Records of the Heritage Book Shop
Scope and Content
This collection contains papers and other items related to the Heritage Book Shop including invoices and inventories of items bought and sold, files related to daily business of the bookshop (aside from book sales and purchases), and catalogs and artwork related to books and other items for sale. Materials are primarily paper records, but the collection also includes photographic negatives, VHS tapes, CD-ROMs, bound catalogs, and engraving plates. Not all folders are dated, but items range from the late 1960s to 2007.
Some folder titles within boxes may not correspond exactly to the titles listed in the finding aid, as there were occasionally discrepancies in labeling folders. (For example, in boxes 74 through 79, folders are labeled as "invoices" or "invoices/book descriptions" or "invoices/book descriptions/lists", but are simply titled "subject/author files" within the finding aid and in other boxes.)
Dates
- Creation: 1966-2007
Language
Materials in English.
ACCESS
Access to this collection is restricted. Permission to view the collection must be obtained from Ben or Lou Weinstein. The Clark Library will forward any requests to the Weinsteins for their approval.
Publication Rights
Copyright has not been assigned to the William Andrews Clark Memorial Library. All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Librarian. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the William Andrews Clark Memorial Library as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.
Biographical/Historical Note
The Heritage Book Shop was an antiquarian bookshop located in Los Angeles, founded and owned by brothers Ben and Louis Weinstein. The shop started initially as B & J Merchandisers in early 1963 on Compton Boulevard in Compton, California, selling books, clothes, tools, and other items. The bookshop moved to various rented locations early on, but by November of 1988 the brothers moved the bookshop to a former mortuary on Melrose Avenue in West Hollywood.
The Weinsteins were active in the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers (ILAB) and in the Antiquarian Booksellers Association of America (ABAA). In addition to selling rare and antiquarian books, the Heritage Book Shop also sold autographed letters, artwork and illustrations, and modern first editions. The bookshop entertained quite a few famous clients, including those from the entertainment and music industries.
After 44 years in business, the Heritage Book Shop was closed in August of 2007. Ben Weinstein continues business in an office at the Pacific Design Center under the Heritage Book Shop name. The entirety of the Heritage Book Shop reference collection was donated to the William Andrews Clark Memorial Library at UCLA. The majority of their stock has been sold in a series of auctions in New York by Bloomsbury Book Auctions.
Extent
241 Linear Feet (193 boxes)
Abstract
This collection contains items related to the Heritage Book Shop, an antiquarian bookseller formerly located in West Los Angeles, California. This collection includes sale and purchase invoices, inventories, daily business files, catalogs, and artwork, dated from 1966-2007.
Arrangement
This collection is arranged into four series, each of which is divided into subseries.
Missing Title
- Series 1. Inventories
- Series 2. Invoices
- Series 3. Business Files
- Series 4. Catalogs and Art
Physical Location
Stored off-site at SRLF. Advance notice is required for access to the collection.
Acquisition Information
Gift of Ben and Louis Weinstein, 2007.
Gift of Ben and Louis Weinstein, 2013.
Processing History
Physical processing of this collection was begun by Pearl Yi in 2008. Processing was completed and this finding aid written by Jamie Henricks in March 2009. Rebecca Fenning Marschall processed an additional set of boxes in 2013 and added their descriptions to this finding aid.
- Title
- Finding aid for the Records of the Heritage Book Shop 1966-2007
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Collection processed by Pearl Yi and Jamie Henricks; finding aid created by Jamie Henricks.
- Date
- 2009
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written inEnglish.
Repository Details
Part of the William Andrews Clark Memorial Library Repository