History of Sacramento County, California, with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its growth and development from the early days to the present, 1923, Part 30

Author: Reed, G. Walter
Publication date: 1923
Publisher: Los Angeles : Historic Record Co.
Number of Pages: 1026

USA > California > Sacramento County > History of Sacramento County, California, with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its growth and development from the early days to the present, 1923 > Part 30

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A similarly complete record is kept of the state's authors, musicians, actors and artists, together with files containing the reproduc- tions of the canvases of California's painters. and photographs of the interesting persons connected with any part of the state's history, or any political, social, civic or other organiza- tion or society. An index to California's news- papers and magazine literature is maintained in this department.

Books for the blind are sent out over the state upon request to over 1,600 readers with sightless eyes. The resources on hand for this branch of the work now include 13,258 books in different kinds of raised type, and all of the leading magazines for the blind. To these are constantly being added additional works, writ- ing appliances, games and new puzzles.

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HISTORY OF SACRAMENTO COUNTY

In no particular is the influence of the State Library more helpful than in its organization of the county libraries, of which there are now forty-two in operation, and which promise to spread throughout all the counties of the state. These county libraries, with headquar- ters of each maintained in the respective coun- ty seats, and branches in all the communities and school districts, build up their own collec- tion of the books in most general demand. Books of rare or technical nature, and those in- frequently needed in a county, are loaned by the State Library, which supplements in this way all the other libraries of the state. The

state librarian calls and conducts a yearly County Librarians' Convention, frequently with the various libraries, and acts as chair- man of the Board of Library Extensions, which conducts examinations for the certifica- tion of county libraries.

California was among the first of all the states to recognize the great value of a strong central library, supplementing and fostering the smaller county organizations, and natural- ly the people of the state are proud of the good work accomplished, which will be further strengthened and augmented when finally the department is installed in its new modern home.

CHAPTER XXIII CITY FREE LIBRARY

A LONG in the middle fifties the need for a public library began to be recognized, and in 1857 the Sacramento Library Association was organized and a good library collected, which, in spite of loss by fire, stead- ily increased. In 1872 the former building on I Street, between Seventh and Eighth, was erected and furnished at a total cost of $17,000. Of this amount $II,000 was raised by a gift enterprise, and a mortgage for $6,000 was given. The Library opened under favorable auspices, but its existence was not as prosper- ous as had been expected or as was desirable. In 1879, therefore, the directors offered to donate the property to the city, to be main- tained as a free library, if the city would as- sume the debt. When the question was sub- mitted to the voters of the city at the election in March following, the offer was accepted. Ever since, the Library has been supported by public tax. It was decided in that early day to rearrange and recatalogue the books and periodicals, which was done, and on June 15 the City Free Library was thrown open to the public with 6,067 volumes on its shelves.

The City Library has enjoyed a steady growth in size and usefulness. Besides a large collection of books and periodicals it carries the leading newspapers on its files, which, since the erection of the new building in 1918, at the corner of Ninth and I Streets, are kept in its spacious reading rooms. Among those who have directed the affairs of the Library are: Judge S. C. Denson, William H. Mills, William C. Fitch, Samuel Howard Gerrish, Add C. Hinkson, Mrs. G. W. Hancock, Miss

Georgiana Brewster, Albert Hart, Kirke W. Brier, Francis Le Noir, A. S. Hopkins, I. E. Smith, E. B. Willis, Lauren W. Ripley, and Susan T. Smith.

In 1908 the library, under an agreement with the board of supervisors of the county, ex- tended its privileges to all residents of the county, being the first institution of the kind to do so. Branch libraries were established in various communities. In the year 1919, the supervisors established a free county library service under Section 2 of the Library Act, and the contract with the City Library was discontinued.

The Library now contains approximately 75,000 volumes, serves 16,193 card holders, and circulates 125,000 books a year. Until 1921 the Library was under the control of a board of trustees, appointed by the mayor of the city. On July 1, 1912, under the then new city charter, the commission form of government was given supervision over the librarian, who was made subject to the commissioner of edu- cation. Again in 1921 a new city charter was adopted and the city-manager plan of muni- cipal government was inaugurated. Through the new charter, the Library is placed directly under the supervision of the city manager. Susan T. Smith, for a number of years refer- ence librarian of the California State Library, was appointed to succeed Lauren W. Ripley, who had held the position of librarian over a long period of years and had practically grown up with the institution.

