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WHAT'S
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Foundation
Commissions Painting for Braille & Talking Book Reading Room
Dedication of The Michael O'Shaughnessy Rotunda
FEATURED
ADDITIONS TO THE LIBRARYS COLLECTIONS THROUGH FOUNDATION ASSISTANCE
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1.
Bitter Strength. This bronze statue commemorates the
heroic efforts of the Chinese in building the transcontinental
railroad. It was created by Utah artist Edward Fraughton and
donated to the Foundation by the Frank Fat family of Sacramento.
It is located in the Mead B. Kibbey Exhibit Gallery, Library
& Courts II Building, 900 N Street. |
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2.
Allegory by Maynard Dixon. Painted by the noted California
artist between 1932 and 1935, it was donated by Marcia and
Robin Williams of San Francisco. It is presently located in
the office of the California State Librarian. |
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3.
Gullick Brother''s Daguerreotypes. This half-plate
daguerreotype is one of three mirror images of Benicia, the
port city on the Carquinez Strait, donated to the Library
by the important cased image collector Stephen Anaya of Santa
Monica. Included in his gift are 14 family portraits. Benicia
at the time these images were made served as the state capital
of California. |
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4.
Daguerreotype of Theodore D. Judah. Purchased with the
assistance of Mead B. Kibbey and Robert Gordon, this sixth-plate
daguerreotype is a portrait of the famed engineer as a young
man. Judah later went on in the 1860s and surveyed the route
of the Central Pacific Railroad over the formidable Sierra Nevada
Range. |
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5.
Map of Folsom City, c. 1855. Through the generosity of
Mrs. Robert C. Baker of Fair Oaks and her daughter, Cindy Baker,
the Librarys California History Section received an important
manuscript map of Folsom drawn around 1855 by famed railroad
engineer Theodore D. Judah (18281863). Mrs. Baker donated
the map in memory of her late husband. Measuring 22 x 36 inches,
drawn on silk and entitled Map of the Town of Folsom California,
Judahs manuscript is significant in that it is probably
the first to delineate the future town and it documents the
route of the Sacramento Valley Rail Road (S.V.R.R.) at its eastern
terminus. The S.V.R.R., although short-lived, ranks as the oldest
passenger railroad in the western United States. |
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6.
Kelmscott Chaucer. Printed and designed by William
Morris with illustrations by Edward Burne-Jones, the Chaucer
is heralded as one of the most important books ever printed.
The Foundation purchased this volume in celebration of the
Librarys 150th anniversary. |
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7.
United States County Histories. Through the gift of the
Larson Trust, the Foundation is able to buy for the Sutro Library
in San Francisco valuable and rare county histories from the
eastern United States. Published in the 19th and early 20th
centuries, these histories contain much valuable information
on communities and individuals. Many contain maps and are illustrated
with engravings of towns, business blocks, and homes. |
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8.
Photographs of Santa Barbara & Vicinity. California
bibliographer Dennis Kruska donated over 200 vintage photographs
of Ventura, Santa Barbara, and San Luis Obispo counties for
the California History Section. Nineteenth century photographs
from this region are rare. Mr. Kruska donated the photographs
in memory of his friend, Clifton F. Smith. |
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9.
The Saul and Lillian Marks Albion Press. In 1983, the
Foundation purchased the Albion iron press used by the famed
Plantin Press of Saul and Lillian Marks of Los Angeles. The
press itself was manufactured in London in 1852. The Foundation,
under the able direction of Robert Dickover, has used the press
for demonstrations and printing keepsakes. The Library has an
excellent collection of Plantin Press books and ephemera. |
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10.
Gladding, McBean & Company Archive. Donated to the
Foundation for the benefit of the Library by Pacific Coast Building
Products, this archive contains the historical record of one
of the most prominent manufacturers of architectural terra cotta.
The archive includes over 10,000 photographs, job order records
on over 7,000 jobs including the Los Angeles City Hall, Bullock's
Wilshire, War Memorial Opera House in San Francisco, and the
State Library & Courts Building in Sacramento, and tile
drawings for dozens of projects in California. Shown here is
a photograph made from a glass plate negative of an ornament
for the Knickerbocker Building in Los Angeles, 1913. |
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Foundation Commissions Painting for Braille & Talking Book Reading Room
11. "On the Sacramento River" a large painting by noted Sacramento artist Gregory Kondos, and a bronze bas-relief reproduction of the painting, were made possible by generous contributions from patrons and supporters of the Braille and Talking Book Library. Acquired in 2000 by the California State Library Foundation, this depiction of a Sacramento valley river landscape measures twelve feet in length and five feet high. The Foundation also purchased the complete reproduction rights to "On the Sacramento River".
BTBL librarian Aimee Sgourakis conceived the idea of the bronze bas-relief for the benefit of the visually impaired. The inscription includes both braille and large print letters. Jack Barrett, a member of the Foundation, created a handsome pedestal to support the 85-pound bronze.
The painting and bronze are on public view in the BTBL Reading Room on the first floor of the Library & Courts II Building at 900 N Street, Sacramento. |
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DEDICATION
OF THE MICHAEL OSHAUGHNESSY ROTUNDA
12. In 2001 then-State Librarian of California Dr. Kevin Starr dedicated the rotunda of the Library & Courts II Building (900 N Street) in honor of the famed San Francisco City Engineer Michael Maurice O’Shaughnessy. The dedication ceremony included the placement of a bronze bust of Mr. O’Shaughnessy in the rotunda. A copy of the bust, created by Irish artist Don Cronin, resides in the San Francisco City Hall. O’Shaughnessy’s daughter, Elizabeth, presented the Foundation with a most generous donation in memory of her parents, Michael and Mary. She also made the Foundation a beneficiary of her will. Mead Kibbey of the Board of Directors skillfully negotiated the gift with the estate’s legal counsel.
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