The Californias ( Spanish : Las Californias ), occasionally known as the Three Californias or the Two Californias , are a region of North America spanning the United States and Mexico , consisting of the U.S. state of California and the Mexican states of Baja California and Baja California Sur . Historically, the term Californias was used to define the vast northwestern region of Spanish America , as the Province of the Californias ( Spanish : Provincia de las Californias ), and later as a collective term for Alta California and the Baja California peninsula .
77-504: Cambrian Academy is a private school in San Jose, California , founded in 2008 by Dave Delgado. Cambrian Academy serves students in Grades 6-12. Although described as an Advanced Middle School and College Preparatory High School, it is organized as a continuum spanning Grades 6-12. Students are placed in classes based on ability rather than age, so the grade-level distinction is less important than
154-731: A 2022 population of 971,233, it is the most populous city in both the Bay Area and the San Jose–San Francisco–Oakland Combined Statistical Area —which in 2022 had a population of 7.5 million and 9.0 million respectively —the third-most populous city in California after Los Angeles and San Diego , and the 13th-most populous in the United States . Located in the center of the Santa Clara Valley on
231-480: A center of innovation for the mechanization and industrialization of agricultural and food processing equipment. Though not affected as severely as San Francisco, San Jose also suffered significant damage from the 1906 San Francisco earthquake . Over 100 people died at the Agnews Asylum (later Agnews State Hospital) after its walls and roof collapsed, and San Jose High School's three-story stone-and-brick building
308-527: A distinction between the Antigua ('old') area of established settlement and the Nueva ('new') unexplored areas to the north. At that time, almost the only explored and settled areas of the province were around the former Jesuit missions but, once exploration and settlement of the northern frontier began in earnest, the geographical designations Alta ('upper') and Baja ('lower') gained favor. The single province
385-582: A large administrative division created by José de Gálvez , Spanish Minister of the Indies , in order to provide greater autonomy for the Spanish Empire 's borderlands. That year, King Carlos III of Spain approved an expedition by Juan Bautista de Anza to survey the San Francisco Bay Area , in order to choose the sites for two future settlements and their accompanying mission . De Anza initially chose
462-418: A national land conservation organization, reported that San Jose was tied with Albuquerque and Omaha for having the 11th best park system among the 50 most populous U.S. cities. A 2011 study by Walk Score ranked San Jose the nineteenth most walkable of 50 largest cities in the United States. San Jose's trail network of 60 mi (100 km) of recreational and active transportation trails throughout
539-480: A political propensity toward Smart Growth planning principles. San Jose is located at 37°20′10″N 121°53′26″W / 37.33611°N 121.89056°W / 37.33611; -121.89056 . San Jose is located within the Santa Clara Valley , in the southern part of the Bay Area in Northern California. The northernmost portion of San Jose touches San Francisco Bay at Alviso , though most of
616-504: Is a collective term to refer to the American and Mexican states bearing the name California , which share geography, history, cultures, and strong economic ties. There has been understandable confusion about use of the plural Californias by Spanish colonial authorities. California historian Theodore Hittell offered the following explanation: In very early times, while the country was supposed to be an island or rather several islands, it
693-659: Is accredited by the Accrediting Commission of the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. San Jose, California San Jose , officially the City of San José ( Spanish for ' Saint Joseph ' / ˌ s æ n h oʊ ˈ z eɪ , - ˈ s eɪ / SAN hoh- ZAY , - SAY ; Spanish: [saŋ xoˈse] ), is the largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With
770-585: Is named after el Pueblo de San José de Guadalupe ( Spanish for 'the Town of Saint Joseph of Guadalupe '), the city's predecessor, which was eventually located in the area of what is now the Plaza de César Chávez . In the 19th century, print publications used the spelling "San José" for both the city and its eponymous township . On December 11, 1943, the United States Board on Geographic Names ruled that