It is planned under the new administration to extend to all parts of the city the usefulness

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of the Library through the establishing of branches, designed to increase the circulation of books and the reference service. Transients may borrow books while sojourning in the city by paying a deposit. Many avail themselves of the opportunity thus offered. A large staff is maintained in the main library.

The magnificent new Library building at Ninth and I Streets was dedicated on October

17, 1918. The new structure is of brick and terra cotta and is three stories in height. The cost was $130,000, of which the Carnegie Cor- poration donated $100,000 through the activ- ities of the Knights of Pythias, and the balance of the amount was raised by the city commis- sion, chiefly through the efforts of the late E. J. Carragher, commissioner of education.

CHAPTER XXIV

E. B. CROCKER ART GALLERY, AND MUSEUM ASSOCIATION

S SACRAMENTO is the proud possessor of one of the finest collections of paintings and works of art to be found anywhere in the United States, a collection reputed by leading authorities and connoisseurs to be sur- passed by only two other exhibitions in this country, one at the Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York, and the other at the Art Institute of Chicago.

During the years 1870 and 1873, while trav- eling in Europe, Judge E. B. Crocker and Mrs. Margaret E. Crocker gathered most of the 700 paintings and a great number of the drawings, etchings, etc., which formed the foundation for the wonderful exhibit which now hangs upon the walls of the original gal- lery and the residence annex, thrown open to the public in 1920, with practically twice the former space for the display of the almost priceless paintings and other works of art.

The collection was made during the Franco- Prussian War, when the question of price in the field of art was of less concern on the Continent, so that it was possible to obtain many exceptionally fine paintings and draw- ings that under ordinary circumstances never would have been permitted to leave the art galleries and private collections of Europe. During these years the E. B. Crocker Art Gal- lery was erected and made ready to receive the collection. In 1885, the collection, for which about $400,000 had been spent, and the fireproof gallery, which cost close to $235,000. were turned over by a deed of trust to the City of Sacramento by Mrs. Crocker, Judge Crocker having passed away.

The magnificent fireproof building is of the most pleasing architecture and design, and is situated in a beautiful spot at Third and O Streets, surrounded by trees and by rare flow- ers and plants. The original building was 122 feet long and 62 feet wide. It has three floors. the basement having originally been intended

for use as a recreation hall, in which many pub- lic functions and receptions were held, at- tended by many leading characters in state and national life. On the lower floor is dis- played the state's mineral cabinet.

During 1920 the city commission, through appropriations approximating $40,000, fitted up the old residence section and made it a part of the gallery through connecting walls and two wide openings. Into the new space, which practically doubled the facilities for taking care of the paintings, a large number of works of art that had of necessity been stored in the basement of the gallery were brought into the sunlight once more, and their beauty and grandeur now form a part of the great collec- tion that is viewed by the thousands who visit the halls.

The second story, of both the old gallery and the annex, contains many of the art treasures of the world, including many pro- ductions by old masters of the Flemish, Dutch and Italian schools, as well as paint- ings by many eminent California artists whom Judge Crocker liberally patronized. One of the most striking of these confronts the visitor as he enters the big hall. It is an immense paint- ing of the Yosemite Valley by Hill, and is con- sidered the masterpiece of the artist, ranking, according to the best judges, with Bierstadt's "Heart of the Andes." There also are striking canvases by Nahl. the glowing colors revealing his individuality and portraying most vividly the early days of California.

The second and third floors are elaborately frescoed ; all the woodwork is heavy, richly carved, and French-polished, while the glass is all cut and delicately etched. The floors in the old gallery are laid in Roman tiling. Mrs. Crocker subsequently had the floors of the museum section laid in fancy woods of orna- mental design. The main art gallery consists of a vestibule, a main hall, and the west and

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south walls. To these have been added the eastern halls, which constitute the annex. The works of art in the gallery include famous paintings by Van Dyck, Guido, Tintoretto and others of note. Aside from the wide assort- ment of pictorial wealth revealed in the pas- toral and topical canvases, there are numerous portraits of celebrated Californians, done in oil. The studios of over 3.000 eminent artists were visited in assembling the vast collection on dis- play here, which also includes the best exam- ples of the engraver's and lithographer's art.

