Collection Guide
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Banning Family Collection of Photographs, Part I
photCL 180
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Repository:
The Huntington Library
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA
91108
Phone: 626-405-2180
Email: jwatts@huntington.org
Creator:
Banning family.
Title: Banning Family Collection of Photographs, Part I
Dates: 1850-1979
Dates: (bulk 1880s-1910s)
Quantity: 8.91 linear feet, 11 boxes
Abstract: 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.
Identification: photCL 180
Language of Material: English
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.
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, 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.
The first section described in this finding aid 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.
The contents of each box is as follows:
Box 1: Numbers 1-142
Box 2: Numbers 143-243
Box 3: Numbers 244-345
Box 4: Numbers 346-415
Box 5: Numbers 416-537.1
Box 6: Numbers 538-640
Box 7: Numbers 641-717
Box 8: Scrapbook and oversize item
Box 9: Glass plate negatives, numbers 216-232
Box 10: Glass plate negatives, numbers 233-252
Box 11: Glass plate negatives, numbers 671-717
See also:
Identifier/Call Number: photCL 64,
Title:
Interior and exterior views of the William Banning Residence on Hoover Street, Los Angeles,
Huntington Library Photo Archives.
Identifier/Call Number: photCL 451,
Title:
Banning Family Collection of Photographs, Part II, 1814-1979 (bulk 1880-1920),
Huntington Library Photo Archives.
Identifier/Call Number: photCL 282,
Title:
Patton Family Collection of Negatives and Photographs, 1885-1945, (bulk 1895-1907),
Huntington Library Photo Archives.
Identifier/Call Number: mssBanning Company,
Title:
Records of the Banning Company, 1859-1948,
Huntington Library Manuscripts Department.
This record series is indexed under the following controlled access subject terms.
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.
Brickey, E. M.
Buehman, Henry, 1851-1912.
Dewey, George N.
Essery, Ida M.
Friend, Hervey.
Godfrey, W. M. (William Mollock), 1825-1900.
Golsh, A. C.
Huddleston, Lola L.
Ingersoll, T. W. (Truman Ward), 1862-1922.
Ironmonger, Charles.
Lowe, T. S. C. (Thaddeus Sobieski Coulincourt), 1832-1913--Photographs.
Marceau, Theodore C., b. 1868.
Park, Frank L.
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.
Reyes, P. V.
Rogers, Will, 1879-1935--Photographs.
Schumacher, Frank G., b. 1861.
Selleck, Silas.
Steckel, Geo. (George), b. 1864.
Swenson, Noren F.
Taber, I. W. (Isaiah West), 1830-1912.
Thors, Louis.
Waite, C. B.
Westervelt, James D., b. 1844.
Wrigley, Philip K. (Philip Knight), 1894-1977--Photographs.
Zimmerman, Charles A., 1844-1909.
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.
Access is granted to qualified researchers and by appointment.
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.
photCL 180, Banning Family Collection of Photographs, Part I, 1850-1979 (bulk 1880s-1910s).
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.