847-614: Is seen in the Central Valley . "Rain year" precipitation has ranged from 4.83 in (122.7 mm) between July 1876 and June 1877 to 30.30 in (769.6 mm) between July 1889 and June 1890, although at the current site since 1893 the range is from 5.33 in (135.4 mm) in "rain year" 2020–21 to 30.25 in (768.3 mm) in "rain year" 1982–83. 2020-2021 was the lowest precipitation year ever, in 127 years of precipitation records in San Jose. The most precipitation in one month
SECTION 10
#1733084532806924-554: Is shaken by moderate earthquakes on average one or two times a year. These quakes originate just east of the city on the creeping section of the Calaveras Fault, which is a major source of earthquake activity in Northern California. On April 14, 1984, at 1:15 pm local time, a 6.2 magnitude earthquake struck the Calaveras Fault near San Jose's Mount Hamilton. The most serious earthquake, in 1906, damaged many buildings in San Jose as described earlier. Earlier significant quakes rocked
1001-472: Is spelled in mixed upper- and lowercase letters, but not when the name is spelled only in uppercase letters, as on the city logo. The accent reflects the Spanish version of the name, and the dropping of accents in all-capital writing was once typical in Spanish. While San José is commonly spelled both with and without the acute accent over the "e", the city's official guidelines indicate that it should be spelled with
1078-592: Is the Washington-Guadalupe neighborhood, immediately south of the SoFA District ; this neighborhood is home to a community of Hispanics , centered on Willow Street. San Jose possesses about 15,950 acres (6,455 ha) of parkland in its city limits, including a part of the expansive Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge . The city's oldest park is Alum Rock Park , established in 1872. In its 2013 ParkScore ranking, The Trust for Public Land ,
1155-633: The Pueblo de San José de Guadalupe by José Joaquín Moraga , under orders of Antonio María de Bucareli y Ursúa , Viceroy of New Spain . San Jose served as a strategic settlement along El Camino Real , connecting the military fortifications at the Monterey Presidio and the San Francisco Presidio , as well as the California mission network . In 1791, due to the severe flooding which characterized
1232-471: The 1990 U.S. census indicated that San Jose had officially surpassed San Francisco as the most populous city in Northern California. By the 1990s, San Jose had become the global center for the high tech and internet industries and was California's fastest-growing economy for 2015–2016. Between April 2020 and July 2022, San Jose lost 42,000 people, 4.1% of its population, dropping to 12th, and then 13th largest city position in largest city ranking. San Jose
1309-619: The California Trail as part of the Bartleson Party and later acquired a fortune, was the city's first mayor. San Jose was briefly California's first state capital, and legislators met in the city from 1849 to 1851. ( Monterey was the capital during the period of Spanish California and Mexican California ). The first capitol no longer exists; the Plaza de César Chávez now lies on the site, which has two historical markers indicating where California's state legislature first met. In
1386-800: The Californian coast . During this time Alta California and the Baja California peninsula were administered together as Province of the Californias (Spanish: Provincia de las Californias ). For nearly 200 years, the Californias remained a distant frontier region largely controlled by the numerous Native Nations and largely ignored by the government of the Viceroyalty of New Spain in Mexico City . Shifting power dynamics in North America—including
1463-766: The First Mexican Empire in 1821, after Mexico's War of Independence was won against the Spanish Crown , and in 1824, part of the First Mexican Republic . With its newfound independence, and the triumph of the republican movement, Mexico set out to diminish the Catholic Church 's power within Alta California by secularizing the California missions in 1833. In 1824, in order to promote settlement and economic activity within sparsely populated California,
1540-646: The M113 Armored Personnel Carrier , the Bradley Fighting Vehicle , and various subsystems of the M1 Abrams battle tank. IBM established its first West Coast operations in San Jose in 1943 with a downtown punch card plant, and opened an IBM Research lab in 1952. Reynold B. Johnson and his team developed direct access storage for computers, inventing the RAMAC 305 and the hard disk drive ;
