La Jolla has always had a wonderful reputation for being exceptionally photogenic, known particularly for its beautiful pictures of shoreline, sea cliffs and beaches. The earliest photograph in the La Jolla Historical Society’s archival collection, dating to the late 1870s, is a stereopticon view showing a group of seven adults and three children having a picnic in the present-day Scripps Park. They are sitting on the ground gathered around a basket with the horses and carriages they arrived in shown in the background. They have come most probably on a tally-ho from San Diego, lone, curious and adventurous visitors to a barren landscape. As the medium of photography recorded La Jolla’s early history, photographs continue to tell stories of today. Even more will be recorded as the La Jolla Historical Society began accepting entries Nov. 1 for its first student photography contest. For details about the contest, call (858) 459-5335. For more than 100 years, photography has had an important role in recording La Jolla history. Both professionals and amateurs have been instrumental in forming the more than 10,000 images that comprise the society’s photographic collection. The collection began to grow most seriously in the 1940s when historian Howard S. F. Randolph issued a request to the community for old photographs to be submitted for the first La Jolla history book, “La Jolla Year by Year.” He was encouraged in his quest for old photographs by La Jolla resident Catharine Murray, herself a fine photographer who cut out snapshots from her own album for his use. The photographs used in Randolph’s book, ranging from the 1870s to the mid-20th century, form the core of today’s archival collection. They include picturesque shots of the old La Jolla Park Hotel, panoramas of the village as it appeared in the early 1900s and numerous portraits of churches, schools and educational institutions as they appeared when first built. All shot in black and white, they reflect the interest of the early community in the medium of photography as both a pictorial and experimental form. The early 1900s also witnessed the arrival in La Jolla of the first professional photographer, Leopold Hugo, who set up a studio on Prospect Street and made it his daily task to record the ocean’s changing sights of surf and cloud formations, as well as the soaring flights of seagulls as they spread their wings into the sky. Hugo’s work has come to be collected as part of the group of plein air artists in California experimenting with black and white photography. Many of Hugo’s images were reproduced on postcards, which the society has in its archives. The Society’s student photo contest, open to student from kindergarten through grade 12, is intended to encourage La Jolla’s youth to gain a better understanding of their community through the camera lens. Subject matter will be divided into three areas: architecture, natural landscape and people. The contest is being coordinated through local schools and teachers, and submissions will be accepted through March 31. A professional group of jurors will select winners at each grade level and prizes will be awarded. A rotating group of the submissions will be displayed at Wisteria Cottage from Dec. 1 to May 31. Winners will be announced at the society’s annual membership meeting on April 25. — Olten is the historian for the La Jolla Historical Society.