Gift of the Art Gallery to the City

The incidents connected with the gift of the E. B. Crocker Art Gallery to Sacramento City form a story of pleasing interest. The Califor- nia Museum Association had been organized, as the outcome of a meeting held on December 5. 1884, by a number of gentlemen desirous of forming a scientific association. Its purpose was to foster art, science, mechanics, literature, the development of the state, and the encour- agement of social intercourse among the mem- bers, and also to establish a repository for the collection and exhibition of natural curiosities, scientific objects, antiquities, etc. The asso- ciation started with about twenty members. holding private meetings for some weeks at which papers were read. In January it had grown courageous, and resolved to erect a building for its own and public uses. Mrs. Crocker was foremost in all good works and charities in the city and was known as "Sac- ramento's Lady Bountiful" through her con- tributions to the churches and charitable ob- jects. Learning that the association had re- solved to give an art loan exhibit to secure a nucleus for its building, and had called a meeting of ladies to aid in the undertaking, Mrs. Crocker sent word that, if the association desired, the E. B. Crocker Art Gallery was at its disposal for the purpose of holding the ex- hibition. Her offer was accepted gladly : and in March, 1885, a strange collection of the greatest variety of curiosities of the pioneer era, of art, science, antiquity, and discovery. and of handiwork of various descriptions, con- tributed by the citizens of Sacramento and San Francisco, was thrown open to the public. Contributions from the latter city were made by the Alaska Fur Company, Irving M. Scott, Alexander Badlam, and a number of ladies. The exhibition was open for more than two weeks, and the fame of it went abroad through the land, bringing many visitors to Sacra- mento to see the collection. It was both a social and financial success.

During the continuance of the exhibit. Mrs. Crocker informed the president of the associa- tion. David Lubin, that it was her desire to present the gallery, with its collection of paint- ings, furniture, etc .. to the association. The

announcement was made to the public and was received with the most cordial expressions of appreciation and high regard for the generous donor. The association, however, after de- liberation on the magnificent offer, decided that it was wise to accept it only under a con- dition, self-imposed, that the citizens of Sacra- mento should raise a fund of $100,000, to be permanently invested for the maintenance of the gallery and buildings, being sensible that otherwise the burden would in time become too onerous for a private association. But the accumulation of so large a fund was found to be difficult in so small a community, however liberal individuals might be in making con- tributions. The association therefore proposed to Mrs. Crocker that if she would transfer the property to the city, making the association a co-tenant with the city. the raising of $100,000 would not be necessary. She kindly acceded to the plan, the proposition was placed before the people, and met with immediate favor. Finding that the city was willing to accept the trust, thereupon the association incorporated. on March 20, 1885, and Mrs. Crocker executed to the city a deed of all the valuable property involved, stipulating that it should always be managed and controlled by a joint board of trustees from the association and the city, the mayor to represent the city and the board of directors to represent the association, each cor- poration having only one vote. The deed of trust provided that the association might for- ever use the property for the purposes of its work as heretofore outlined.

The citizens were not slow in showing their appreciation of the munificence of the gift, and the unselfish spirit of the donor. They held in remembrance, also, Mrs. Crocker's gener- ous endowment and gift of the Old Ladies' Home. Their appreciation took the form of a grand floral festival, in May, 1885, at which 3,000 school children made bountiful floral of- ferings to Mrs. Crocker. The lower floor. of the great pavilion of the State Agricultural Society-the largest building in the state-was almost filled with the beautiful floral offerings. Nor was it Sacramento alone that testified to the high regard in which the benefactress was held. The offerings ranged from modest bouquets to spacious churches and towns, and great allegorical designs, all constructed en- tirely of flowers. They came from all parts of the state, from Los Angeles in the south and from Shasta in the north. People of all churches and denominations. the rich and the poor, of all clans and creeds, assembled to do honor to her. The lowest estimate of the num- ber of people who thronged the spacious build- ing on the night of the festival, and witnessed the ceremony of delivering the keys of the gal- lery to the trustees and their acceptance of the

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trust, placed the number assembled at 15,000. It was a spontaneous outpouring of heartfelt gratitude and regard such as has never, before or since, been accorded to a female citizen of the United States.