1617-758: The Mexican War of Independence . As a part of the Mexican–American War (1846–48), the Conquest of California saw the vast Alta California territory ceded from Mexico to the United States. The populated coastal region of the territory was admitted into the Union in 1850 as the State of California , while the vast, sparsely populated interior region would only later gain statehood as Nevada , Utah , and parts of New Mexico , Arizona , Wyoming , and Colorado . Today, Californias
SECTION 20
#17330845328061694-542: The Mexican–American War , and the split of the two Californias was restored. Following Mexico's defeat in the war, most of the former Alta California territory was ceded on 2 February 1848 to the United States, under the terms of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo . The new Mexico–United States border was established slightly to the north of the previous Alta-Baja border, and the terms Las Californias and Alta California were no longer formally used. The areas acquired by
1771-757: The Santa Clara Valley , has been home to the Tamien group (also spelled as Tamyen, Thamien) of the Ohlone people since around 4,000 BC . The Tamien spoke Tamyen language of the Ohlone language family . During the era of Spanish colonization and the subsequent building of Spanish missions in California , the Tamien people's lives changed dramatically. From 1777 onward, most of the Tamien people were forcibly enslaved at Mission Santa Clara de Asís or Mission San José where they were baptized and educated to be Catholic neophytes , also known as Mission Indians . This continued until
1848-612: The Santa Cruz Mountains flowing north through San Jose, ending in the San Francisco Bay at Alviso . Along the southern part of the river is the neighborhood of Almaden Valley , originally named for the mercury mines which produced mercury needed for gold extraction from quartz during the California Gold Rush as well as mercury fulminate blasting caps and detonators for the U.S. military from 1870 to 1945. East of
1925-665: The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo formally ceded California to the United States, as part of the Mexican Cession . On December 15, 1849, San Jose became the capital of the unorganized territory of California . With California's Admission to the Union on September 9, 1850, San Jose became the state's first capital. On March 27, 1850, San Jose was incorporated . It was incorporated on the same day as San Diego and Benicia ; together, these three cities followed Sacramento as California's earliest incorporated cities. Josiah Belden , who had settled in California in 1842 after traversing
2002-522: The 1846 Bear Flag Revolt , Captain Thomas Fallon led nineteen volunteers from Santa Cruz to the pueblo of San Jose, which his forces easily captured. The raising of the flag of the California Republic ended Mexican rule in Alta California on July 14, 1846. By the end of 1847, the Conquest of California by the United States was complete, as the Mexican–American War came to an end. In 1848,
2079-592: The 29th State of Mexico as Baja California . 1984 . Baja California Sur became a Mexican state. The Baja California Peninsula is bordered on three sides by water, the Pacific Ocean (south and west) and Gulf of California (east); while Alta California had the Pacific Ocean on the west and deserts on the east. A northern boundary was established by the Adams–Onís Treaty of 1819. That boundary line remains
2156-496: The 31st of the United States. 1853 . The Gadsden Purchase transferred addition territory from Mexico to the United States. 1853 . William Walker led a force that attempted to capture the Baja California Territory and Sonora to create an independent Republic of Sonora . Walker was defeated by Mexican forces led by Antonio Meléndrez . 1864 . Nevada became the 36th of the United States. 1876 . Colorado became
2233-499: The 38th of the United States. 1890 . Wyoming became the 44th of the United States. 1896 . Utah became the 45th of the United States. 1912 . New Mexico became the 47th of the United States. 1912 . Arizona became the 48th of the United States. 1931 . Baja California Territory was divided into the Territory of Baja California Norte and the Territory of Baja California Sur . 1952 . The Territory of Baja California Norte became
