114-471: 37°26′40″N 122°09′47″W / 37.4444°N 122.1631°W / 37.4444; -122.1631 165 University Avenue or Lucky Building or Karma Building is a small rented office building on University Avenue, the main commercial street in downtown Palo Alto, California , that gave rise to Plug and Play Tech Center and to the Amidi Group. It is run by Rahim & Saeed Amidi, whose family fled from
228-436: A 2007 estimate, the median income for a household in the city was $ 119,046, and the median income for a family was $ 153,197. Males had a median income of $ 91,051 versus $ 60,202 for females. The per capita income for the city was $ 56,257. About 3.2% of families and 4.8% of the population were below the poverty line , including 4.0% of those under age 18 and 5.0% of those age 65 or over. Palo Alto, north of Oregon Expressway ,
342-522: A collegiate summer baseball club that has been in the Bay Area since 1950, eight years longer than the San Francisco Giants. The Oaks were originally managed by Tony Makjavich for 49 years. The Oaks were going to fold before the summer 2016 season but were taken on by Daniel Palladino and Whaylan Price, Bay Area baseball coaches who did not want to see the team die. The Oaks have a rich history within
456-574: A complex association of approximately 50 different "nations or tribes" with about 50 to 500 members each, with an average of 200. Over 50 distinct Ohlone tribes and villages have been recorded. The Ohlone villages interacted through trade, intermarriage and ceremonial events, as well as some internecine conflict. Cultural arts included basket-weaving skills, seasonal ceremonial dancing events, female tattoos , ear and nose piercings, and other ornamentation. The Ohlone subsisted mainly as hunter-gatherers and in some ways harvesters . "A rough husbandry of
570-488: A cultural group. Their religion is different depending on the band referred to, although they share components of their worldview. The pre-contact spiritual beliefs of the Ohlone were not recorded in detail by missionaries. The Ohlone probably practiced Kuksu , a form of shamanism shared by many Central and Northern California tribes. Although, it is also possible that the Ohlone people learned Kuksu from other tribes while at
684-516: A low of 39.0 °F (3.9 °C) to a high of 57.8 °F (14.3 °C). In July, average temperatures range from 55.7 to 79.4 °F (13.2 to 26.3 °C). The record high temperature was 108 °F (42 °C) on September 6, 2022, and the record low temperature was 20 °F (−7 °C) on January 11, 1949, and December 24, 1990. Temperatures reach 90 °F (32 °C) or higher on an average of 12.0 days. Temperatures drop to 32 °F (0 °C) or lower on an average of 14.0 days. Due to
798-401: A pavement" to the incoming Spanish. In general, along the bayshore and valleys, the Ohlone constructed dome-shaped houses of woven or bundled mats of tules, 6 to 20 feet (1.8 to 6 m) in diameter. In hills where redwood trees were accessible, they built conical houses from redwood bark attached to a frame of wood. Residents of Monterey recall Redwood houses. One of the main village buildings,
912-469: A political party. Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race . The 2010 United States Census reported that Palo Alto had a population of 64,403. The population density was 2,497.5 inhabitants per square mile (964.3/km ). The racial makeup of Palo Alto
1026-491: A registered national historic district, is bounded by Kingsley, Lincoln, and Addison Avenues and the cross streets of Ramona, Bryant, and Waverley. The district includes a large number of well-preserved residences dating from the 1890s, including 833 Kingsley, 345 Lincoln, and 450 Kingsley. 1044 Bryant was the home of Russell Varian , co-inventor of the Klystron tube . The Federal Telegraph laboratory site, situated at 218 Channing,
1140-430: A result, Palo Alto has two downtown areas: one along University Avenue and one along California Avenue (renamed after the annexation since Palo Alto already had a Lincoln Avenue). The Mayfield News wrote its own obituary four days later: It is with a feeling of deep regret that we see on our streets today those who would sell, or give, our beautiful little city to an outside community. We have watched Mayfield grow from
1254-520: A single peak Pico Blanco near Big Sur (or Mount Diablo in the northern Ohlone's version) on which Coyote, Hummingbird, and Eagle stood. Humans were the descendants of Coyote. The predominant theory regarding the settlement of the Americas date the original migrations from Asia to around 20,000 years ago across the Bering Strait land bridge , but one anthropologist, Otto von Sadovszky , claims that
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#17329054565941368-506: A single unified group. They lived by hunting, fishing, and gathering, in the typical ethnographic California pattern. The members of these various bands interacted freely with one another. The Ohlone people practiced the Kuksu religion. Prior to the Gold Rush , the northern California region was one of the most densely populated regions north of Mexico. However, the arrival of Spanish colonizers to
1482-583: A small hamlet, when Palo Alto was nothing more than a hayfield, to her present size ... and it is with a feeling of sorrow that we contemplate the fact that there are those who would sell or give the city away. Palo Alto continued to annex more land, including the Stanford Shopping Center area in 1953. Stanford Research Park , Embarcadero Road northeast of Bayshore, and the West Bayshore/San Antonio Road area were also annexed during
1596-561: A task like hunting and spirit dancing. Today, there is a place located in Hollister called Indian Canyon , where a traditional sweat lodge, or Tupentak, has been built for the same ceremonial purposes. Along with the development of the sweat lodge in the early 1990s, the construction of an upen- tah-ruk, or round house/assembly house, was underway as well. These areas are meant to provide a gathering place for tribal meetings, traditional dances and ceremonies, and education activities. Indian Canyon
1710-657: A thousand acres (4.0 km ) extending from today's Page Mill Road to Serra Street and from El Camino Real to the foothills. Coutts named his property Ayrshire Farm. His fanciful 50-foot-tall (15 m) brick tower near Matadero Creek likely marked the south corner of his property. Leland Stanford started buying land in the area in 1876 for a horse farm, called the Palo Alto Stock Farm . Stanford bought Ayrshire Farm in 1882. In 1884, Leland Stanford and his wife, Jane lost their only child Leland Stanford Jr. when he died of typhoid fever at age 15 and decided to create
