University Advancement

Public Relations and Strategic Communications

NEWS RELEASE

CSUN Library’s Rich Historic Holdings to be Featured in Archival ‘Bazaar’

(NORTHRIDGE, Calif., Oct. 24, 2006) -- Cal State Northridge’s Oviatt Library has a rich trove of archival material chronicling the history of the San Fernando Valley and the rest of the Los Angeles area. Those collections will be celebrated next month at the Huntington Library as part of a "bazaar" highlighting the area’s rich past.

The "First Annual Los Angeles Archives Bazaar" is scheduled to take place from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 4, in the Friends Hall of Huntington Library at 1151 Oxford Rd. in San Marino.

The event will feature displays representing more than 40 archives in the Los Angeles region, highlighting in materials relating to Los Angeles, and covering the full range of subjects, from the arts and culture, to communities, economics and politics. Among the archives participating are those at Cal State Northridge including the Special Collections, Urban Archives Center, the University Archives and the geography department’s Map Library as well as such institutions as the Autry National Center, Los Angeles City Archives, The Claremont Colleges, University of Southern California, UCLA and the Huntington Library.

"This event will bring together for the first time a wide variety of research collections--from major institutions and the less visible archives hidden from view--documenting the complex history of our city and the general public," said Robert Marshall, the university library’s head archivist. "Scholars and students and interested community members will be able to meet with those entrusted with the preservation of the city’s past. The Archival Bazaar will provide a unique opportunity for Angelenos to learn more about their city."

Marshall, who is chair of the L.A. as Subject Archives Forum, one of the bazaar’s sponsors, said that researchers will be able to browse a wide array of subject matter, talk to archivists about their holdings and make appointments on the spot to visit and explore the many archives represented.

Throughout the day, a series of speakers will discuss the holdings of their archives, which range from the very large to the less visible community–based archives scattered throughout the Los Angeles area.

Forum advisors also will be available to introduce researchers to more than 200 archives that are members of the LA as Subject Archives Forum, which is an active online directory of archives.

In addition to LA as Subject Archives Forum, the event is sponsored by the Huntington-USC Institute on California and the West and the Los Angeles History Research Group. Admission is free and no registration is required. Light lunch and refreshments will be provided.