2310-716: The British/American victory and acquisition of North America, east of the Mississippi following the 1763 Treaty of Paris , as well as the start of Russian colonization of northwestern North America — prompted Spanish/Mexican authorities to sponsor the Portolá Expedition to survey Northern California in 1769. In 1776, the Californias were included as part of the Captaincy General of the Provincias Internas ,
2387-553: The Franciscan missionaries and others. Independent Mexico retained the division but demoted the former provinces to territories, due to populations too small for statehood. In 1836, the designation Las Californias was revived, reuniting Alta and Baja California into a single departamento ( department ) as part of the conservative government reforms codified in the Siete Leyes (Seven Laws). The Seven Laws were repealed in 1847, during
Cambrian Academy - Misplaced Pages Continue
2464-611: The Guadalupe River each fall in the 1990s, but have all but vanished in the current decade apparently blocked from access to breeding grounds by impassable culverts, weirs and wide, exposed and flat concrete paved channels installed by the Santa Clara Valley Water District . In 2011 a small number of Chinook salmon were filmed spawning under the Julian Street bridge. Conservationist Roger Castillo, who discovered
2541-743: The Guadalupe River, Coyote Creek also flows to south San Francisco Bay and originates on Mount Sizer near Henry W. Coe State Park and the surrounding hills in the Diablo Range , northeast of Morgan Hill, California . The lowest point in San Jose is 13 ft (4.0 m) below sea level at the San Francisco Bay in Alviso; the highest is 2,125 ft (648 m). Because of the proximity to Lick Observatory atop Mount Hamilton, San Jose has taken several steps to reduce light pollution , including replacing all street lamps and outdoor lighting in private developments with low pressure sodium lamps . To recognize
2618-876: The Mexican government began an initiative, for Mexican and foreign citizens alike, to settle unoccupied lands in California. Between 1833 and 1845, thirty-eight rancho land grants were issued in the Santa Clara Valley , 15 of which were located within modern-day San Jose's borders. Numerous prominent historical figures were among those granted rancho lands in the Santa Valley, including James A. Forbes , founder of Los Gatos, California (granted Rancho Potrero de Santa Clara ), Antonio Suñol , Alcalde of San Jose (granted Rancho Los Coches ), and José María Alviso , Alcalde of San Jose (granted Rancho Milpitas ). In 1835, San Jose's population of approximately 700 people included 40 foreigners, primarily Americans and Englishmen . By 1845,
2695-918: The Pacific Ocean like San Francisco. As a result, the city is somewhat more sheltered from rain, barely avoiding a cold semi-arid ( BSk ) climate. Like most of the Bay Area, San Jose is made up of dozens of microclimates . Because of a more prominent rain shadow from the Santa Cruz Mountains, Downtown San Jose experiences the lightest rainfall in the city, while South San Jose, only 10 mi (16 km) distant, experiences more rainfall, and somewhat more extreme temperatures. The monthly daily average temperature ranges from around 50 °F (10 °C) in December and January to around 70 °F (21 °C) in July and August. The highest temperature ever recorded in San Jose
2772-689: The Santa Clara Valley and, in turn, walling off the expansion of adjacent communities. During his reign, it was said the City Council would vote according to Hamann's nod. In 1963, the State of California imposed Local Agency Formation Commissions statewide, but largely to try to maintain order with San Jose's aggressive growth. Eventually the political forces against growth grew as local neighborhoods bonded together to elect their own candidates, ending Hamann's influence and leading to his resignation. While
2849-699: The U.S. remained under military authority, pending creation of civilian government through territorial designation and/or statehood. Baja California in Mexico was established as the Baja California Territory after the War. It was split by the Congress into Northern and Southern territories. Seven new U.S. states were created entirely or partly from land formerly included in The Californias. 1850 . California became
