Collection context
Summary
- Title:
- Lanna Cheng Collection
- Dates:
- 1974-1994
- Creators:
- La Jolla Historical Society
- Abstract:
- Extent:
- .5 linear feet
- Language:
- Preferred citation:
-
Lanna Cheng Collection. La Jolla Historical Society
Background
- Scope and content:
-
The Lanna Cheng collection is made up of correspondences, photographs, notes, notices, and other documentation regarding the increase in larger residences in La Jolla, specifically at 8483 El Paseo Grande, previously known as 8480 Paseo del Ocaso. Dr. Lanna Cheng Lewin is a research biologist, Scripps marine entomologist, and a current Emeritus Professor of Marine Biology at University of California, San Diego. She has four degrees, three of which from the University of Singapore in Science, and a Doctorate in Philosophy from Oxford University in the UK. Cheng Lewin is an author and editor of multiple publications in marine biology and one on Chinese cuisine. She has also been the chief scientist or participant of nine biological and oceanographic expeditions all around the world between 1975 and 2010. Dr. Lanna Cheng married Ralph Arnold Lewin, a leading figure in marine biology who graduated from Cambridge University with a Doctor of Science in 1972. He was an associate professor at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in 1960, until he retired as a professor in 1961. He became known as the "the father of green algae genetics" because of his scientific accomplishments and investigations in the field. This material pertains to the history and heritage of La Jolla, California; its people, places and events.
- Biographical / historical:
-
The La Jolla Historical Society inspires and empowers the community to make La Jolla’s diverse past a relevant part of contemporary life. The La Jolla Historical Society’s Collections encompass over 80 years of actively collecting archival material, books, maps, scrapbooks, ephemera, fine art, newspapers, street and land use files, business and personal documents and historic and archaeological artifacts. The Society boasts over 20,000 photographs, over 1000 postcards, 400-plus architectural drawings and approximately 200 oral history recordings. Collecting was initiated by Howard Randolph and volunteers on the historical committee of the Library Association of La Jolla. The Collection began by gathering photographs and documentation in the late 1930s, which later became the nucleus of the La Jolla Historical Society’s Collections. The Society was created in 1963. Through many moves in location the Society continued collecting and expanding. Accumulated Collections took on its current construct in 2010 after the renovation of the La Jolla Historical Society’s campus of structures in central La Jolla, which consists of the 1904 Wisteria Cottage and 1940s Balmer Annex used for exhibits and programming, and a 1909 cottage used for business and research offices. The late Ellen Browning Scripps’ 1916 automobile garage was also renovated and now houses the Collection in a modern collections storage facility. Materials are housed in archival boxes, sleeves, envelopes and other archival-safe materials and are cared for according to standards and best practices of the museum profession. In 2016, the Society initiated new PastPerfect Museum Software to manage and catalog its Collections and in 2018 started using the Online Archive of California to upload searchable information from its Collections to enable improved public access. The Society will continue these processes and look forward to utilizing new opportunities to collect, preserve and share the history of La Jolla.
- Acquisition information:
- DB015
About this collection guide
- Date Prepared:
- 1974-1994
- Date Encoded:
- This finding aid was produced using Record Express for OAC5 on April 17, 2025, 11:28 a.m.
Access and use
- Restrictions:
-
The Collection is open for research
- Terms of access:
-
The La Jolla Historical Society holds the copyright to any unpublished materials
- Preferred citation:
-
Lanna Cheng Collection. La Jolla Historical Society
- Location of this collection:
-
7846 Eads AvenueLa Jolla, CA 92037, US
- Contact:
- (858) 459-5335