Overview

Picture This: California's Perspectives on American History is a resource for teachers and students to learn about the experiences of diverse peoples of California by using primary source images from the Oakland Museum of California's collections. Organized into six time periods spanning from pre-1769 to the present, more than 140 photographs, drawings, posters, and prints tell stories from the perspectives of different ethnic groups. Historical contexts are provided to offer a framework of California's role in relation to American history.

The National Archives state that primary sources, "fascinate students because they are real and they are personal: history is humanized through them." Picture This invites students to examine the historical record, encouraging them to connect history with real people and explore how images tell stories and convey historical evidence about the human experience. History becomes more than just a series of facts, dates, and events.

When students view images of California's ethnically diverse peoples, they touch the lives of those people. Examining photographs of African or Chinese Americans in California in the 1890's provides a deeper understanding of the events of the time period. Students realize that while America is a nation of immigrants. California history includes ethnically diverse people from around the world, actively engaged in responding to events of their times. The Oakland Museum of California's collections tell the story of California and, in doing so, showcase an incredibly rich diversity of perspectives; California, after Indonesia, is the most diverse place in the world.

Studying California history provides an evocative lens through which to understand the history of the United States. As Wallace Stenger writes, "California is like the rest of the United States-only more so." In the mid 1960's, California replaced New York as the country's most populated state, thereby giving us, says American historian Patricia Nelson Limerick, "a new way to think about national history." Picture This provides material specific to California's history and, more generally, how that history has influenced, impacted and reflected American history.

We invite you, teachers and students, to use these images and discover the powerful stories behind them. Through recognition, inquiry, and discussion we can realize a richer, more meaningful history of our nation.

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Credits

Donna Leary - Curriculum Specialist
Barbara Henry - Chief Curator of Education
Jerry Daviee - Grant Writer
Rachel Davidman - Project Manager
Julia Brashares - Project Coordinator
Sherie Ellington - Project Designer
Scott Thiele - Image Researcher
Mimi Nguyen - Project Assistant
Elizabeth Lay- Content Specialist

Curritorial Staff
Diane Curry - History Curatorial Specialist, Rights and Reproductions
Stacey Zwald - History Curatorial Aide
Bill McMorris - Art Curatorial Specialist
Marcia Eymann - Curator of Historical Photography

Historical Context Writers
Elizabeth Lay
Jonas Zuckerman
Erin Suzukawa
Phil Mumma
Jim Humes
Barbara Tannenbaum
Joel Wing
Scott Thiele

Historians
Chuck Wollenberg
Robert Phelps
John Burns

Editors
Doug Benerofe
Ami Icanberry
Catherine A. Hoffman
Steven Jenkins
Wendy Edelstein

Digital Photography
Carl Nolting
Michael Temperio

Special Thanks:
Beth Maloney - History Programs Coordinator
Lori Anderson - Webmaster
Kristin Gates - Lecturer, San Francisco State University
Art Cambell and Phil Roberts - Century Alpha
To all of the teachers who gave feedback

Selected images from the collections of:

The African American Museum and
Library at Oakland (AAMLO)
http://www.oaklandlibrary.org/AAMLO/
AAMLO is dedicated to discovering, preserving, interpreting and sharing the historical and cultural experiences of African Americans in California and the West for present and future generations.

California Historical Society
http://www.californiahistoricalsociety.org/
programs/index.html The mission of the California Historical Society is to enable visitors to experience history as lively, vital and relevant to everyday life, to use history as a means to explore their own identity and the identities of the various communities of which they are a part, and to understand history as a resource for making informed decisions about the future.

Oakland Tribune
http://www.oaklandtribune.com

History Room of the Oakland Public Library
http://www.oaklandlibrary.org/
The Oakland Public Library informs, inspires and delights its diverse community as a resource for information, knowledge, and artistic and literary expression, providing the best in traditional services, new technologies and innovative programs.

Contact/Copyright

Copyright

Images on the Oakland Museum of California web site are for personal viewing and/or educational purposes only. Neither the text nor images on this site are for use in the public domain.

Reproduction, redistribution, or exploitation for personal or corporate gain is strictly prohibited by federal copyright law. Users are held fully responsible for any infringement of copyright held by the Oakland Museum of California or other entities.

Permission for all reproduction in printed and/or electronic formats must be obtained from the Oakland Museum of California.

Important note about copyright
The Oakland Museum of California does not necessarily own the copyright to all objects in its collections. It is the user's responsibility to obtain required permissions and pay required fees for the use of copyrighted material. If known, the Museum may provide you with contact information for specific copyright owners. Users are held fully responsible for any infringement of copyright.

For rights/reproductions information,
contact in writing:
Oakland Museum of California
Rights & Reproductions
1000 Oak Street
Oakland, CA 94607
510-238-6579 Fax

For more information regarding this
project, contact:
Oakland Museum of California
Education Department
phone (510)238-3818
Fax 510-238-7795

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