2926-497: The accent most of the time and sets forth narrow exceptions, such as when the spelling is in URLs, when the name appears in all-capital letters, when the name is used on social media sites where the diacritical mark does not render properly, and where San Jose is part of the proper name of another organization or business, such as San Jose Chamber of Commerce , that has chosen not to use the accent-marked name. San Jose, along with most of
3003-463: The booming high tech industry phenomenon known as Silicon Valley prompted Mayor Tom McEnery to adopt the city motto of "Capital of Silicon Valley" in 1988 to promote the city. Major global tech companies including Cisco Systems , eBay , Adobe Inc. , PayPal , Broadcom , and Zoom maintain their headquarters in San Jose. One of the wealthiest major cities in the world, San Jose has the third-highest GDP per capita (after Zurich and Oslo ) and
3080-407: The city council once again adopted "San José" as the spelling of the city name on the city seal, official stationery, office titles and department names. As late as 2010, the 1965 city charter stated the name of the municipal corporation as City of San Jose , without the accent mark, but later editions have added the accent mark. By convention, the spelling San José is only used when the name
3157-513: The city from 17 to 149 sq mi (44 to 386 km ), absorbing the communities named above, changing their status to "neighborhoods." They say San José is going to become another Los Angeles. Believe me, I'm going to do everything in my power to make that come true. Sales taxes were a chief source of revenue. Hamann would determine where major shopping areas would be, and then annex narrow bands of land along major roadways leading to those locations, pushing "tentacles" or "finger areas" across
Cambrian Academy - Misplaced Pages Continue
3234-486: The city in 1839, 1851, 1858, 1864, 1865, 1868 , and 1891. The Daly City Earthquake of 1957 caused some damage. The Loma Prieta earthquake of 1989 also did some damage to parts of the city. San Jose's expansion was made by the design of "Dutch" Hamann , the City Manager from 1950 to 1969. During his administration, with his staff referred to as "Dutch's Panzer Division ", the city annexed property 1,389 times, growing
3311-584: The city lies away from the bayshore. According to the United States Census Bureau , the city has a total area of 180.0 sq mi (466 km ), making the fourth-largest city in California by land area (after Los Angeles, San Diego and California City ). San Jose lies between the San Andreas Fault , the source of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake , and the Calaveras Fault . San Jose
3388-485: The city's efforts, the asteroid 6216 San Jose was named after the city. There are four distinct valleys in the city of San Jose: Almaden Valley, situated on the southwest fringe of the city; Evergreen Valley to the southeast, which is hilly all throughout its interior; Santa Clara Valley, which includes the flat, main urban expanse of the South Bay; and the rural Coyote Valley , to the city's extreme southern fringe. The extensive droughts in California , coupled with
3465-437: The city's name should be spelled "San Jose" based on local usage and the formal incorporated name. In the 1960s and 1970s, some residents and officials advocated for returning to the original spelling of "San José", with the acute accent on the "e", to acknowledge the city's Mexican origin and Mexican-American population. On June 2, 1969, the city adopted a flag designed by historian Clyde Arbuckle that prominently featured
3542-514: The city. Besides those mentioned above, some well-known communities within San Jose include Japantown , Rose Garden , Midtown San Jose , Willow Glen , Naglee Park , Burbank , Winchester , Alviso , East Foothills , Alum Rock , Communications Hill , Little Portugal , Blossom Valley , Cambrian , Almaden Valley , Little Saigon , Silver Creek Valley , Evergreen Valley , Mayfair , Edenvale , Santa Teresa , Seven Trees , Coyote Valley , and Berryessa . A distinct ethnic enclave in San Jose
3619-476: The city. The major trails in the network include: This large urban trail network, recognized by Prevention Magazine as the nation's largest, is linked to trails in surrounding jurisdictions and many rural trails in surrounding open space and foothills. Several trail systems within the network are designated as part of the National Recreation Trail, as well as regional trails such as the San Francisco Bay Trail and Bay Area Ridge Trail. Early written documents record