1824-510: A university in his memory. In 1886, they proposed having the university's gateway be Mayfield. However, they had one condition: alcohol had to be banned from the town. Known for its 13 rowdy saloons, Mayfield rejected his request. This led them to drive the formation of a new temperance town with the help of their friend Timothy Hopkins of the Southern Pacific Railroad , who in 1887 bought 740 acres (3.0 km ) of private land for
1938-575: A visiting boat captain, John Greer. Greer owned a home on the site that is now Town & Country Village on Embarcadero and El Camino Real . Greer Avenue and Court are named for him. To the south of the Sotos, the brothers Secundino and Teodoro Robles in 1849 bought Rancho Rincon de San Francisquito from José Peña, the 1841 grantee. The grant covered the area south of Rancho Rinconada del Arroyo de San Francisquito to more or less present-day Mountain View. The grant
2052-557: A warm-summer Mediterranean climate (Csb). Palo Alto was incorporated in 1894. In 1909 a municipal charter created a local government consisting of a fifteen-member city council, with responsibilities for various governmental functions delegated to appointed committees. In 1950, the city adopted a Council–manager government . Several appointed committees continue to advise the city council on specialized issues, such as land-use planning, utilities, and libraries, but these committees no longer have direct authority over City staff. Currently,
2166-463: Is a California Historical Landmark recognizing Lee de Forest 's 1911 invention of the vacuum tube and electronic oscillator at that location. While not open to the public, the garage that housed the launch of Hewlett Packard is located at 367 Addison Avenue. Hewlett Packard recently restored the house and garage. A second historic district on Ramona Street can be found downtown between University and Hamilton Avenues. The Palo Alto Chinese School
2280-653: Is a charter city in the northwestern corner of Santa Clara County, California , United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area , named after a coastal redwood tree known as El Palo Alto . The city of Palo Alto was established in 1894 by the American industrialist Leland Stanford when he founded Stanford University in memory of his son, Leland Stanford Jr. Palo Alto later expanded and now borders East Palo Alto , Mountain View , Los Altos , Los Altos Hills , Stanford , Portola Valley , and Menlo Park . As of
2394-503: Is a site standing at over 60 feet (18 m) tall and 350 feet (105 m) in diameter, and was believed to be occupied between 400 and 2800 years ago. The Ohlone burial practices changed over time with cremation being preferred before the arrival of the Spanish. Once the cremation was complete the loved ones and friends would place ornaments as well as other valuables as an offering to the dead. Ohlone believed that this would give them good fortune in
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#17329054565942508-476: Is a tributary to San Francisquito Creek below Interstate 280. Palo Alto has a number of significant natural habitats, including estuarine , riparian , and oak forest. Many of these habitats are visible in Foothills Park , which is owned by the city. The Charleston Slough contains a rich marsh and littoral zone, providing feeding areas for a variety of shorebirds and other estuarine wildlife. Typical of
2622-842: Is an important place because it is open to all Native American groups in the United States and around the world as a place to hold traditional native practices without federal restrictions. Indian Canyon is also home to many Ohlone people, specifically of the Mutsun band, and serves as an educational, cultural, and spiritual environment for all visitors. Indian Canyon allows Natives to reclaim their heritage and implement their ancestral beliefs and practices into their lives. The storytelling of sacred narratives has been an important component of Ohlone indigenous culture for thousands of years, and continues to be of importance today. The narratives often teach specific moral or spiritual lessons, and are illustrative of
2736-419: Is apparent that the pre-contact Ohlone had distinguished medicine persons among their tribe. Some of these people healed through the use of herbs, and some were shamans who were believed to heal through their ability to contact the spirit world. Some shamans typically engaged in more ritualistic healing in the form of dancing, ceremony, and singing. Some shamans were also believed to be able to tell and influence
2850-463: Is by some measures the most expensive college town in the United States. Ohlone The Ohlone ( / oʊ ˈ l oʊ n i / oh- LOH -nee ), formerly known as Costanoans (from Spanish costeño meaning 'coast dweller'), are a Native American people of the Northern California coast. When Spanish explorers and missionaries arrived in the late 18th century, the Ohlone inhabited
2964-485: Is filled with older homes, including Craftsman and California Colonials, some of which date back to the 1890s but most of which were built in the first four decades of the 20th century. South of Oregon Expressway, the homes, including many Joseph Eichler -designed or Eichler-style houses, were primarily built in the first 20 years after World War II. While the city contains homes that now cost anywhere from $ 800,000 to well over $ 40 million, much of Palo Alto's housing stock
3078-452: Is important because the Ohlone can further piece together a cultural identity of their past ancestors, and ultimately for themselves as well. Additionally, through knowing sacred narratives and sharing them with the public through live performances or storytelling, the Ohlone people are able to create an awareness that their cultural group is not extinct, but actually surviving and wanting recognition. Ohlone folklore and legend centered around
3192-754: Is in the 13th Senate District , represented by Democrat Josh Becker , and in the 23rd Assembly District , represented by Democrat Marc Berman . In the United States House of Representatives , Palo Alto is in California's 16th congressional district , represented by Democrat Anna Eshoo . According to the California Secretary of State , as of February 10, 2019, Palo Alto has 40,040 registered voters. Of those, 20,857 (52.1%) are registered Democrats , 4,689 (11.7%) are registered Republicans , and 13,520 (33.8%) have declined to state
