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Peek in the Stacks: san fernando valley

Northeast Valley Oral History Project Collection

In 2002, writer Emory Holmes II set out to establish a Poetry and Writers workshop at the Northeast Valley Senior Center in Pacoima, California. The project, entitled “Stories from my Hometown,” was funded in partby the Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department's Regional Arts Grants Program....

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John Broesamle Suddenly A Giant: A History of CSUN Collection

In 1988, CSUN professor John Broesamle reluctantly accepted a commission to deliver a “real history” of the campus at the urging of then-Library Dean Norman Tanis. Broesamle’s initial apprehension to accept the offer stemmed from CSUN's relatively short life (in historical terms) of three decades...

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Antonio and Luz Mendez Calvo Family Collection

In our personal lives, important documents are often kept private and tucked away.  When studying immigration and family life, it is helpful to move beyond the readily available rhetoric and look at primary sources. The Antonio and Luz Mendez Calvo family Collection, which has been digitized as part of the Latino Cultural Heritage Digital Archives, offers that opportunity...

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Interpreting a Trove of Forms and Applications

For many of us, filling out applications and forms is a tedious task. In our daily lives, there are varieties of documents we must fill out to conduct business. On their own, these documents may not seem to be very valuable. Yet, for researchers, completed forms and applications may reveal a treasure trove of information about an individual's experience, their family and community, cultural traditions...

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Industrial Association of the San Fernando Valley Collection

The Industrial Association of the San Fernando Valley, now known as the Valley Industry and Commerce Association (VICA), is a non-profit organization created to bring industries and commerce to the San Fernando Valley. The San Fernando Valley housing development was beginning to boom in the 1950s, and VICA’s mission was to bring commerce ...

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CSUN's Founding Story

Special Collections and Archives holds several collections and publications that tell the story of the founding of California State University, Northridge. The saga has been documented by emeritus history professor John Broesamle in his 1993 history of the university, Suddenly a Giant, through photographs in the University Archives Photograph Collection, and in the Judge Julian Beck and Homer A. Halverson ...

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Charles Weeks Collection

The Charles Weeks Collection was created by Carolyn L. Ryan, author of Winnetka's Heritage. The collection is comprised of various publications which document the activities and lifestyle of Charles Weeks and the farming community he helped to create in the San Fernando Valley. Mr. Weeks was invited to the San Fernando ...

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S.F.V.S.C., November 4, 1968

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...

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‘Spaghetti Letters’

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 ...

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Community Fairs

Fairs vary in size, location, and purpose. Larger scale fairs, like state fairs, usually last for weeks or months, whereas county and neighborhood fairs typically run for a few days or weeks. Types of fairs vary from agricultural shows to those that are meant to educate local communities about different topics. Fairs vary in size and focus, but are meant to bring people together, be fun, and have an aspect of education, even if it is for self-promotion...

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