The Banning Family Collection of Photographs, Part I, consists of 996 black and white photographs, 82 glass plate negatives (5 x 7 inches and 5 x 8 inches), and 1 scrapbook, 1855-1979 (bulk 1880s-1910s), collected by the Banning family and depicting various family members and friends and family properties (residential and commercial), with an emphasis on Wilmington and Santa Catalina Island, California. 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.

The Banning Family played a pivotal role in the development of southern California. Phineas Banning (1830-1885) immigrated to California from Philadelphia 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.

8.91 linear feet, 11 boxes

All requests for permission to publish photographs must be submitted in writing to the Curator of Photographs. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the Huntington as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.