3306-519: Is in the style of California mid-century middle-class suburbia. The median home sale price for all of Palo Alto was $ 1.2 million in 2007 and $ 1.4 million in July 2009. Palo Alto ranked in as the 5th most expensive city in the United States as of 2007 , with an average home sales price of $ 1,677,000. In 2010, Palo Alto ranked as the 2nd most expensive city in the United States, with a four-bedroom, two-bathroom home listing for $ 1.48 million on average. Palo Alto
3420-469: Is parallel and crosses the narrow corridor of land that connects the two parcels that makeup Palo Alto. Somewhat perpendicular to these roads are Sand Hill Road from El Camino until it crosses San Francisquito Creek into Menlo Park, Embarcadero Road, Oregon Expressway/Page Mill Road , Arastradero Road/East Charleston Road, and San Antonio Road (the last forms part of the boundary with Mountain View). According to
3534-627: Is the oldest in the entire Bay Area. It is also home to the second oldest opera company in California, the West Bay Opera . One early major business was when Thomas Foon Chew , owner of the Bayside Canning Company in Alviso founded by his father, expanded his business by starting a cannery in 1918 in what was then Mayfield that initially employed 350 workers but later expanded. In the 1920s
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3648-529: The 2020 census , the population was 68,572. Palo Alto has one of the highest costs of living in the United States, and its residents are among the most educated in the country. However, it has a youth suicide rate four times higher than the national average, often attributed to academic pressure. As one of the principal cities of Silicon Valley , Palo Alto is home to the headquarters of multiple tech companies, including HP , Space Systems/Loral , VMware , and PARC . Palo Alto has also served as headquarters or
3762-585: The Carmel Valley . To call attention to the plight of the California Indians, Indian Agent, reformer, and popular novelist Helen Hunt Jackson published accounts of her travels among the Mission Indians of California in 1883. Considered the last fluent speaker of an Ohlone language, Rumsien -speaker Isabel Meadows died in 1939. Descendants are reviving Rumsien, Mutsun, and Chochenyo. The arrival of
3876-604: The Los Trancos and Monte Bello Open Space Preserves part of the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District . The city extends as far as Skyline Boulevard along the ridge of the Santa Cruz Mountains . The northern more densely populated parcel is bordered by San Francisquito Creek (with Menlo Park and East Palo Alto in adjacent San Mateo County beyond) to the north, San Francisco Bay to
3990-584: The Mexican–American War , the United States seized Alta California in 1846; however, this was not legalized until the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was signed on July 4, 1848. Mexican citizens in the area could choose to become United States citizens and their land grants were to be recognized if they chose to do so (though many legal disputes arose over this). The land grant, Rancho Rinconada del Arroyo de San Francisquito , of about 2,230 acres (9.0 km ) on
4104-601: The San Francisquito Creek watershed, ultimately camping from November 6–11, 1769, by a tall redwood later to be known as El Palo Alto . In 1777, Father Junipero Serra established the Mission Santa Clara de Asis , whose northern boundary was San Francisquito Creek and whose lands included modern Palo Alto. The area was under the control of the viceroy of Mexico and ultimately under the control of Spain. On November 29, 1777, Pueblo de San Jose de Guadalupe (now
4218-534: The Santa Cruz Mountains to the west, there is a " rain shadow " in Palo Alto, resulting in an average annual rainfall of only 15.12 inches (384 mm). Measurable rainfall occurs on an average of 55.8 days annually. The wettest year on record was 1983 with 32.51 inches (826 mm) and the driest year was 2013 with 3.81 inches (97 mm). The most rainfall in one month was 12.43 inches (316 mm) in February 1998 and
4332-1028: The Tamien Nation are direct lineal descendants from Tamien speaking villages of the Santa Clara Valley. The Muwekma Ohlone Tribe has members from around the San Francisco Bay Area, and is composed of documented descendants of the Ohlones/Costanoans from the San Jose, Santa Clara, and San Francisco missions. The Ohlone/Costanoan Esselen Nation, consisting of descendants of intermarried Rumsen Costanoan and Esselen speakers of Mission San Carlos Borromeo, are centered at Monterey. The Amah Mutsun [ Wikidata ] tribe are descendants of Mutsun Costanoan speakers of Mission San Juan Bautista, inland from Monterey Bay. Most members of another group of Rumsien language, descendants from Mission San Carlos,
4446-496: The United States Census Bureau , the city has a total area of 25.8 square miles (67 km ), of which 23.9 square miles (62 km ) is land and 1.9 square miles (4.9 km ), comprising 7.38%, is water. The official elevation is 30 feet (9 m) above sea level, but the city boundaries reach well into the northern section of the Santa Cruz Mountains . Palo Alto is crossed by several creeks that flow north in
4560-672: The sweat lodge was low into the ground, its walls made of earth and roof of earth and brush. They built boats of tule to navigate on the bays propelled by double-bladed paddles. Generally, men did not wear clothing in warm weather. In cold weather, they might don animal skin capes or feather capes. Women commonly wore deerskin aprons, tule skirts, or shredded bark skirts. On cool days, they also wore animal skin capes. Both wore ornamentation of necklaces, shell beads and abalone pendants, and bone wood earrings with shells and beads. The ornamentation often indicated status within their community. A full list of their ethnobotany can be found in
4674-427: The 1840s a wave of United States settlers encroached into the area, and California became annexed to the United States. The new settlers brought in new diseases to the Ohlone. The Ohlone lost the vast majority of their population between 1780 and 1850, because of an abysmal birth rate, high infant mortality rate, diseases and social upheaval associated with European immigration into California. Peter Hardeman Burnett ,
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4788-486: The 1950s. Large amounts of land west of Foothill Expressway were annexed between 1959 and 1968; this is mostly undeveloped and includes Foothills Park and Arastradero Preserve . The last major annexations were of Barron Park in 1975 and, in 1979, a large area of marshlands bordering the bay. Many of Stanford University's first faculty members settled in the Professorville neighborhood of Palo Alto. Professorville, now
