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History Park at
Kelley Park Kelley Park is a city park in San Jose, California, United States. Location and facilities Kelley Park is bounded by Story Road (on the northwest), Senter Road (on the southwest), Roberts Street (on the northeast), and Yerba Buena High School an ...
in
San Jose, California San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popu ...
,
USA The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...
is designed as an indoor/outdoor
museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that Preservation (library and archival science), cares for and displays a collection (artwork), collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, culture, cultu ...
, arranged to appear as a small US town might have in the early 1900s (decade). Since its inauguration in 1971, 32 historic buildings and other landmarks have either been moved from their original San Jose locations or are represented by replicas.


History San José

History Park at Kelley Park is operated by History San José, which also has its headquarters at History Park. History San José (HSJ) is the
501(c)(3) A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of the 29 types of ...
nonprofit organization that was formed from the San José Historical Museum. HSJ traces its origins back to 1945, when local volunteer Clyde Arbuckle was appointed to the honorary position of San José City Historian; Arbuckle had no formal training, but was well-known for his keen interest in local history. In 1949, a temporary replica of the first State House was built in San Jose Civic Plaza to celebrate the centennial of the first Legislature of California. Arbuckle curated a well-received exhibit of local history shown with the State House replica. The replica was moved to the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds in 1950 and became the State House Museum, where Arbuckle served as the first curator, collecting local historic artifacts. So much material was donated that an annex, built in 1958 to house additional items, was full by 1962. The Historical Museum of San José, managed by the city of San Jose, was founded in 1949 simultaneously with the State House centennial activities. In 1965, Theron Fox persuaded the city of San Jose to set aside at the south end of Kelley Park to house the San José Historical Museum, intended to be a historical reconstruction of a small town, which opened on June 18, 1971. The San Jose Historical Museum Association was also founded in 1971 to administer Historical Museum activities. The architectural firm of Churchill & Zlatunich were retained to develop a master plan for the site by July 1, 1972. By February 1972, the museum was averaging over 1,000 visitors per month; admission prices were modest, at a maximum of $0.25 per adult ($1 for an annual pass). On February 24, 1977, the half-scale replica of the Electric Light Tower was placed upright, and later that year, on September 25, the first major buildings were dedicated on the site, including the replica Pacific Hotel and historic Umbarger House. By 1980, the Historical Museum had brought onsite the Associated Oil Company Gas Station, Chiechi House, Coyote Post Office, Dashaway Stables, Doctor's Office, Empire Fire House, Print Shop, and Steven's Ranch Fruit Barn, although not all of them were open to the public; admission prices had risen modestly to $0.50 per adult. The San José Historical Museum was spun off as the History San José nonprofit in 1998. HSJ manages History Park at Kelley Park from the upper floor of the Pacific Hotel in History Park, a replica of a historic hotel originally in downtown San Jose. HSJ is also responsible for the operation of the Peralta AdobeFallon House Historic Site and the Collection Center/Research Library & Archives, which are in downtown San Jose and Kelley Park, respectively.


Exhibits

Period exhibits consist mainly of the 32 historical buildings and replica buildings, including a
doctor Doctor or The Doctor may refer to: Personal titles * Doctor (title), the holder of an accredited academic degree * A medical practitioner, including: ** Physician ** Surgeon ** Dentist ** Veterinary physician ** Optometrist *Other roles ** ...
's office, a
dentist A dentist, also known as a dental surgeon, is a health care professional who specializes in dentistry (the diagnosis, prevention, management, and treatment of diseases and conditions of the oral cavity and other aspects of the craniofacial com ...
's office (complete with an old foot-pedal-powered drill), blacksmith shed, a working print shop, the Pacific Hotel, the Empire Fire House, the Bank of Italy, a
post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional ser ...
, and a number of houses of early
Santa Clara Valley The Santa Clara Valley is a geologic trough in Northern California that extends 90 miles (145 km) south–southeast from San Francisco to Hollister. The longitudinal valley is bordered on the west by the Santa Cruz Mountains and on the ea ...
settlers. Some buildings house special interest historical societies and others host galleries. Admission is free, unless there is a special event being held. On weekdays, tours are offered by paid staff, often for local students on class field trips. On weekends, selected exhibit buildings are staffed on a rotating schedule by volunteers, who also operate a vintage trolley over the length of the park, including under the Light Tower replica.


Buildings


Other structures

* A half scale replica of the
San Jose Electric Light Tower The San Jose electric light tower, also known as Owen's Electric Tower after its creator and chief booster, was constructed in 1881 at an intersection in downtown San Jose, California, as a "high light" or moonlight tower to light the city using a ...
that used to tower over downtown San Jose at Santa Clara and Market. * A
bandstand A bandstand (sometimes music kiosk) is a circular, semicircular or polygonal structure set in a park, garden, pier, or indoor space, designed to accommodate musical bands performing concerts. A simple construction, it both creates an ornamen ...


Exhibits

Other attractions include: * The Leonard and David McKay Gallery, opened on March 13, 2005, displays a collection of
painting Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and a ...
s of people, buildings, and landscapes from in and around the Santa Clara Valley. * The Perham Collection of Early Electronics, previously at Foothills Electronics Museum. The Collection is housed at History San Jose's Collection Center and is not currently on display. * Steam locomotive Southern Pacific 1215 and tender, Orchard Supply Hardware boxcar, and
Missouri Pacific The Missouri Pacific Railroad , commonly abbreviated as MoPac, was one of the first railroads in the United States west of the Mississippi River. MoPac was a Class I railroad growing from dozens of predecessors and mergers. In 1967, the railroad ...
caboose, in a static display.


Map


References


External links


History San Jose Website
– Official site
Chinese Historical & Cultural ProjectCalifornia Trolley & Railroad CorporationCalifornia Pioneers of Santa Clara ValleyPortraits of the Past (historical fashion shows)List of vehicles in the Trolley Barn (click on the "antique vehicles" link near the bottom of the page)
{{Streetcar Museums History of San Jose, California Parks in San Jose, California Open-air museums in California History museums in California Museums in San Jose, California Museums established in 1971 1971 establishments in California