3696-606: The drainage of the reservoir at Anderson Lake for seismic repairs, have strained the city's water security . San Jose has suffered from lack of precipitation and water scarcity to the extent that some residents may run out of household water by the summer of 2022. San Jose, like most of the Bay Area, has a Mediterranean climate ( Köppen : Csb ), with warm to hot, dry summers and cool, wet winters. San Jose has an average of 298 days of sunshine and an annual mean temperature of 61.4 °F (16.3 °C). It lies inland, surrounded on three sides by mountains, and does not front
3773-418: The fifth-most expensive housing market. It is home to one of the world's largest overseas Vietnamese populations, a Hispanic community that makes up over 40% of the city's residents, and historic ethnic enclaves such as Japantown and Little Portugal . Before the arrival of the Spanish , the area around San Jose was long inhabited by the Tamien nation of the Ohlone peoples of California . San Jose
3850-426: The incorporations of Campbell and Cupertino , development was not slowed, but rather directed into already-incorporated areas. San Jose's position in Silicon Valley triggered further economic and population growth. Results from the 1990 U.S. Census indicated that San Jose surpassed San Francisco as the most populous city in the Bay Area for the first time. This growth led to the highest housing-cost increase in
3927-481: The individual student's path to college. The international school at Cambrian Academy, also known as Cambrian International Academy (CIA), enrolls foreign students from 6th through 12th grade . CIA's stated objective for foreign students is to quickly develop their English language skills so they can be mainstreamed into the academy's general student population. This prevents foreign students from becoming isolated, as happens too often in many ESL programs. The school
SECTION 50
#17330845328064004-446: The inscription "SAN JOSÉ, CALIFORNIA". On June 16, 1970, San Jose State College officially adopted "San José" as the city's name, including in the college's own name. On August 20, 1974, the San Jose City Council approved a proposal by Catherine Linquist to rename the city "San José" but reversed itself a week later under pressure from residents concerned with the cost of changing typewriters, documents, and signs. On April 3, 1979,
4081-524: The job was not complete, the trend was set. The city had defined its sphere of influence in all directions, sometimes chaotically leaving unincorporated pockets to be swallowed up by the behemoth, sometimes even at the objection of the residents. Major thoroughfares in the city include Monterey Road , the Stevens Creek Boulevard / San Carlos Street corridor, Santa Clara Street / Alum Rock Avenue corridor, Almaden Expressway , Capitol Expressway , and 1st Street (San Jose) . The Guadalupe River runs from
4158-438: The local presence of migrating salmon in the Rio Guadalupe dating as far back as the 18th century. Both steelhead ( Oncorhynchus mykiss ) and King salmon are extant in the Guadalupe River , making San Jose the southernmost major U. S. city with known salmon spawning runs, the other cities being Anchorage ; Seattle ; Portland and Sacramento . Runs of up to 1,000 Chinook or King Salmon ( Oncorhynchus tshawytscha ) swam up
4235-441: The mission was secularized by the Mexican Government in 1833. A large majority of the Tamien died either from disease in the missions, or as a result of the state sponsored genocide . Some surviving families remained intact, migrating to Santa Cruz after their ancestral lands were granted to Spanish and Mexican Immigrants. California was claimed as part of the Spanish Empire in 1542, when explorer Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo charted
4312-581: The most recent snow to remain on the ground was on February 5, 1976, when many residents around the city saw as much as 3 in (0.076 m) on car and roof tops. The official observation station measured only 0.5 in (0.013 m) of snow. The city is generally divided into the following areas: Central San Jose (centered on Downtown San Jose ), West San Jose , North San Jose , East San Jose , and South San Jose . Many of San Jose's districts and neighborhoods were previously unincorporated communities or separate municipalities that were later annexed by
4389-430: The nation, 936% between 1976 and 2001. Efforts to increase density continued into the 1990s when an update of the 1974 urban plan kept the urban growth boundaries intact and voters rejected a ballot measure to ease development restrictions in the foothills. As of 2006, sixty percent of the housing built in San Jose since 1980 and over three-quarters of the housing built since 2000 have been multifamily structures, reflecting
