California Historical Landmarks

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The state of California allows for each county to have a State designated plaque for historical sites. These are located within the city limits of San Jose. The locations are of the plaque. In some cases, the original structure no longer exists.

Plaque Number	Plaque Description	Location
339	New Almaden Mine The Indians used pigment from this cinnabar hill for paint. Mercury was Mined as early as 1845. the gold discovery made mercury indespensible and the mine the most productive in America, became world famous. It sold for $1,700,700 in 1864.	N-bound old Hwy 101 (Monterey Rd), 1/2 mi S of Ford Rd, San Jose.
416	Edwin Markham Home Markham was born at Oregon City, April 23, 1852 and later moved to a cattle ranch near Suisun. Later he and his mother moved to San Jose, and Markham entered the State Normal School, from which he graduated in 1872. Markham lived and taught school in many places, but made this home his main residence, and it was here he wrote The Man with the Hoe.	432 S. Eight St. San Jose.
417	First Normal School in California (San Jose State College) Originally founded as a private institution, "Minns' Evening Normal School" in 1857 the school became a public institution by an act of the State Legislature on May 2, 1862. In 1868 the board of trustees took up the matter of permanent location, and Washington Square in San Jose was chosen. Destroyed by fire on February 11, 1880 and heavily damaged by the 1906 earthquake, the school was rebuilt after each disaster.	NE corner of San Carlos & 4th St. San Jose. SJSU Tower Hall.
433	FIRST SITE OF EL PUEBLO DE SAN JOSÉ DE GUADALUPE - Within a year after the opening of the first overland route from Mexico to Alta California, Governor Felipe de Neve authorized establishment of California's first civil settlement. Lieutenant José Joaquín Moraga arrived in the Santa Clara Valley with 14 settlers and their families on November 29, 1777 to found El Pueblo de San José de Guadalupe near the present civic center.	Front parking lot planter, City Hall, 151 W Mission St, San Jose
434	Site of City Gardens -- Nursery of Louis Pellier Pellier, native of Saint-Hippolyte, France and founder of California's prune industry, came to California in 1849. In October 1850 he established a nursery called City Gardens. Here, aided by his brothers, Pierre and Jean, who came over from France at a later date, he introduced the French prune -- la petite prune d'Agen -- into California during the winter of 1856-57.	100 block of W. St. James St. San Jose.
461	Directly opposite this tablet was located the first State Capitol Building in which California's first legislature assembled in December 1849. San Jose was the seat of government from 1849 to 1851.	City Park Plaza, 100 block, S Market St, San Jose.
489	Moreland School Oldest known rural school district in California. Established 1851 as subscription school, meeting in private homes. First teacher, Charles Lafollette, 1851, term three months. Abraham H. Featherman, 1852, term six months. Through efforts of Samuel Curtis Rogers, third teacher, 1852-1854, first public school building, formerly home of Zechariah Moreland, obtained 1852. In 1853 Rogers secured organization of school as Santa Clara Township School District No. 2. Renamed in Moreland's honor, 1862.	4335 Payne Ave at Saratoga, San Jose.
813	Montgomery Hill Three-quarters of a mile northeast is Montgomery Hill, site of the 55 successful flights of the "aeroplane" of John Joseph Montgomery which demonstrated aerodynamic developments still indispensable to modern aircraft. Here the basic principles of aerodynamics discovered by Montgomery were combined by his engineering skill and technology to produce a heavier-than-air flying machine which had complete control: the chambered wing, rear stabilizer, flexible wingtips, and the wing-warping aileron.	Entrance to Evergreen College, .5 mi E of intersection of San Felipe and Yerba Buena Rds, San Jose.
854	United States Post Office Constructed in 1892 this was the first federal building in San Jose. It served as U.S. post office from 1892 to 1933. Designed by Willoughby Edbrooke and constructed of locally quarried sandstone, this Romanesque style structure, built by the United States government, is the last of its kind on the west coast.	110 S Market St, San Jose
866	Luis Maria Peralta Adobe The last vestige of El Pueblo de San Jose de Guadalupe, the simple adobe, rehabilitated in the mid-19th century, is believed built before 1800 by Manuel Gonzalez, an Apache, who was one of the pobladores (founders). Later owned and occupied by Sgt. Peralta, pueblo comisionado from 1807 to 1822. Both men came to California with the Anza expedition in 1775-76	184 W St John St, San Jose.
888	Hayes Mansion Jay Orley and Everis A. Hayes built this Mission Revival style mansion, designed by George W. Page in 1904. The Hayes brothers were early San Jose Mercury publishers, prominent Valley politicians, and were actively involved in establishing the Santa Clara Valley fruit industry. The mansion consists of 62 rooms, 11 fireplaces, and was paneled in over a dozen different woods.	200 Edenvale Ave, San Jose
898	Roberto-Sunol Adobe This historic adobe was built in 1836 by a native Californian, Roberto Balermino, on Rancho de Los Coches. The property was officially granted to him by Governor Micheltorena in 1844. A larger one-story dwelling was built in 1847 by the new owner, Antonio Sunol. The second-story frame structure and balcony were added in 1853 by Captain Stefano Splivalo.	770 Lincoln Ave, San Jose.
902	First Unitarian Church This building, designed by George W. Page in 1891, became the permanent home of a congregation that first met in city hall in 1866. A version of Richardsonian Romanesque style, the innovative structure withstood the earthquake of 1906 and became a shelter for the injured. In 1906, the church women organized San Jose's first day nursery.	160 N 3rd St, San Jose.
945	First Honeybees in California Here, on the 1,939-acre Rancho Potrero de Santa Clara, Christopher A. Shelton in early March 1853 introduced the honeybee to California. In Aspinwall, Panama, Shelton purchased 12 beehives from a New Yorker and transported them by rail, "Bongo" pack mule, and steamship to San Francisco. Only enough bees survived to fill one hive, but these quickly propagated, laying the foundation for California's modern beekeeping industry.	San Jose Municipal Airport, in front of Terminal C, 1661 Airport Blvd, San Jose
952	Site of World's First Broadcasting Station On this corner stood the Garden City Bank Building, where Charles D. Herrold established Station FN, the first radio broadcasting station in the world. As a pioneer in wireless telephony (radio), Herrold established the first station in 1909 to transmit radio programs of music and news to a listening audience on a regular basis.	SW corner of First and San Fernando Streets, San Jose