4902-491: The Bayside Canning Company became one of the largest in the world. In 1949 the Palo Alto cannery, now part of the Sutter Packing Company under the ownership of Safeway , closed; at the time it was the largest employer in Palo Alto with about a 1,000 workers. Various businesses used the building since including Fry's Electronics . Palo Alto is also home to a long-standing baseball tradition. The Palo Alto Oaks are
5016-577: The Californian culture heroes of the Coyote trickster spirit, as well as Eagle and Hummingbird (and in the Chochenyo region, a falcon-like being named Kaknu). The Coyote spirit was clever, wily, lustful, greedy, and irresponsible. He often competed with Hummingbird, who despite his small size regularly got the better of him. Ohlone creation stories mention that the world was covered entirely in water, apart from
5130-500: The Costanoan Rumsien Carmel Tribe of Pomona/Chino, now live in southern California. These groups and others with smaller memberships ( See groups listed under " Present day " below ) are separately petitioning the federal government for tribal recognition. British ethnologist Robert Gordon Latham originally used the term "Costanoan" to refer to the linguistically similar but ethnically diverse Native American tribes in
5244-513: The East Bay to Mission San Francisco. In March 1795, this migration was followed almost immediately by the worst-seen epidemic, as well as food shortages, resulting in alarming statistics of death and escapes from the missions. In pursuing the runaways, the Franciscans sent neophytes first and (as a last resort) soldiers to go round up the runaway "Christians" from their relatives, and bring them back to
5358-613: The Esselen in the south represent a remnant. Datings of ancient shell mounds in Emeryville and in Newark and suggest the villages at those locations were established about 4000 BCE. Through shell mound dating, scholars noted three periods of ancient Bay Area history, as described by F.M. Stanger in La Peninsula : "Careful study of artifacts found in central California mounds has resulted in
5472-428: The Franciscans on missionary outreach daytrips but declined to camp overnight. For the first twenty years, the missions accepted a few converts at a time, slowly gaining population. Between November 1794 and May 1795, a large wave of Bay Area Native Americans were baptized and moved into Mission Santa Clara and Mission San Francisco, including 360 people to Mission Santa Clara and the entire Huichun village populations of
5586-472: The Indians had no natural immunity. Other causes were a drastic diet change from hunter and gatherer fare to a diet high in carbohydrates and low in vegetables and animal protein, harsh lifestyle changes, and unsanitary living conditions. Under Spanish rule, the intent for the future of the mission properties is difficult to ascertain. Property disputes arose over who owned the mission (and adjacent) lands, between
5700-457: The Iranian revolution in the 1970s. Located near Stanford University , the building has served as an incubator for several noted Silicon Valley companies, including Logitech , Google , PayPal , Danger, Inc (bought by Microsoft), BridgeBio Pharma, BetterWorks, Milo.com (bought by eBay), WePay (acquired by J.P. Morgan) and Yummly (bought by Whirlpool). YouTube also provides this location as
5814-673: The Missions. Many Ohlone bands refer to anthropologic records to reconstruct their sacred narratives because some Ohlone people living in the missions acted as "professional consultants" for anthropologic research, and therefore told their past stories. The problem with this type of recording is that the stories are not always complete due to translation differences where meaning can be easily misunderstood. Therefore, many Ohlone bands today feel responsible for re-adopting these narratives and discussing them with cultural representatives and other Ohlone people to decide what their meanings are. This process
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#17329054565945928-598: The Native American Ethnobiology Database They use the roots of many species of Carex for basketry. Researchers are sensitive to limitations in historical knowledge, and careful not to place the spiritual and religious beliefs of all Ohlone people into a single unified worldview. Due to the displacement of Indian people in the Missions between 1769 and 1833, cultural groups are working as ethnographers to discover for themselves their ancestral history, and what that information tells about them as
6042-500: The Natives in a petition against the San Jose settlers. The fathers mentioned the "Indians' crops" were being damaged by the San Jose settlers' livestock and also mentioned settlers "getting mixed up with the livestock belonging to the Indians from the mission." They also stated the Mission Indians had property and rights to defend it: "Indians are at liberty to slaughter such (San Jose pueblo) livestock as trespass unto their lands." "By law",
6156-535: The Ohlone and some other northern California tribes descend from Siberians who arrived in California by sea around 3,000 years ago. Some anthropologists think that these people migrated from the San Joaquin–Sacramento River system and arrived into the San Francisco and Monterey Bay Areas in about the 6th century CE, displacing or assimilating earlier Hokan -speaking populations of which
6270-450: The Ohlone for thousands of years. These shellmounds are the direct result of village life. Archaeologists have examined the mounds and often refer to them as "middens," or "kitchen midden" meaning an accumulation of refuse. One theory is that the massive amount of shellfish remains represent Ohlone ritual behavior, whereas they would spend months mourning their dead and feasting on large amounts of shellfish which were disposed of ever growing
6384-516: The Ohlone region and brought most of the Ohlone into these missions to live and work. The missions erected within the Ohlone region were: Mission San Carlos Borroméo de Carmelo (founded in 1770), Mission San Francisco de Asís (founded in 1776), Mission Santa Clara de Asís (founded in 1777), Mission Santa Cruz (founded in 1791), Mission Nuestra Señora de la Soledad (founded in 1791), Mission San José (founded in 1797), and Mission San Juan Bautista (founded in 1797). The Ohlone who went to live at
6498-681: The Ohlone, which he termed one of the "southern Kuksu-dancing groups", in comparison to the Maidu and groups in the Sacramento Valley ; he noted "if, as seems probable, the southerly Kuksu tribes (the Miwok, Costanoans, Esselen, and northernmost Yokuts) had no real society in connection with their Kuksu ceremonies." The conditions upon which the Ohlone joined the Spanish missions are subject to debate. Some have argued that they were forced to convert to Catholicism , while others have insisted that forced baptism
