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Peek in the Stacks: photographs

Northridge: the Early Years

The pre-mission San Fernando Valley was peopled by the Fernandeño Tataviam Band of Mission Indians. Their descendants continue to live, work, learn, and grow here. In 2020, CSUN President Dianne F. Harrison, in consultation with tribal President Rudy Ortega Jr., and professor Scott Andrews (Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma), composed, approved, and made public the following land...

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Teatro de Cristóbal Colón in the Richard Cross Collection

Photographer Richard Cross spent 1974 to 1978 as a volunteer in Bogotá, Colombia, working as a photographer and audio-visual consultant for the Peace Corps’ Agricultural Communications program. While there he visited and photographed the Teatro de Cristóbal Colón...

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Coralie Hewitt Tillack Collection

The Hollywood Burbank Airport was built in 1930 and initially served as Los Angeles' primary civil airport. On its opening day it was known as United Airport, but over the decades it went through a number of name changes before its most recent renaming in 2017 to better connect it to its geographic location. It has also been known as...

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Beauties in the Archives

Beauty pageants are common throughout the world. Historically, these contests have focused on cisgender women, but there have been exceptions. Judging criteria for pageants is largely based on a combination of intelligence, talent, and poise, yet the core point of comparison is physical attractiveness. Young women participating in beauty pageants often look to the previous year’s winners for images of how...

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Pacoima Revitalization, Inc. Collection

In 1978, Los Angeles Councilmember Bob Ronka founded the Pacoima Revitalization, Inc. (PRI), funded by the Department of Housing and Urban Development through the Community Development Department of the City of Los Angeles. PRI's Board of Directors was made up of community members appointed by Councilman Ronka. The primary purpose of the organization was to revitalize the Pacoima, Arleta, and Lakeview Terrace areas...

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CSUN’s China Connection

In 1978, CSUN President James W. Cleary began working on a plan to improve the campus’ international reputation. Step one; initiate an international student and teacher exchange program. As one might expect, it took several years for such a program to become firmly established. In November 1983, Cleary’s administrative assistant Kay Kellogg said, “… the program is just now becoming operational.” By this time, exchanges with China, Brazil, and Poland had occurred, and an estimated dozen students and a dozen teachers had already participated in exchanges with China...

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Adohr Farms Collection

The Adohr Farms milk dairy was initially located in Tarzana, California at Ventura Boulevard and Lindley Avenue. Merritt Adamson and his wife Rhoda Agatha Rindge Adamson established the farm in 1916. The farm, dairy, and creamery were named after Rhoda, with her name spelled backwards as "Adohr." Rhoda's parents, Rhoda May Knight Rindge and Frederick Hastings Rindge, were business leaders and real estate developers with a 13,315-acre Malibu ranch...

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The CSUN Matador

In 1958, students at San Fernando Valley State College chose the matador as their official college mascot. Other nominees, the Apollos and the Titans, were among the most popular mascot alternatives for their inherent and mythological ties to the sun. Many students felt that these two options were more suitable choices for the “sunshine campus,” despite the matador winning by popular vote...

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Political Engagement at CSUN

Several items in the Library’s Digital Collections attest to the interest of CSUN students, faculty, and staff in the political landscape of Los Angeles, California, and the United States. Much of the material currently available in Digital Collections date from the 1960s, a period in American history marked by political and racial activism...

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