Prisbrey Bottle Village Collection

Pencil House at Bottle VillageBottle Village, recognized on The National Register of Historic Places, is located in nearby Simi Valley, CA. Tressa "Grandma" Prisbrey started the project in 1956 at the young age of 60, molding tens of thousands of bottles and other items retrieved from the local dump into hand-carved mortar structures on 1/3 of an acre of land, that later became the beloved neighborhood sight-seeing spot of "Bottle Village". The unique nature of the materials used, how those interesting objects were transformed and re-purposed, and the inspiring example of Grandma Prisbrey's determination to create interesting art for the public, continues to stir, stimulate, and motivate the interest of historians, folk art scholars, and popular culture researchers.

The library's collection focuses on Ms. Prisbrey's life and work, including correspondence, documents, newspaper articles, photographs, and even a children's book.

View more information about the collection

Portions of the Prisbrey Bottle Village Collection are available online:
View the Digital Collection

For additional information, please email Evelyn Taylor, University Archivist at evelyn.taylor@csuci.edu

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