6612-584: The Palo Alto area. The area of modern Palo Alto was first recorded by the 1769 party of Gaspar de Portolá , a 64-man, 200-horse expedition setting out from San Diego to find Monterey Bay . The group trekked past the bay without recognizing it and continued north. When they reached modern-day Pacifica , they ascended Sweeney Ridge and saw the San Francisco Bay on November 2. Portolá descended from Sweeney Ridge southeast down San Andreas Creek to Laguna Creek (now Crystal Springs Reservoir ), thence to
6726-479: The Palo Alto community. Palo Alto lies in the southeastern section of the San Francisco Peninsula . It consists of two large parcels of land connected by a narrow corridor. The southern inland section, located south of Interstate 280 , is hilly, rural, and lightly populated and is the site of Pearson–Arastradero Preserve and Foothills Park both part of the Palo Alto park system and also large parts of
6840-776: The San Francisco Bay Area. The term was based on the name of a group of Ramaytush speakers in the area of Mission Dolores first mentioned in 1850 as " Olhones or Costanos ". Based on the former, American anthropologist Clinton Hart Merriam referred to the Costanoan groups as "Olhonean" in the early 20th century in his posthumously published field notes, and eventually, the term "Ohlone" has been adopted by most ethnographers, historians, and writers of popular literature. The Ohlone inhabited fixed village locations, moving temporarily to gather seasonal foodstuffs like acorns and berries. The Ohlone people lived in Northern California from
6954-569: The South Peninsula region of the San Francisco Bay Area, Palo Alto has a Mediterranean climate with mild, moderately wet winters and warm, dry summers. Typically, in the warmer months, as the sun goes down, the fog bank flows over the foothills to the west and covers the night sky, thus creating a blanket that helps trap the summer warmth absorbed during the day. Even so, it is rare for the overnight low temperature to exceed 60 °F (16 °C). In January, average daily temperatures range from
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#17329054565947068-658: The Spaniards in the 1770s." The arrival of missionaries and Spanish colonizers in the mid-1700s had a negative impact on the Ohlone people who inhabited Northern California. The Ohlone territory consisted of the northern tip of the San Francisco Peninsula down to Big Sur in the south. There were more than fifty Ohlone landholding groups prior to the arrival of the Spanish Missionaries. The Ohlone were able to thrive in this area by hunting, fishing, and gathering, in
7182-622: The Spanish crown, the Catholic Church, the Natives and the Spanish settlers of San Jose : There were "heated debates" between "the Spanish State and ecclesiastical bureaucracies" over the government authority of the missions. Setting the precedent in an interesting petition to the Governor in 1782, the Franciscan priests claimed the "Missions Indians" owned both land and cattle, and they represented
7296-537: The Spanish in the 1776 decelerated the culture, sovereignty, religion, and language of the Ohlone. Before the Spanish invasion, the Ohlone had an estimated 500 shellmounds lining the sea and shores of the San Francisco Bay. Shellmounds are essentially Ohlone habitation sites where peopled lived and died and often buried. The mounds consist predominately of molluscan shells, with lesser amounts mammal and fish bone, vegetal materials and other organic material deposited by
7410-400: The afterlife. Many of these artifacts have been found in and around the shellmounds. They often include a wide variety of shell beads and ornaments as well as frequently used everyday items such as stone and bone tools. These burials also showcase genealogies and territorial rights. The mounds were seen as a cultural statement because the villages on top were clearly visible and their sacred aura
7524-437: The age of 18 living in them, 13,975 (52.7%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 1,843 (7.0%) had a female householder with no husband present, 659 (2.5%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 979 (3.7%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships , and 188 (0.7%) same-sex married couples or partnerships . 7,982 households (30.1%) were made up of individuals, and 3,285 (12.4%) had someone living alone who
7638-571: The area along the coast from San Francisco Bay through Monterey Bay to the lower Salinas Valley . At that time they spoke a variety of related languages. The Ohlone languages make up a sub-family of the Utian language family. Older proposals place Utian within the Penutian language phylum, while newer proposals group it as Yok-Utian . In pre-colonial times, the Ohlone lived in more than 50 distinct landholding groups , and did not view themselves as
7752-463: The area in 1769 vastly changed tribal life forever. The Spanish constructed missions along the California coast with the objective of Christianizing the native people and culture. Between the years 1769 and 1834, the number of Indigenous Californians dropped from 300,000 to 250,000. After California entered into the Union in 1850, the state government perpetrated massacres against the Ohlone people. Many of
7866-595: The city council has seven members. The mayor and vice-mayor serve one year at a time, with terms ending in January. General municipal elections are held in November of even-numbered years. Council terms are four years long. According to one study in 2015, the city's effective property tax rate of 0.42% was the lowest of the California cities included in the study. In the California State Legislature , Palo Alto
7980-408: The city of San Jose a few miles to the south of what was to be Palo Alto) was established by order of the viceroy despite the displeasure of the local mission. The Mexican War of Independence ending in 1821 led to Mexico becoming an independent country, though San Jose did not recognize rule by the new Mexico until May 10, 1825. Mexico proceeded to sell off or grant much of the mission land. During
8094-581: The community that started nearby. On September 23, 1856, the Crosby land was transferred to Sarah Wallis to satisfy a debt he owed her. In 1880, Secundino Robles, father to twenty-nine children, still lived just south of Palo Alto, near the location of the present-day San Antonio Shopping Center in Mountain View. Many of the Spanish names in the Palo Alto area represent the local heritage, descriptive terms, and former residents. Pena Court, Miranda Avenue, which
