The Alameda is a historic district of Central
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 popul ...
, west of
Downtown San Jose
Downtown San Jose is the central business district of San Jose, California. Downtown is one of the largest tech clusters in Silicon Valley, as well as the cultural and political center of San Jose.
History
The town was first settled in 1777. T ...
. The district is centered on an ''
alameda
An alameda is a Avenue (landscape), street or path lined with trees () and may refer to:
Places Canada
*Alameda, Saskatchewan, town in Saskatchewan
**Grant Devine Dam, formerly ''Alameda Dam'', a dam and reservoir in southern Saskatchewan
Chile
...
'' (
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...
for
tree-lined street), a historic portion of
El Camino Real connecting Downtown San Jose to
Mission Santa Clara de Asís
Mission Santa Clara de Asís ( es, Misión Santa Clara de Asís) is a Spanish mission in the city of Santa Clara, California. The mission, which was the eighth in California, was founded on January 12, 1777, by the Franciscan order. Named for ...
, and includes the smaller, surrounding neighborhoods to the north and east, like
College Park and
St. Leo's.
History
The road was built beginning around 1795 by
Native American neophytes at
Mission Santa Clara de Asís
Mission Santa Clara de Asís ( es, Misión Santa Clara de Asís) is a Spanish mission in the city of Santa Clara, California. The mission, which was the eighth in California, was founded on January 12, 1777, by the Franciscan order. Named for ...
on the orders of Father
Magin Catalá Magin is both a surname and a given name. Notable people with the name include:
Surname:
*Alik Magin, Australian rules footballer
*Miłosz Magin (1929–1999), Polish composer and pianist
*Rhys Magin (born 1989), Australian rules footballer
Given ...
to link the mission with
El Pueblo de San José de Guadalupe (now the city of San Jose). Originally it had irrigation ditches on either side, bringing water from the
Guadalupe River and Mission Creek to the fields and feeding a pond near the mission.
[Shannon E. Clark, ''The Alameda: The Beautiful Way'', San Jose: Alameda Business Association, 2006, , p. 2.]
Willow trees were planted in multiple rows along the road in 1799; the last one was removed in 1982. The residents of the pueblo used the tree-lined path to attend Sunday
Mass
Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...
at the mission chapel prior to the construction of
St. Joseph's Church.
The first
stagecoach
A stagecoach is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by four horses although some versions are draw ...
line in California ran between San Jose and San Francisco via the Alameda beginning in 1849. The
San Jose and Santa Clara Railroad along the Alameda was the first interurban railroad in California when it opened with horsecars in 1868, and the second electric
streetcar
A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...
line in California (after that in San Diego) and the first
interurban
The Interurban (or radial railway in Europe and Canada) is a type of electric railway, with streetcar-like electric self-propelled rail cars which run within and between cities or towns. They were very prevalent in North America between 1900 a ...
electric streetcar in the West when it reopened in 1888 with an underground third rail. It was converted to an overhead trolley in 1889.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the Alameda attracted many wealthy residents who built mansions along it. The Dunne mansion on the corner of Emory Street, built in the 1890s, may be the oldest building on the street.
Coachella Valley Church
Coachella Valley Church is a Rastafarian church of the Ethiopian Zion Coptic Church, located on The Alameda in San Jose, California. It was incorporated in 2016 and is at the same location as a previous dispensary, Amsterdam's Garden. The city ha ...
, lies north on the Alameda. It was built in the 1920s, and was owned by former San Jose mayor Dan W. Gray.
The Alameda was first paved in 1912.
Recent history
The Alameda originally ran through the middle of the
Santa Clara University
Santa Clara University is a private Jesuit university in Santa Clara, California. Established in 1851, Santa Clara University is the oldest operating institution of higher learning in California. The university's campus surrounds the historic Mis ...
campus, but the portion of the road through campus has been turned into a pedestrian path.
El Camino Real branches off of the Alameda southeast of Santa Clara University; El Camino Real carries State Route 82 to bypass the campus.
Brooke Hart
Brooke Hart (June 11, 1911 – November 9, 1933) was the eldest son of Alexander Hart, the owner of the L. Hart & Son department store in downtown San Jose, California, United States. His kidnapping and murder were heavily publicized, and the s ...
