Unrest on campus in the mid-1960s and early 1970s left a lasting impression on San Fernando Valley State College (now CSUN). Special Collections is home to several books and archival collections that discuss this discord, including two books representing different sides of what is known on campus as...
On the corner of Nordhoff Street and Zelzah Avenue is one of CSUN’s most recognized landmarks, the CSUN 'Spaghetti Letters' sign. After two years of planning, five months of construction, and $12,000, the sculpture designed and built by graduate student John T. Banks stood complete. The impetus for the sign was the official enaming of the campus from San Fernando Valley State College ...
A native of Erie, Pennsylvania, John M. Sell enlisted in the 83rd Regiment of the Pennsylvania Volunteers on July 29, 1861. He was commissioned First Lieutenant on August 27 of that year, and promoted to Captain on September 4, 1862. After fighting in numerous battles over two years, Sell was shot in the left leg on July 2, 1863 during the Battle of Gettysburg. In one of the most commonly-performed medical procedures of the war, a ...
Special Collections and Archives is happy to announce that the newly processed papers of historian and sexologist Dr. Vern L. Bullough are now open and available for research. Dr. Bullough began his career as a medievalist historian authoring such titles as Sexual Practices & the Medieval Church; and Man in Western Civilization. He also worked extensively with his wife. Many of their co-authored or co-edited works deal with nursing or human sexuality. Their credits include...
The Susan B. Nelson Collection documents Susan Nelson's professional and personal life, most notably the fundamental role she played in the creation of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area. The collection details the work of the Friends of the Santa Monica Mountains' Parks and Seashore and the Santa Monica Mountains and Seashore Foundation, which Nelson worked with to realize the dream of an urban park for residents of the greater Los Angeles area...
On May 2, 1918 a local newspaper announced the organization of the Mother's Club of Marian, noting the Club’s purpose was "to be of patriotic service, to become a center for broader social life, and to work unitedly for the advancement of both school and community." Marian would later change its name...
The scholarly study of prostitution began to flourish in the mid-1980s sparked by public health concerns over sexually transmitted diseases, the need for legislative protections against sexualized violence and sex trafficking, and a growing awareness of relationships between sex work, substance abuse, and mental health. The regulation of prostitution in the United States is not ...
In 1961, Mary Ellen Crawford, an African-American teen, attempted to enroll at South Gate High School, the closest high school to her home. The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) refused her request, and directed her to enroll at the more-distant Jordan High School. Jordan’s student body was 99% African-American, while South Gate High's was 98% Caucasian. Crawford's parents filed suit in Los Angeles Superior Court, alleging that LAUSD exercised discriminatory attendance boundary practices...
Canoga Park High School is one of the oldest high school in the San Fernando Valley. The school first opened as Owensmouth High on October 4th, 1914 with three teachers and fourteen students. In 1931, the school's name was changed after the town of Owensmouth became known as Canoga Park. The Canoga Park High School Collection consists of...
Japanese incursions into China began as early as 1931, shortly after the Mukden (or Manchurian) Incident. The following six years saw several smaller incursions, both military and political. For the Far East and Southeast Asia, the war began with the full-scale Japanese invasion of China in 1937; two years later it would become World War II...
