California owes its origins and sunny prosperity to slavery. Spanish invaders captured Indigenous people to build the chain of Catholic missions. Russian otter hunters shipped Alaska Natives—the first slaves transported into California—and launched a Pacific slave triangle to China. Plantation slaves were marched across the plains for the Gold Rush. San Quentin Prison incubated California’s […]
Terminal lsland: Lost Communities on America’s Edge tells a story of the birth, flourishing, and ultimate destruction of Terminal Island, a vibrant community in Los Angeles Harbor. Few Los Angelenos have visited Terminal Island, a sheltered spot in the Pacific Ocean that once served as a resort for wealthy Southern California landowners and as a […]
The Los Angeles shoreline is one of the most iconic natural landscapes in the United States, if not the world. Yet, in the early twentieth century Angelenos routinely lamented the city’s crowded, polluted, and eroded sands, many of which were private and inaccessible to the public. Between the 1920s and the 1960s, LA’s engineers, city […]
The History, Significance, and Artistry of Book Embroidery Hosted by Erin Fletcher of Herringbone Bindery Join the American Bookbinders Museum on May 18th at 11 am PST in a discussion with book embroiderer Erin Fletcher. Fletcher will explore the history of embroidered bindings leading up to contemporary binders in the craft. Fletcher will also talk about the […]
Craig Frazier visits the Archive to share his new book, Drawn, his career as a designer and illustrator, and his obsession with big ideas. As an internationally recognized designer and illustrator, Craig’s work is known for its simplicity, intelligence, and wit. He will talk about his orientation to design as a drawer which eventually led to […]