MISSION

The purpose of the Seaver Center for Western History Research is to collect, preserve, and make available to the general public research materials documenting the history of the trans-Mississippi West with special emphasis on Southern California and Los Angeles. Historic records include-but are not necessarily limited to - - manuscript materials, books, serials, pamphlets, broadsides, maps, posters, prints, and photographs.

LOCATION

The Seaver Center is located in the center of the Ground Floor next to the California History Hall and is open from 10am to 4pm on Monday and Thursday by appointment only. As study space is limited, reservations are essential. Please contact the Seaver Center at (213) 763-3359 to discuss your research interest and to schedule an appointment.

COLLECTIONS

Photograph Collections
There are approximately 250 individual photograph collections in the Seaver Center in addition to a large General Photo File. All together, the photographic holdings amount to more than 300,000 images recorded on different photographic media such as daguerreotypes, ambrotypes, tintypes, glass and cellulose negatives, and a variety of paper prints. Guide to Photograph Collections.

General Collections

The term "General Collections" refers to the Seaver Center's holdings of manuscript materials and ephemeral printed materials. There is a Guide to General Collections that contains a brief summary of each of the approximately 330 collections.

• Manuscript Materials
  The Seaver Center collects manuscript materials relating to the history of Southern California from the earliest available to about 1940. These include, but are not limited to, letters, diaries, telegrams, memos, ledgers and other financial records, legal papers, research notes, and manuscripts and typescripts of books, scripts and short stories.
  
• Ephemeral Printed Materials
  The Seaver Center preserves a large amount of other printed material, usually referred to as ephemera, which includes pamphlets, brochures, booklets, tickets, and clippings. The bulk of the Ephemera Collection consists of materials relating to Los Angeles county and city. There is also a large amount of material for other counties in California. Topics covered include tourism and promotion to California, theatre and film, Los Angeles Olympics, and Los Angeles people and places.
  

Books
The Seaver Center collects books for research and rare books as artifacts. Books for research may relate to very broad subject areas while rare books pertain more narrowly to California and Southern California.

Serials
The Seaver Center collects serials published in and relating to Southern California and selected California serials from the earliest available to about 1940. Serials are collected either in hard copy or microfilm.

Maps
The Seaver Center collects maps relating to the history of the discovery and exploration of the New World from the beginning of the sixteenth century to about 1940. The Warren C. Shearman Collection comprises a large number of world maps and European city views printed as early as the 1500s. However, the strength of this collection is Southern California, with maps that document real estate development, trace transportation patterns, promote tourism, and cover many other subjects. The focus of the collecting policy narrows according to time period:

1500-1800 Maps of the Americas, especially North America and the West coast

1750-1940 Maps of the Western United States and the West coast

1850-1940 Maps of California, especially Southern California

Newspapers
The Seaver Center collects Southern California newspapers and important California papers from the earliest published to about 1940 either in hard copy or microfilm.

USC LA as Subject
Researchers seeking additional materials on the history of Los Angeles and southern California can find an online directory of regional archives in the L.A. as Subject database, sponsored by our partner institution, The University of Southern California. Phone: (213) 821-5432 Email: archives@usc.edu

In addition to the collections, the Seaver Center also has a large file of information on individual historic sites in Los Angeles County that were surveyed by the Museum staff in the1970s.