In July 2008, the Archaeological Survey Association (ASA) of Southern California, Inc. donated the Charles Clayton Howe photographs to the Pfau Library. This collection chronicles the Association's archaeological digs from 1947-1972 in Southern California and Mexico through photographs taken by ASA member Charles Howe.
Charles Clayton Howe photographed every aspect of the work at the archaeological sites on which he worked. The collection includes photographs of artifacts, archaeologists, and petroglyphs and pictographs. The images of rock art as it was half a century ago are particularly valuable since there has been significant deterioration of many of the sites since they were photographed. In many cases the image captured in Charles Howe's photograph is more complete than the present-day petroglyph at the site.
The Archaeological Survey Association of Southern California funded the preservation and restoration of the photographs. Association members Rebecca Miller and Rosalind Srivastava were instrumental in the preservation and processing of the collection. The collection finding aid can be found online here.
Please contact Pfau Library's Special Collections and University Archives for permission to use an image in publication by emailing us at .
