Sunday, April 24, 2005

Local treasure troves

A number of city libraries around the country have begun to put parts of  their unique collections on-line. These digitized collections include photographs, sheet music, and other documents (usually) related to some aspect of local history. One such library is the San Francisco Public Library, which now has a large treasure trove of historical photographs on the web. While browsing the collection, I came across 43 images related to Roscoe Arbuckle and his infamous San Francisco trial! Some of these fascinating images picture the comedian, while others depict individuals related to the trial, as well as photographs of evidence. (Arbuckle would go on to direct Louise Brooks in Windy Riley Goes Hollywood.)



Along with the Arbuckle pics, I also came across images of dancer Sally Rand (who had appeared with Brooks in A Girl in Every Port), other personalities from the 1920's, and architectural images of local movie theaters - some of which no longer exist. The San Francisco Historical Photograph Collection is well worth exploring. Perhaps your local library website has a similar collection.

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