videos that depict the history of The Claremont Colleges and the libraries are also included in the collection. While many different activities occur at the libraries, two of the ongoing series include GIS Day and National Library Week.
Murals of Northern Ireland
Images of murals from Northern Ireland, principally West Belfast, Republican and Loyalist, painted during the recent period of Troubles. The images are records which include historical representation, political standpoints, community concerns, forms of ideological address.
N.A. Chandler Gold Rush Era Letters
The N. A. Chandler Gold Rush Era Letters collection consists of fifty-six handwritten letters from 1855 to 1872. Newton Amos Chandler (1818?-1880) wrote these letters from San Francisco and California mining camps, and Nevada silver and gold rush locations. These letters offer insights on life in San Francisco, Virginia City, Civil War opinions in California and Nevada, and the opportunities and discouragements of a prospector. In addition, Chandler's letters provide some information on the settling of Nevada, Native American interactions, and the mining history of Northern California and Nevada.
Rose Institute's California Political History Archive and Database
The Rose Institute's California Political History Archive and Database chronicles California's election, redistricting and political history together with biographical information on state legislators and constitutional office holders since 1849.