On the evening of this festival. after the keys of the art gallery had been transferred to the mayor, the citizens of Sacramento pre- sented to Mrs. Crocker a splendid oaken casket, which had been made from some of the timber taken from the old historic Sutter's Fort. It contained two volumes, one of which was bound in velvet and gold and the other in sil- ver and. velvet, both being marvels of artistic taste. The first book contained a number of pages giving a history of her benefactions, of the gift of the art gallery, and of the floral festival. displayed in the highest form of the typographical art. In addition to this each page was adorned by hand decoration in water colors. In the second volume was an account of all the steps leading up to the event, to- gether with copies and extracts from expres- sions by the press, in journals all the way from New York to Sacramento. The gifts were not less unique than beautiful, and Mrs. Crocker voiced her appreciation of them with deep emotion.

The Museum Association lost no time in en- tering upon its work in the art gallery and im- proving the opportunity afforded by this mag- nificent gift. The first step taken by it was to organize the School of Design, and for that purpose Messrs. Weinstock and Lubin con- tributed $1.000 toward the purchase of the necessary casts and paraphernalia for the school. It was opened in January, 1886, and was continued for a number of years. It de- veloped in this city and the surrounding coun- ties an aesthetic taste and a cultivation of artis- tic talent that eventually produced notable re- sults, and many of the students afterwards earned names that stand high among the art- ists of California. The Ladies' Museum Asso- ciation founded a number of scholarships for those who showed artistic talent but could not afford the expense of developing it under ordi- nary circumstances, and the opportunity was eagerly embraced by a number who in later days did credit to the institution.

During the loan exhibition the Museum Association had secured a large number of life members in this city, and a larger number subsequently in San Francisco among former Sacramentans who had not forgotten their at- tachment for their old home. With the rev- enue from these, from a small number of mem- bers who paid regular dues, and from admis- sion fees to the gallery on such days as it was open to admission, together with voluntary contributions from generous citizens, the school became self-sustaining, and the good it did lives after it.

In 1887 the association, in conjunction with the board of trustees of the city, applied to the legislature for the custody of the state's min- eral cabinet, which had up to that time been kept in the State Capitol. The legislature passed a law empowering the governor to ap- point three trustees to take charge of the cabi- net and locate it in the E. B. Crocker Art Gal- lery, without expense to the state, so that it might be more readily viewed by the people. In accordance with this act, Governor Bartlett appointed three of the directors of the Mu- seum Association for that purpose, and the cabinet was removed and placed on the lower floor of the gallery. Mr. Irelan, the state mineralogist, consented to allow his assistant, Dr. Schneider, to be detailed to reclassify the cabinet ; and when he had done so the trustees, through Dr. Pyburn, the secretary, began ar- ranging it in cases, the work being completed on December 26, 1888. It was thrown open to the inspection of the public on the following day. The state retained its title to the prop- erty ; but its custody being as explained, it is rendered a very valuable addition to the gal- lery. Later on, a valuable collection of min- erals and natural-history exhibits and curiosi- ties of an earlier association, which was known as the Agassiz Institute, was presented to the association.

In September, 1888, David Lubin presented to the association five exquisite pieces of statu- ary purchased by him in Italy. In October, 1888, the association, which had never called on the citizens of Sacramento for contributions to its support, except for the loan exhibit of 1885, determined to hold a second loan exhibi- tion. The ladies of the city resolved to aid it. prominent among them being the wives and daughters of members of the association. They organized and were known as the Ladies' Mu- seum Association of Sacramento, with Mrs. Mayor Gregory as president: Mrs. William Ingram, Jr., secretary, and Mrs. Albert Bonn- heim, treasurer. In two months they had a membership' of 138, and offered to take charge of the loan exhibition. which they did, and made it a success fully equal to the first one.

For many years, in fact almost from the time of transfer of the mineral cabinet to the art gallery, the trustees of the cabinet were H. Weinstock. J. A. Woodson, and Dr. Py- burn. The law of 1887, establishing separate trustees for the cabinet, was repealed in 1921, and there are now no trustees.