4466-529: The northern boundary of the U.S. states of California, Nevada, and the western part of Utah. Inland regions were mostly unexplored by the Spanish, leaving them generally outside the control of the colonial authorities. Mountain ranges of the Peninsular Ranges , eastern Transverse Ranges , and the Sierra Nevada , along with the arid Colorado Desert , Mojave Desert , and Great Basin Desert in their eastern rain shadows , served as natural barriers to Spanish settlement. The eastern border of upper Las Californias
4543-432: The period 1900 through 1910, San Jose served as a center for pioneering invention, innovation, and impact in both lighter-than-air and heavier-than-air flight. These activities were led principally by John Montgomery and his peers. The City of San Jose has established Montgomery Park, a Monument at San Felipe and Yerba Buena Roads, and John J. Montgomery Elementary School in his honor. During this period, San Jose also became
4620-409: The population of the pueblo had increased to 900, primarily due to American immigration. Foreign settlement in San Jose and California was rapidly changing Californian society, bringing expanding economic opportunities and foreign culture. By 1846, native Californios had long expressed their concern for the overrunning of California society by its growing and wealthy Anglo-American community. During
4697-540: The pueblo, San Jose's settlement was moved approximately a mile south, centered on the Pueblo Plaza (modern-day Plaza de César Chávez ). In 1800, due to the growing population in the northern part of the Californias, Diego de Borica , Governor of the Californias, officially split the province into two parts: Alta California ( Upper California ), which would eventually become several western U.S. states , and Baja California ( Lower California ), which would eventually become two Mexican states . San Jose became part of
SECTION 60
#17330845328064774-410: The remains of a mammoth on the banks of the Guadalupe River in 2005, found that a herd of tule elk ( Cervus canadensis ) had recolonized the hills of south San Jose east of Highway 101 in early 2019. The Californias Originally a single, vast entity within the Spanish Empire , administration was split into Baja California ( Lower California ) and Alta California ( Upper California ) following
4851-477: The site for a military settlement in San Francisco, for the Royal Presidio of San Francisco , and Mission San Francisco de Asís . On his way back to Mexico from San Francisco, de Anza chose the sites in Santa Clara Valley for a civilian settlement, San Jose, on the eastern bank of the Guadalupe River , and a mission on its western bank, Mission Santa Clara de Asís . San Jose was officially founded as California's first civilian settlement on November 29, 1777, as
4928-469: The southern shore of San Francisco Bay , San Jose covers an area of 179.97 sq mi (466.1 km ). San Jose is the county seat of Santa Clara County and the main component of the San Jose–Sunnyvale–Santa Clara Metropolitan Statistical Area, with an estimated population of around two million residents in 2018. San Jose is notable for its innovation , cultural diversity, affluence , and sunny and mild Mediterranean climate . Its connection to
5005-506: The surrounding hills. The CZU lightning complex fires took almost 5 months to fully be controlled. Over 86,000 acres were burned and nearly 1500 buildings were destroyed. The snow level drops as low as 4,000 ft (1,220 m) above sea level, or lower, occasionally coating nearby Mount Hamilton and, less frequently, the Santa Cruz Mountains , with snow that normally lasts a few days. Snow will snarl traffic traveling on State Route 17 towards Santa Cruz . Snow rarely falls in San Jose;
5082-478: The technological side of San Jose's economy grew. During the 1950s and 1960s, City Manager A. P. "Dutch" Hamann led the city in a major growth campaign. The city annexed adjacent areas, such as Alviso and Cambrian Park , providing large areas for suburbs. An anti-growth reaction to the effects of rapid development emerged in the 1970s, championed by mayors Norman Mineta and Janet Gray Hayes . Despite establishing an urban growth boundary , development fees, and