8208-426: The cultural, spiritual, and religious beliefs of the tribe. Because not all the Ohlone bands shared a unified identity, and therefore have varying religious and spiritual beliefs, the stories are unique to the tribe. Today, sacred narratives are still an important part of the Ohlone culture. Only a minimal number of sacred stories have survived Spanish colonization during the 1700s and 1800s due to ethnographic efforts in
8322-509: The direction of the San Francisco Bay, Adobe Creek near its eastern boundary, San Francisquito Creek on its western boundary, and Matadero Creek in between the other two. Arastradero Creek is a tributary to Matadero Creek, and Barron Creek is now diverted to Adobe Creek just south of Highway 101 by a diversion channel. The San Francisquito Creek mainstem is formed by the confluence of Corte Madera Creek and Bear Creek not far below Searsville Dam . Further downstream, Los Trancos Creek
8436-463: The discovery of three distinguishable epochs or cultural 'horizons' in their history. In terms of our time-counting system, the first or 'Early Horizon' extends from about 4000 BCE to 1000 BCE in the Bay Area and to about 2000 BCE in the Central Valley. The second or Middle Horizon was from these dates to 700 CE, while the third or Late Horizon, was from 700 CE to the coming of
8550-555: The example address when setting the location of an uploaded video. Until 2000, the ground floor was home to a Palo Alto institution, Chimaera Books & Music. Like many independent bookstores , its closure was due, in part, to competition from the dot com economy. This Santa Clara County, California building and structure-related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Palo Alto, California Palo Alto ( / ˌ p æ l oʊ ˈ æ l t oʊ / PAL -oh AL -toh ; Spanish for ' tall stick ' )
8664-525: The first Ohlone people to be encountered and documented in Spanish records when, in 1602, explorer Sebastián Vizcaíno reached and named the area that is now Monterey in December of that year. Despite Vizcaíno's positive reports, nothing further happened for more than 160 years. It was not until 1769 that the next Spanish expedition arrived in Monterey, led by Gaspar de Portolà . This time, the military expedition
8778-530: The founding location of several other tech companies, including Apple , Google , Facebook , Logitech , Tesla , Intuit , IDEO , Pinterest , and PayPal . Ford Motor Company and Lockheed Martin each additionally maintain major research and technology facilities within Palo Alto. Before the arrival of Europeans, the Ohlone lived on the San Francisco peninsula; in particular, the Puichon Ohlone lived in
8892-436: The future, therefore they were equally able to bring about fortune and misfortune among the community. Additionally, some Ohlone bands built prayer houses, also called sweat lodges , for ceremonial and spiritual purification purposes. These lodges were built near stream banks because water was believed to be capable of great healing. Men and women would gather in the sweat lodges to "cleanse, purify, and empower themselves" for
9006-527: The girth and height of the mound. Shellmounds were once found all over the San Francisco Bay area near marshlands, creeks, wetlands, and rivers. San Bruno Mountain is home to the nation's largest intact shellmound. These mounds are also thought to have served a practical purpose as well, since these shellmounds were usually near waterways or the ocean, they protected the village from high tide as well as to provide high ground for line of sight navigation for watercraft on San Francisco Bay. The Emeryville Shellmound
9120-469: The government for redistribution. At this point, the Ohlone were supposed to receive land grants and property rights, but few did and most of the mission lands went to the secular administrators. In the end, even attempts by mission leaders to restore native lands were in vain. Before this time, 73 Spanish land grants had already been deeded in all of Alta California , but with the new régime most lands were turned into Mexican-owned rancherias. The Ohlone became
9234-724: The laborers and vaqueros (cowboys) of Mexican-owned rancherias. The Ohlone eventually regathered in multi-ethnic rancherias, along with other Mission Indians from families that spoke the Coast Miwok , Bay Miwok , Plains Miwok , Patwin , Yokuts , and Esselen languages. Many of the Ohlone that had survived the experience at Mission San Jose went to work at Alisal Rancheria in Pleasanton , and El Molino in Niles . Communities of mission survivors also formed in Sunol , Monterey and San Juan Bautista . In
9348-633: The land was practiced, mainly by annually setting of fires to burn-off the old growth in order to get a better yield of seeds—or so the Ohlone told early explorers in San Mateo County ." Their staple diet consisted of crushed acorns, nuts , grass seeds, and berries, although other vegetation, hunted and trapped game, fish and seafood (including mussels and abalone from the San Francisco Bay and Pacific Ocean), were also important to their diet. These food sources were abundant in earlier times and maintained by careful work, and through active management of all
9462-496: The leaders of these massacres were rewarded with positions in state and federal government. These massacres have been described as genocide . Many are now leading a push for cultural and historical recognition of their tribe and what they have gone through and had taken from them. The Ohlone living today belong to various geographically distinct groups, most of which are still in their original home territory, though not all; none are currently federally recognized tribes . Members of
9576-490: The location was a sacred site known as Sogorea Te', one of the last native village sites in the San Francisco Bay that had escaped urban development. Santa Cruz A 6,000-year-old grave site was found at a KB Home construction site in the city of Santa Cruz. Protestors have picketed at the front gate of the Branciforte Creek construction site, holding signs, handing out flyers and engaging passersby to call attention to
9690-525: The lower reaches of San Francisquito Creek (i.e., parts of modern Menlo Park and northern Palo Alto) was given to Maria Antonia Mesa in 1841. She and her husband Rafael Soto (who had died in 1839) had settled in 1835 near present-day Newell and Middlefield roads and sold supplies. In 1839, their daughter María Luisa Soto (1817–1883) married John Coppinger, who was to be, in 1841, the grantee of Rancho Cañada de Raymundo (in modern San Mateo county). Upon Coppinger's death in 1847, Maria inherited it and later married