W. F. Jackson is the curator of the E. B. Crocker Art Gallery, and has been its cus- todian since the gift was made to the city. During the continuance of the School of Art, held under the auspices of the gallery, Mr. Jackson, who is rated among the foremost of California's artists, was the instructor.

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CHAPTER XXV

EDUCATIONAL MATTERS

I T IS an accepted fact among the educators throughout the country that Sacramento has always kept abreast of the times in mat- ters educational; and events of the past few years have emphasized the fact. One of the first things noted in the history of the city in the days of the first rush of immigrants to the land of gold, was the establishment of a school in the summer of 1849, when the fevered quest for the yellow metal pervaded all men's minds to almost the total exclusion of all other senti- ments. And Sacramento has fully kept pace with progress along educational lines ever since, the action of the city in recently voting bonds to the amount of $3,064,000 for new schools for her children being a patent evi- dence that her people are keenly alive to the importance of directing the rising generations into the pathway leading to intelligence and good citizenship. Destroyed several times by fire, grown decrepit by age, stunted by cramped quarters and needing more room for the constantly increasing number of children seeking knowledge, the school buildings have time after time risen like the Phoenix from their ashes, or given place to more modern and commodious ones. Manual training, do- mestic science and gymnastic training have usurped in late years the time and attention formerly given to fossilized studies and ideas and the watchword of "Progress" has shoul- dered out of the way the old and obsolete fea- tures that had retarded advancement. Our boys are today being fitted for the battle of life by the employment of their minds, eyes and hands in a practical way, instead of turning them out upon their struggle for a livelihood with their heads crammed with a mass of knowledge that can be utilized only in certain directions and in a very limited field. Our girls are being trained in the arts that pertain to the home and its comforts and conveniences. The arts of cooking and sewing, which have become almost lost arts in the feminine part of the community, and on which the comfort and harmony of the household so greatly de- pend, have been resuscitated and given their proper place in the economy of our daily lives, and the growing generation of womanhood is being better fitted for wifehood and mother- hood.

The influence for good these things will exert on the next generation can hardly be calculated and must result in a great better- ment of future economic conditions. The struggle for existence is becoming yearly more arduous and our children must be so trained as to be better fitted to encounter its future difficulties. Practical education, then, is neces- sarily taking the place of that which in the past was largely theoretical and impractical.

The first school recorded in the history of our city was opened in August, 1849, by C. T. H. Palmer. Rev. J. A. Benton, who was the first pastor of the Congregational Church in Sacramento, has given an interesting account of the first educational ventures in Sacramento, as follows : "C. T. H. Palmer, formerly of Fol- som, taught the first school, so far as I know. that was ever taught in Sacramento. He taught during the month of August, 1849, and then abandoned the business. I do not know how many pupils he had, but the number could not have exceeded ten. I purchased from him in September the benches and furniture he had used, and opened the same school again Octo- ber 15, 1849, at the same place in which he kept it. The place was on I Street, in a build- ing owned by Prof. F. Shepherd. The struc- ture was a one-story house about 14 by 28 feet, covered at the ends with rough clapboards, and the roof and sides were covered with old sails from some craft tied up at the bank of the river. Some 'shakes' and 'pickets' were nailed over the places not covered by the sails, close to the ground. The doorway was cov- ered by a piece of canvas fastened at the top and dropping before the opening. There was no floor but the ground, and that was by no means level. The schoolhouse stood on the brink of the slough, or 'Lake Sutter.' near the northeast corner of Third and I Streets. It was about sixty feet east of the east side of Third Street and the southern side of it en- croached a few feet on I Street. I Street was not then passable for wagons. The remains of a coal-pit were located in the middle of I Street, a few yards eastward from the build- ing. A small and crooked oak tree stood at the eastern end of the schoolhouse, close to it and near the door. A sycamore tree and some shrubs of ash and elder grew out of the bank on the northern side and close to the building.

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History of Sacramento County, California, with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its growth and development from the early days to the present, 1923, Part 30

Author: Reed, G. Walter Publication date: 1923 Publisher: Los Angeles : Historic Record Co. Number of Pages: 1026

Author: Reed, G. Walter
Publication date: 1923
Publisher: Los Angeles : Historic Record Co.
Number of Pages: 1026