5159-455: The unlimited remainder as Nueva or New California, subsequently more commonly called Alta or Upper California. At the same time the old plural name of The Californias was revived, but with a more definite signification than before. The first attempted Spanish occupation of California was by the Jesuit missionary Eusebio Kino , in 1683. His Misión San Bruno failed, however, and it was not until 1697 that Misión de Nuestra Señora de Loreto Conchó
5236-414: Was 109 °F (43 °C) on September 6, 2022; the lowest was 18 °F (−7.8 °C) on January 6, 1894. On average, there are 2.7 mornings annually where the temperature drops to, or below, the freezing mark; and sixteen afternoons where the high reaches or exceeds 90 °F or 32.2 °C. Diurnal temperature variation is far wider than along the coast or in San Francisco but still a shadow of what
5313-409: Was 12.38 in (314.5 mm) in January 1911. The maximum 24-hour rainfall was 3.60 in (91.4 mm) on January 30, 1968. On August 16, 2020, one of the most widespread and strong thunderstorm events in recent Bay Area history occurred as an unstable humid air mass moved up from the south and triggered multiple dry thunderstorms which caused many fires to be ignited by 300+ lightning strikes in
5390-467: Was also destroyed. The period during World War II was tumultuous; Japanese Americans primarily from Japantown were sent to internment camps , including the future mayor Norman Mineta . Following the Los Angeles zoot suit riots , anti-Mexican violence took place during the summer of 1943. In 1940, the Census Bureau reported San Jose's population as 98% white. As World War II started, the city's economy shifted from agriculture (the Del Monte cannery
5467-400: Was appointed governor to supervise the transition. At the same time, a new visitador , José de Gálvez , was dispatched from Spain with authority to organize and expand the fledgling province. The more ambitious province name, Las Californias , was established by a joint dispatch to the King from Viceroy de Croix and visitador José de Gálvez, dated January 28, 1768. Gálvez sought to make
5544-482: Was commonly known by the plural appellation of "Las Californias" (The Californias). Afterwards, when its peninsular character was ascertained, it was called simply California; but the territory so designated was unlimited in extent. When the expeditions for the settlement of San Diego and Monterey marched, it was understood that they were going, not out of California, but into a new part of it. The peninsula then began to be generally spoken of as Antigua or Old California and
5621-414: Was designated as the state's first capital. Following World War II , San Jose experienced an economic boom, with a rapid population growth and aggressive annexation of nearby cities and communities carried out in the 1950s and 1960s. The rapid growth of the high-technology and electronics industries further accelerated the transition from an agricultural center to an urbanized metropolitan area. Results of
5698-472: Was divided in 1804, into Alta California province and Baja California province. By the time of the 1804 split, the Alta province had expanded to include coastal areas as far north as what is now the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California . Expansion came through exploration and colonization expeditions led by Portolá (1769), his successor Pedro Fages (1770), Juan Bautista de Anza (1774–76),
5775-466: Was founded on November 29, 1777, as the Pueblo de San José de Guadalupe , the first city founded in the Californias . It became a part of Mexico in 1821 after the Mexican War of Independence . Following the American Conquest of California during the Mexican–American War , the territory was ceded to the United States in 1848. After California achieved statehood two years later, San Jose
5852-549: Was successfully established by another Jesuit, Juan María de Salvatierra . The mission became the nucleus of Loreto , first permanent settlement and first administrative center of the province. The Jesuits went on to found a total of 18 missions in the lower two-thirds of the Baja California Peninsula . In 1767, the Jesuits were expelled from the missions, and Franciscans were brought in to take over. Gaspar de Portolá
5929-583: Was the largest employer and closed in 1999 ) to industrial manufacturing with the contracting of the Food Machinery Corporation (later known as FMC Corporation ) by the United States War Department to build 1,000 Landing Vehicle Tracked . After World War II, FMC (later United Defense , and currently BAE Systems ) continued as a defense contractor , with the San Jose facilities designing and manufacturing military platforms such as
#805194