9804-517: The mission property was to pass to the Mission Indians after a period of about ten years, when they would become Spanish citizens. In the interim period, the Franciscans were mission administrators who held the land in trust for the Natives. In 1834, the Mexican government ordered all Californian missions to be secularized and all mission land and property (administered by the Franciscans) turned over to
9918-652: The missions were called Mission Indians , and also "neophytes." They were blended with other Native American ethnicities such as the Coast Miwok transported from the North Bay into the Mission San Francisco and Mission San José. Spanish military presence was established at two Presidios, the Presidio of Monterey , and the Presidio of San Francisco , and mission outposts, such as San Pedro y San Pablo Asistencia founded in 1786. The Spanish soldiers traditionally escorted
10032-482: The missions. By running to tribes outside of the missions, escapees and those sent to bring them back to the mission spread illness outside of the missions. Indians did not thrive when the missions expanded both their populations and operations in their geographical areas. "A total of 81,000 Indians were baptized and 60,000 deaths were recorded". The cause of death varied, but most were the result of European diseases such as smallpox, measles, and diphtheria against which
10146-531: The missions. Kuksu included elaborate acting and dancing ceremonies in traditional costume, an annual mourning ceremony, puberty rites of passage , intervention with the spirit world and an all-male society that met in subterranean dance rooms. Kuksu was shared with other indigenous ethnic groups of Central California, such as their neighbors the Miwok and Esselen , also Maidu , Pomo , and northernmost Yokuts . However Kroeber observed less "specialized cosmogony " in
10260-516: The most rainfall in one day was 3.75 inches (95 mm) on February 3, 1998. Measurable snowfall is very rare in the populated areas of Palo Alto, but 1.5 inches (3.8 cm) fell on January 21, 1962. A dusting of snow occasionally occurs in the highest (unpopulated) section of Palo Alto near Skyline Ridge, where the elevation reaches up to 2,812 feet (857 m). According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Palo Alto has
10374-419: The natural resources at hand. Animals in their mild climate included the grizzly bear , elk ( Cervus elaphus ), pronghorn , and deer . The streams held salmon , trout, steelhead, perch , and stickleback . Birds included plentiful ducks , geese , quail , great horned owls , red-shafted flickers , downy woodpeckers , goldfinches , and yellow-billed magpies . Waterfowl were the most important birds in
10488-451: The new townsite. This Hopkins Tract, bounded by El Camino Real, San Francisquito Creek, Boyce, Channing, Melville, and Hopkins Avenues, and Embarcadero Road, was proclaimed a local Heritage District during Palo Alto's centennial in 1994. The Stanfords set up their university, Stanford University , and a train stop (on University Avenue) by the new town. This new community was initially called University Park (the name "Palo Alto" at that time
10602-466: The north-east, Mountain View , Los Altos , and Los Altos Hills to the east and south-east and Stanford University to the south-west and west. Several major transit routes cross this parcel from the north-west to the south-east. The biggest and closest to the bay is the Bayshore Freeway and going inland are Alma Street/Central Expressway , El Camino Real , and Foothill Expressway . Interstate 280
10716-580: The northern tip of the San Francisco Peninsula down to northern region of Big Sur , and from the Pacific Ocean in the west to the Diablo Range in the east. Their vast region included the San Francisco Peninsula, Santa Clara Valley , Santa Cruz Mountains , Monterey Bay area, as well as present-day Alameda County , Contra Costa County and the Salinas Valley. Prior to Spanish contact, the Ohlone formed
10830-427: The people's diet, which were captured with nets and decoys. The Chochenyo traditional narratives refer to ducks as food, and Juan Crespí observed in his journal that geese were stuffed and dried "to use as decoys in hunting others". Along the ocean shore and bays, there were also otters , whales , and at one time thousands of sea lions . In fact, there were so many sea lions that according to Crespi it "looked like
10944-404: The population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 24,644 people (38.3%) lived in rental housing units. As of the census of 2000, there were 58,598 people, 25,216 households, and 14,600 families residing in the city. The population density was 955.8/km (2,476/sq mi). There were 26,048 housing units at an average density of 424.9/km (1,100/sq mi). The racial makeup of the city
11058-549: The site. San Jose Ohlone remains were discovered in 1973 near Highway 87 during housing development. Some remains were removed during the construction of the highway. Mount Umunhum (Dove Mountain) is the physical foundation of Tamien Nation oral narrative of the Great Flood - Tamien Nation's most sacred landscape. Fremont Construction crews at a Van Daele Homes luxury housing development unearthed 32 sets of Ohlone remains in 2017. The remains were reburied on-site under
11172-483: The state's first governor, was an open advocate of exterminating local California Indian tribes. By all estimates, the Ohlone were reduced to less than ten percent of their original pre-mission era population. By 1852 the Ohlone population had shrunk to about 864–1,000, and was continuing to decline. By the early 1880s, the northern Ohlone were virtually entirely gone, and the southern Ohlone people were severely impacted and largely displaced from their communal land grant in
11286-484: The supervision of a native consultant. The determination and passion to preserve sacred ground is largely influenced by the desire to revive and preserve the Ohlone cultural heritage. Natives today are engaging in extensive cultural research to bring back knowledge, narratives, beliefs, and practices of the post-contact days with the Spanish. The Spanish eradicated and stripped the Ohlones of their cultural heritage by causing
11400-524: The typical pattern found in California coastal tribes. Each of the Ohlone villages interacted with each other through trade, intermarriage, and ceremonial events, as well as through occasional conflict. The Ohlone culture was relatively stable until the first Spanish soldiers and missionaries arrived with the double-purpose of Christianizing the Native Americans by building a series of missions and of expanding Spanish territorial claims. The Rumsien were
