Members enjoy all the beauty the Huntington Library has to offer

by Cheryl Falconer

LW contributor

On April 6, 55 Leisure World residents enjoyed a lovely day trip to the Huntington Library, Museum and Botanical Gardens in San Marino, California, sponsored by the Sunshine Club. Participants were chauffeured in a luxury motorcoach.

It could not have a more pleasant day; the weather was warm with a light spring breeze, and everyone had a great time.

The sprawling 207-acre property boasts a majestic Georgian mansion that was the primary residence of Henry Edwards Huntington and his family from 1913 to his death in 1927. The art gallery on the property houses an impressive collection of 18th-century British portraits, 18th- and 19thcentury European art and 17th to mid-20th century American works of art.

The Botanical Gardens provided walkable trails that amble over 120 acres that showcase plants from around the world. There are 16 specialized botanical landscaped gardens including the Australian Garden, Desert Garden, a Japanese Garden with koi-filled streams and several pagodas that are used for special events, a Chinese Garden developed by Liu Fang Yuan and a Shakespeare Garden.

The Huntington Library is a Mediterranean Revival-style structure built in 1920 by southern California architect Aaron Hunt to house Huntington’s sizable collections. It contains a substantial collection of rare books and manuscripts, concentrated in the fields of British and American history, literature, science and technology assembled by Henry Huntington. It houses 7 million manuscript items, over 400,000 rare books, and over a million photographs.

The Main Exhibition Hall exhibits some of the most outstanding rare books and manuscripts in the collection.

The Dibner Hall has a permanent exhibition on the history of science which includes astronomy, natural history, medicine and light. The West Hall of the library hosts rotating exhibitions for guests to discover.

At the end of the day, the weary band of seniors boarded the motorcoach for the trip home with souvenirs and lots of photos to remember a lovely day at the Huntington Library, Museum and Botanical Garden.

Residents who went on the adventure would like to thank Sunshine Club for providing an opportunity to take a beautiful day trip.