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Santa Monica History Museum

discover.explore.experience

1350 7th Street, Santa Monica, CA 90401 / 310.395.2290

Historical Photographs

Consisting today of over 600,000 prints, negatives, glass-plate negatives and slides, the photo collection is one of the stellar components of the museum’s archival holdings.

In addition to being the most comprehensive collection documenting Santa Monica’s history, most of the images in the collection are unique, rare, and not available anywhere else.

Our Photo Collections In our collections are photos that are unique, rare, and not available anywhere else.

Our historical photo collections include the Outlook newspaper photographers Bill Beebe and Bob Smith’s archives, photos from numerous families such as the Reyes, the Parrott, the Mortensen and the Wedertz amongst other families and photographers.

Find out more about the photographs, objects and other materials in our holdings.

PHOTO REPRINTS AVAILABLE
Many of the images from our archive are available for reprint or digital download.

RESEARCH REQUEST
Looking for an image or information about Santa Monica?
Our reach team welcomes your inquiries. Send us a request and we’ll help you.

Historical Photographs

Photo Collections

Pointers navigate to the photo’s Archive Detail page. Pointers show information about the photo.

John P. Jones

A major photographic archive of the co-founder of Santa Monica, the John P. Jones Collection includes many rare landscapes of early Santa Monica. The collection also richly details the extended family life and lively social activities at the Miramar, the mansion built by Mr. Jones overlooking Palisades Park and the Pacific Ocean.

Medium:  Photographs and negatives

Historical Photographs

Outlook

In addition to a selection of early Santa Monica photographs, the Outlook Collection consists of the complete archive of images for Santa Monica’s daily newspaper from 1965 to 1998. Noted for its award-winning photography, the Outlook Newspaper covered all the news in Santa Monica and the Westside, from major issues and events to feature stories, notable people and community social life.

Medium:  Photographs and negatives

Nolan Gist in the doorway of his market at the corner of 19th Street and Broadway Avenue in Santa Monica.

Bill Beebe

Also providing a daily record of the area from the 1930s to the 1960s, the Bill Beebe Collection is composed of negatives by professional photographers for the Pacific Press, a photo service that provided images to the Santa Monica Outlook, Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Herald and Los Angeles Examiner. The photographers included Bill Beebe, Emerson Gaze and Bill Anderson.

Medium:  Negatives

Historical Photographs

Fred Basten

The author of over thirty books, and a specialist on early Santa Monica, Fred Basten donated historical photographs that appear in his book, Santa Monica Bay: Paradise by the Sea and many other images pertaining to Santa Monica.

Medium:  Photographs and negatives

Historical Photographs

Santa Monica History Museum

The Museum Collection includes unique and significant photographs and negatives donated by pioneer Santa Monica families during the city’s Centennial in 1975. Continuously augmented by donations, the Museum’s foundational photographic archive also includes the collections of Paula Boelsems/Glenn Sundby and George Tate (Muscle Beach), Bob Smith and Bryan McLellan (Outlook Newspaper), Santa Monica Fire Department, Phila Caldwell (Milbank House) and Virginia Tegner Spurgin (early Santa Monica).

Medium:  Photographs, negatives, glass plates, lantern slides, stereoscopes, postcards

Historical Photographs

HISTORY HAPPENED HERE

DISCOVER more history with our interactive table in the museum!

Or EXPLORE the city of Santa Monica and when you see our QR Code in a business window, scan it to see photos and to learn more about the historical significance of that area!

History Happened Here
Sticker with QR code

Find our photos around town! Click the icon below for more info

Historical Photographs