11514-812: The way to San Jose started in January 1864. El Camino became Main Street; the northeast–southwest cross streets were named for Civil War heroes, with California Avenue originally being Lincoln Street. The town had its own newspaper by 1869 (the Mayfield Enterprise , in English and Spanish), incorporated in 1903, and had breweries and a cannery. In 1875, French financier Jean Baptiste Paulin Caperon, better known as Peter Coutts, purchased land in Mayfield and four other parcels around three sides of today's College Terrace – more than
11628-544: Was 41,359 (64.2%) White , 17,461 (27.1%) Asian , 1,197 (1.9%) African American , 121 (0.2%) Native American , 142 (0.2%) Pacific Islander , 1,426 (2.2%) from other races , and 2,697 (4.2%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3,974 persons (6.2%). The Census reported that 63,820 people (99.1% of the population) lived in households, 205 (0.3%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 378 (0.6%) were institutionalized. There were 26,493 households, out of which 8,624 (32.6%) had children under
11742-422: Was 41.9 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.7 males. For every 100 females aged 18 and over, there were 93.0 males. There were 28,216 housing units at an average density of 1,094.2 units per square mile (422.5 units/km ), of which 14,766 (55.7%) were owner-occupied, and 11,727 (44.3%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.5%; the rental vacancy rate was 5.6%. 39,176 people (60.8% of
11856-441: Was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.95. In the city, the population was spread out, with 21.2% under the age of 18, 4.9% from 18 to 24, 32.4% from 25 to 44, 25.9% from 45 to 64, and 15.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.8 males. For every 100 females aged 18 and over, there were 93.6 males. According to
11970-422: Was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.41. There were 16,477 families (62.2% of all households); the average family size was 3.04. The population was spread out, with 15,079 people (23.4%) under the age of 18, 3,141 people (4.9%) aged 18 to 24, 17,159 people (26.6%) aged 25 to 44, 18,018 people (28.0%) aged 45 to 64, and 11,006 people (17.1%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age
12084-538: Was 75.76% White , 2.02% Black , 0.21% Native American , 17.22% Asian , 0.14% Pacific Islander , 1.41% from other races , and 3.24% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.65% of the population. There were 25,216 households, of which 27.2% had resident children under the age of 18, 48.5% were married couples living together, 7.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.1% were non-families. 32.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.8% had someone living alone who
12198-509: Was accompanied by Franciscan missionaries, whose purpose was to establish a chain of missions to bring Christianity to the native people. Under the leadership of Father Junípero Serra , the missions introduced Spanish religion and culture to the Ohlone. Spanish mission culture soon disrupted and undermined the Ohlone social structures and way of life. Under Father Serra's leadership, the Spanish Franciscans erected seven missions inside
12312-459: Was attached to what is now College Terrace), but was incorporated in 1894 with the name Palo Alto. With the Stanfords' support, Palo Alto grew to the size of Mayfield. Mayfield eventually passed an ordinance banning saloons that took effect in January 1905. On July 2, 1925, Palo Alto voters approved the annexation of Mayfield and the two communities were officially consolidated on July 6, 1925. As
12426-560: Was bounded on the south by Mariano Castro's Rancho Pastoria de las Borregas grant across San Antonio Road. This later became the Robles Rancho, which constitutes about 80% of Palo Alto and Stanford University today. In 1863, it was whittled down in the courts to 6,981 acres (28.25 km ). Stories say the grand hacienda was built on the former meager adobe of José Peña near Ferne off San Antonio Road, midway between Middlefield and Alma Street. Their hacienda hosted fiestas and bull fights. It
12540-460: Was essentially Foothill Expressway , was the married name of Juana Briones and the name occurs in Courts and Avenues and other street names in Palo Alto and Mountain View in the quadrant where she owned vast areas between Stanford University, Grant Road in Mountain View and west of El Camino Real. Yerba Buena was to her credit. Rinconada was the major Mexican land grant name. The township of Mayfield
12654-465: Was formed in 1855, around the site of a stagecoach stop and saloon known as "Uncle Jim's Cabin" near the intersection of El Camino Real and today's California Avenue in what is now southern Palo Alto. In October 1863 the San Francisco to San Jose railroad had been built as far as Mayfield and service started between San Francisco and Mayfield (the station is now California Avenue ); train service all
12768-476: Was not recognized by the Catholic Church. All who have looked into the matter agree, however, that baptized Indians who tried to leave mission communities were forced to return. The first conversions to Catholicism were at Mission San Carlos Borromeo, alias Carmel, in 1771. In the San Francisco Bay area the first baptisms occurred at Mission San Francisco in 1777. Many first-generation Mission Era conversions to Catholicism were debatably incomplete and "external". It
12882-406: Was ruined in the 1906 earthquake and its lumber was used to build a large barn nearby, which was said to have lingered until the early 1950s. On April 10, 1853, 250 acres (1.0 km ), comprising the present-day Barron Park, Matadero Creek and Stanford Business Park, was sold for $ 2,000 to Elisha Oscar Crosby , who called his new property Mayfield Farm. The name of Mayfield was later attached to
12996-650: Was very dominant. West Berkeley Shellmound The West Berkeley Shellmound , located in Berkeley, California, is thought to be the site of the earliest known habitation in the San Francisco Bay Area. It was mostly removed by the early 20th century, but human remains and artifacts are still found in the area during construction projects. Local Ohlone groups have fought to have a portion of it protected and returned to their use. Glen Cove (Sogorea Te') The City of Vallejo, California built Glen Cove Waterfront Park after years of protests from Ohlone people and their allies that
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