, whose murder led to San Jose's most well-known lynching, lived with his family at 1717 The Alameda.
The
is on the Alameda. There are gay and straight-oriented businesses nearby.
In 2006 the book ''The Alameda: The Beautiful Way'' by Shannon Clark was published that details the history of The Alameda.
Geography
The Alameda is the name of both the street which forms a historic portion of
El Camino Real and the surrounding district. It includes smaller neighborhoods including
St. Leo's and
College Park.
To the west/south of The Alameda is the district of
Rose Garden
A rose garden or rosarium is a garden or park, often open to the public, used to present and grow various types of garden roses, and sometimes rose species. Most often it is a section of a larger garden. Designs vary tremendously and roses m ...
and to the east is
Downtown San Jose
Downtown San Jose is the central business district of San Jose, California. Downtown is one of the largest tech clusters in Silicon Valley, as well as the cultural and political center of San Jose.
History
The town was first settled in 1777. T ...
At its southeastern end (near the
SAP Center
The SAP Center at San Jose (originally known as San Jose Arena and the HP Pavilion at San Jose) is an indoor arena located in San Jose, California. Its primary tenant is the San Jose Sharks of the National Hockey League, for which the arena has ...
), the Alameda turns into Santa Clara Street through
Downtown San Jose
Downtown San Jose is the central business district of San Jose, California. Downtown is one of the largest tech clusters in Silicon Valley, as well as the cultural and political center of San Jose.
History
The town was first settled in 1777. T ...
and before turning into Alum Rock Avenue in
East San Jose
East San Jose (abbreviated as ESJ), commonly called The East Side and less commonly as the East Valley, is the eastern region of the city of San Jose, California. The East Side is made up of numerous neighborhoods grouped into two larger distric ...
.
Cahill Park is located in the St. Leo's area of The Alameda.
Architecture
The Alameda is known for its historic architecture, with many examples of Californian architecture, including
Spanish Colonial Revival
The Spanish Colonial Revival Style ( es, Arquitectura neocolonial española) is an architectural stylistic movement arising in the early 20th century based on the Spanish Colonial architecture of the Spanish colonization of the Americas.
In the ...
,
Californian Churrigueresque,
Plateresque
Plateresque, meaning "in the manner of a silversmith" (''plata'' being silver in Spanish), was an artistic movement, especially architectural, developed in Spain and its territories, which appeared between the late Gothic and early Renaissance in ...
revival,
Mission Revival architecture
The Mission Revival style was part of an architectural movement, beginning in the late 19th century, for the revival and reinterpretation of American colonial styles. Mission Revival drew inspiration from the late 18th and early 19th century ...
, amongst others.
Landmarks
*
Coachella Valley Church
Coachella Valley Church is a Rastafarian church of the Ethiopian Zion Coptic Church, located on The Alameda in San Jose, California. It was incorporated in 2016 and is at the same location as a previous dispensary, Amsterdam's Garden. The city ha ...
*Westminster Presbyterian Church
*Towne Theatre
*Greenlee's Bakery
*Schurra's Candies
*Hanchett Park Building
*Old Bank of Italy Branch
*
Leib Carriage House
Gallery
File:The Alameda, San Jose 0543.jpg, Californian Churrigueresque architecture
File:Zona Rosa on The Alameda, San Jose 0537.jpg, Zona Rosa
File:The Alameda, San Jose 0573.jpg, Spanish Colonial Revival
The Spanish Colonial Revival Style ( es, Arquitectura neocolonial española) is an architectural stylistic movement arising in the early 20th century based on the Spanish Colonial architecture of the Spanish colonization of the Americas.
In the ...
architecture
File:Luna Mexican Kitchen on The Alameda 0532.jpg, Luna Mexican Kitchen
File:Hancett Park Building on The Alameda, San Jose 0552.jpg, Hanchett Park Building
File:The Alameda, 1.3 (cropped).jpg, Historic Schurra Candies
File:Zavala Building on The Alameda, San Jose 0576.jpg, Zavala Building
References
External links
The Alameda Business Association
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alameda
Neighborhoods in San Jose, California
Culture of San Jose, California
Gay villages in California
History of Santa Clara County, California
History of Santa Clara, California
Streets in San Jose, California