A.K. Smiley Public Library

Serving the City of Redlands, California since 1894

Established in 1894, A.K. Smiley Public Library has served generations of patrons in the City of Redlands and beyond. The only “admission fee” is curiosity. Lifelong learning is at the center of activity in the beautiful, historic building and attractive grounds!

Citrus Heritage Program on March 12th

Join us on Saturday, March 12th at 11am as Dr. Benjamin Jenkins presents a look at his recently published book California’s Citrus Heritage in the Assembly Room of A.K. Smiley Public Library.

An Archivist and Associate Professor of History at the University of La Verne, Dr. Jenkins will examine the impact of orange and lemon agriculture in California. Since its introduction to the Golden State in the 19th century, citrus has been an indelible part of California’s landscape. Its arrival in the Inland Empire in the 1870s gave rise to the citrus industry which placed Redlands at the center of what became an orange empire. Featuring beautiful historic photographs (including from our very own Special Collections!) and interesting stories, you will not want to miss Dr. Jenkins program.

Copies of California’s Citrus Heritage will be available for purchase at the conclusion of the presentation. This program is free and open to the public and will be live streamed on Facebook Live. All in-person attendees are required to wear a face covering for the duration of their time in the Library.

This program was originally scheduled for January 15. For further information, contact the Heritage Room at (909)798-7632 or heritage@akspl.org.

About the Author:

Dr. Benjamin Jenkins teaches United States and California history, directs the Public History Program, and manages the University Archives at University of La Verne. He received his Ph.D. in Public History at the University of California, Riverside, in 2016. His current research focuses on the interactions between citrus agriculture and railroad transportation in southern California. He has worked at Public History institutions such as the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and the Huntington Library. In addition to California’s Citrus Heritage, one of his most recent publications is The Digital Frontier: Archival Digitization and Modern Usage of the Human Record. He is currently completing a book manuscript titled Octopus’s Garden: Railroads, Citrus Agriculture, and the Emergence of Southern California.