Redlands

By Randy Briggs and Fred Edwards

Cultural traditions coalesce in the city of Redlands like nowhere else in the Inland Empire. The University of Redlands is distinguished by a century of academic leadership to the community, the Fortnightly Club is one of the oldest literary organizations in the United States, and Spinnet plays favorites as one of the oldest musical societies in California. The rich cultural legacy of this sun-drenched San Bernardino County municipality intertwines with its past as a farming, citrus-growing, and health-care community, and lives on in the Redlands Symphony Orchestra, Redlands Art Association, and other regionally recognized organizations. The renowned A. K. Smiley Library remains an enduring tribute to one of the city's pioneering twin brothers (A. H. was the other) who oversaw its formative years.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
• Release date: Oct 23, 2006
• ISBN: 9781439634042

Randy Briggs

In this new retrospective, authors Randy Briggs and Fred Edwards, both longtime residents well acquainted with Redlands history, and enthusiasts concerning its past, present, and future, use vintage picture postcards in this keepsake compendium to create a nostalgic journey back into the community's storied history.

Book preview

HERITAGE.

PREFACE

Randy Briggs and Fred Edwards sing side by side in the baritone section of the Redlands Community Chorus. During a break in rehearsal, Fred asked the question: Randy, why don’t we use your vintage postcards to write a book about Redlands? After a brief pause, Randy said, Okay, when do we start? Neither one was inclined to delay to later what could be done sooner, so the project was initiated. Some of the picture postcards had already been exhibited in the Redlands Post Office Museum, which was established by Edwards several years ago. So the authors already had the basis of some choice selections. Both Randy and Fred have an avid interest in the history of Redlands, their town, and enjoy and participate in its many cultural offerings.

Randy Briggs is co-owner of the Fred Coops Galleries shop in Redlands, which is a center for numismatists, philatelists, and other collectors. He surely got into that business because he likes to collect rare and interesting stuff. His personal Redlands-related collection includes an impressive array of books, papers, documents, and other ephemera. His catalogue of more than 900 vintage picture postcards of Redlands is surely the most complete to be found anywhere. In addition to his collecting, he claims to always sing in tune and is a connoisseur of fine wines.

Fred Edwards, a retired United Methodist pastor and 26-year staff writer for a Roman Catholic homily service, continues to write on various topics for publication and for his own enjoyment. An artist as well as a writer, he works with his wife in creating fine art etchings, many of which depict the Redlands area.

Briggs and Edwards intend this book of vintage postcard views as a companion to Arcadia Publishing’s Images of America: Redlands by Larry E. Burgess and Nathan D. Gonzales.

—Fred Edwards and Randy Briggs

May 2006

INTRODUCTION

Why postcards? It is utterly astounding that the small town of Redlands produced some 900 designs of picture postcards from the mid-1880s to the 1960s. Almost all of them were from photographic images. The town, after all, was very small. The population was less than 15,000 until the mid-1950s, and yet few cities of much greater size—New York and Chicago, for example—produced more picture postcards in the late 1800s and early 1900s than little Redlands. A postcard collector recently told Randy Briggs that he knew of only two other places in the United States that had produced such an array of cards, and those were New York’s Lake Mohonk resort and our nearby sister city of Riverside, with its famous Mission Inn.

The burgeoning and still relatively new art of photography spurred an early interest in picture postcards. Photographers found that pictures that could be purchased and mailed would be a profitable adjunct to their business. The post office even offered a special rate for mailing postcards. Some photo cards were even hand tinted by the photographers for special appeal. Printers very soon got into the business and began printing some cards in color. Businesses discovered that picture postcards were a handy way to advertise a market or a clothing store. Some merely depicted building facades, while others showed store interiors with staff standing ready to serve customers.

Redlands offered an impressive number of local attractions. The Wyatt Theater boasted the fourth largest stage in California, seating 1,300 people, and drew world famous artists, musical troupes, and even opera. The Smiley estate was a horticultural marvel, and its gates were open to visitors. Orange orchards were a wondrous sight, especially to eastern visitors, and some were outlined with palm trees and even roses. There were stately homes, many in the Victorian or Queen Anne style, some 300 of which are still in existence today. There was a fine library and surrounding park, substantial downtown buildings, and some picturesque hotels, most notably the Casa Loma Hotel. All these were depicted from every angle, and by the dozens and even hundreds, for mailing to distant places. Special occasions, such as presidential visits, also made interesting material.

Postcards of local attractions became a popular way to mail a friend a scene of where one was visiting. Thousands of tourists were coming to Redlands each year, and they were happy to mail pictures of the town to their friends. Thus the Redlands Chamber of Commerce, real estate brokers, and tourist-friendly businesses were getting plenty of free advertising, because people were paying for the picture cards and then paying the postage.

The pictures often evoke the styles of clothing, the mode of transportation, and the ambiance of both time and place. Young people are seen happily enjoying a picnic. One sees now antique-looking automobiles, motorcycles,