MUSEUMS OF THE PACIFIC COAST 



a collection pertaining to early California history. 

 It also maintains a reference library. In Golden 

 Gate Park. Reached by various Park cars. 



George Haviland Barren, curator. 



California Academy of Sciences. Founded in 

 1853. Maintains a general museum of natural his- 

 tory, including all departments. Although all the 

 collections and the library of the Academy were 

 lost in the great fire of 1906, large and valuable 

 collections have been assembled since that time. 



The collection of birds embraces about 20,000 

 specimens, among which is included what is per- 

 haps the most complete and valuable collection of 

 sea birds in the world. 



The Academy's collection of reptiles and am- 

 phibians contains more than 31,500 specimens and, 

 excepting that of the National Museum and that of 

 the Museum of Comparative Zoology, is the largest 

 and most valuable in America. It is particularly 

 rich in Pacific Coast species and those of the islands 

 off the Pacific Coast of the Americas. It includes 

 266 specimens of the gigantic land tortoises of the 

 Galapagos Archipelago, a more complete representa- 

 tion of that interesting fauna than is found in any 

 other museum in the world. 



The collecti9ns in mammalogy, entomology, con- 

 chology, and invertebrate paleontology, are also 

 large and important. The museum has recently 

 received by gift from Mrs. Charlotte Hemphill 

 Hosmer the conchological collection made by the 

 late Henry Hemphill, which embraces 60,000 to 

 70,000 specimens, representing between 12,000 and 

 15,000 species of marine, fresh-water and land 

 mollusks. It has, through the generosity of Wm. 

 M. Fitzhugh, Esq., also acquired the Lowe collec- 

 tion of Indian baskets, pottery and Indian imple- 

 ments, perhaps the most complete collection of 

 West Coast Indian baskets in existence outside the 

 National Museum. 



The Academy's herbarium contains more than 

 18,000 sheets and is very rich in West Coast spe- 

 cies and in exotics growing in California. 



The collections are now in temporary quarters 

 at 343 Sansome street, but will 59011 be installed in 

 the Academy's new museum building, now under 

 construction in Golden Gate Park. 



Barton Warren Evermann, director. 



San Francisco Institute of Art. This organiza- 

 tion maintains a museum illustrative of the fine 

 arts, principally examples of paintings and draw- 

 ings, in all mediums, and of sculpture. The paint- 

 ings and drawings are by artists of repute of all 

 nationalities, chiefly of the last century. 



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