How did the immense, previously unknown map collection of a hospital dietician end up doubling the size of the Los Angeles Public Library's map archives in a single day? A new short documentary from filmmaker Alec Ernest and the LA Review of Books tells the captivating story of late map lover John Feathers, whose 948-square-foot cottage in Mt. Washington was stuffed with carefully collected, hard-to-come-by maps of Los Angeles, California, and beyond.
The collection was so complete that it was "like an institution would have," says LAPL map librarian Glen Creason, who was called in after Feathers's death by the real estate agent handling the sale of his house. That all went down in 2012 and Creason is still sorting through the incredible stash, including some rare first edition guides to LA, which make their first-ever on-screen appearance in the doc.
· Living History: The John Feathers Map Collection by Alec Ernest [LARB]
· Buy the Mt. Wash House Where They Found Thousands of Maps [Curbed LA]
· Take a Video Tour Around the LAPL's Enormous "Map Cave" [Curbed LA]
Loading comments...