FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 16, 2009 CONTACT: Thea Page, 626­405­2260, [email protected] Historian to Discuss Kathy Fiscus Tragedy Huntington lecture explores a local event that captivated the nation 60 years ago “Little Girl Lost,” March 30, at 7:30 p.m. SAN MARINO, Calif.—In the spring of 1949, a three­year­old girl fell into an abandoned well shaft while playing near her home in San Marino. For more than 24 hours, local television stations KTTV and KTLA covered the unsuccessful rescue attempt, making it one of the first news events in the nation to be televised outside the station. At year’s end, The New York Times referred to the tragic death of Kathy Fiscus as the single most significant photographic event of 1949. William Deverell, professor of history at USC and director of the Huntington­USC Institute on California and the West, will examine the event in a lecture titled “Little Girl Lost: The Kathy Fiscus Tragedy.” Deverell’s lecture takes place March 30, at 7:30 p.m., in Friends’ Hall. It is free and no reservations are required. Deverell, a historian of the 19th­ and 20th­century American West, has published numerous books and papers on various topics in the field, but he has a particular fascination with something that took place less than a mile from the Huntington Library, Art Collections, and “Little Girl Lost” Page 2 of 4 Botanical Gardens. “Perhaps it’s the father in me,” Deverell explains. “I can’t shake the overriding poignancy and tragedy of the event.” While the accident and aftermath had equal elements of tragedy and spectacle, Deverell explores the ways in which the event revealed notions of community in the early Cold War period in Southern California. In mourning, many spoke about how Kathy had brought people together. Kathy’s body was recovered on Palm Sunday; a story of redemption was reinforced a few days later at the funeral, when she was buried in her Easter dress. According to Deverell, the sentimentality—then and now—obscures more complicated aspects of community, including issues of class, race, and political persuasion. Deverell is well­versed in the social and economic history of the region. Fiscus fell into one of many wells that had been drilled in the agricultural ranchland of the San Gabriel Valley since the late 19th century. George Patton, a local landowner and the father of the famed general of World War II, dug several wells in the vicinity in the early 20th century. Henry Huntington himself employed well­digging crews for his own Huntington Land and Improvement Co. By the time of the accident, the 400­foot­well that claimed young Kathy was owned by the California Water and Telephone Co. Deverell can’t help noting that the very name “calls up an earlier age of odd mergers between entities of different scope and mission.” The local manager of the company was Kathy’s father. In his talk Deverell will explain how the event is in part a case study of Southern California agriculture and economic expansion. He will also acknowledge that the rescue efforts did not escape the shadow of Hollywood. For two days, a cast of interesting characters surrounded the well with offers to crawl down the narrow space. Actor Lionel Barrymore later sent a five­foot cross of white sweet peas and white roses to the funeral. But by going beyond “Little Girl Lost” Page 3 of 4 spectacle—to stories about the working­class septic­tank and sewer workers who led the rescue effort—Deverell keeps the focus on community formation and sustenance. By filling in all the details, Deverell also intends to show how “Little Girl Lost” reveals both the permanence and vulnerabilities of community. “Little Girl Lost: The Kathy Fiscus Tragedy” A lecture by William Deverell, professor of history, University of Southern California, and director of the Huntington­USC Institute on California and the West The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens Friends’ Hall Monday, March 30, 7:30 p.m. Free. No reservations required. # # # About William Deverell William Deverell is the director of the Huntington­USC Institute on California and the West, a collaborative research and teaching entity between USC’s College of Letters, Arts, and Sciences and The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens. His current research focuses on the aftermath of the Civil War in the American West. He was the Fletcher Jones Foundation Fellow at The Huntington in 2007–08. Deverell’s recent books include Whitewashed Adobe: The Rise of Los Angeles and the Remaking of its Mexican Past (University of California Press, 2004), which examines the historical relationship between the growth of Los Angeles and Southern California's complex history of racial and ethnic conflict and accommodation. With USC’s Greg Hise, he edited Land of Sunshine: An Environmental History of Metropolitan Los Angeles, (2005) part of the University of Pittsburgh Press’s series on the environmental history of urban America. He and Hise currently are at work on the co­edited Blackwell Companion to Los Angeles. With Professor David Igler of UC Irvine, Deverell is co­editor of the Blackwell Companion to California. (2008) In the academic year 2009–10, he will be the Beinecke Senior Fellow at Yale University. About The Huntington The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens is a collections­based research and educational institution serving scholars and the general public. More information about The Huntington can be found online at www.huntington.org. Visitor information The Huntington is located at 1151 Oxford Rd., San Marino, Calif., and is open to the public “Little Girl Lost” Page 4 of 4 Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday from noon to 4:30 p.m.; and Saturday, Sunday, and Monday holidays from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Summer hours (Memorial Day through Labor Day) are 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Closed Tuesdays and major holidays. Admission on weekdays: $15 adults, $12 seniors (65+), $10 students (ages 12–18 or with full­time student I.D.), $6 youth (ages 5–11), free for children under 5. Group rate $11 per person for groups of 15 or more. Members are admitted free. Admission on weekends and Monday holidays: $20 adults, $15 seniors, $10 students, $6 youth, free for children under 5. Group rate $14 per person for groups of 15 or more. Members are admitted free. Admission is free to all visitors on the first Thursday of each month with advance tickets. Information: 626­405­2100 or www.huntington.org. [EDITOR’S NOTE: High­resolution digital images for publicity use are available on request.] (This underlined copy will be hyperlinked to an email form. Below this Editor’s Note, we’ll add thumbnail images into the PDF.).