Showing posts with label san jose history. Show all posts
Showing posts with label san jose history. Show all posts

Monday, February 5, 2024

Historic Burbank Theater may be incorporated into a San Jose housing project

A historic theater that opened in 1951 but has been closed since the year 2000 may be reincarnated as housing. The proposal would keep the front section of the theater, including it's highly recognizable sign that represents the Burbank neighborhood, and the original lobby. 

As for the rest of the project, 62 apartments and ground floor retail would be tightly packaged in a five-story building at 552 South Bascom Avenue. The apartments would be split between studios, one-bedrooms, and two-bedroom units. At least some of the homes would be designated as affordable housing.

Another fun fact, this area was not technically part of San Jose. It was unincorporated land that is run by Santa Clara County, but is in the process of being annexed into San Jose proper.

Friday, December 22, 2023

The story behind San Jose's oldest building

SJtoday has a great overview of the Peralta Adobe, the oldest structure in San Jose. The inconspicuous building now sits in the middle of the San Pedro Square Market and occasionally public tours are offered of the historic structure. It's over 200 years old and predates even San Jose's existence as a city.

For the quick history of the building that you can use to impress your friends over beers next time you're at the Market, head over here.





Wednesday, September 16, 2020

Love, Loss, Life

Tonight the San Jose Museum of Art is hosting an event discussing the contributions of Chicano, African-American, and Vietnamese immigrants to San Jose. It includes music inspired by these stories created and performed by Emmy-award winning musician and composer Van-Anh Vo. At the end there will be an interactive Q&A with the speakers and artists.

For free tickets, click here.



Monday, August 10, 2020

New San Jose Landmark Proposals!

After years of planning, we finally have an opportunity to make an internationally recognized landmark for San Jose! Urban Confluence Silicon Valley has collected hundreds of idea submissions from around the globe for an iconic landmark that incorporates modern technology, history, art, architecture, engineering, and place-making. These came from architects, artists, urban planners, and development enthusiasts from 72 different countries across 6 continents.

The next step is to choose three finalists that will each receive $150,000 to refine and re-develop their concept. After that a single winner will be chosen around April 2021 and fundraising would begin for what could be a $100 million+ project next to the SAP Center on the Arena Green.

I've gone through all 960 submissions, and some are truly epic. Below are images of my personal favorites. I love so many of these, but my vote would go to the Infinity Ring at the end (check out the video). It looks amazing despite the 200ft height restriction, you can walk inside it to cross the river while getting a view of San Jose, and it can do some impressive lighting effects than amplify it's coolness. Which is your favorite?

List of Top Submissions
List of all Submissions


The Ring


Ode To Nature


The Statue of Innovation


The Bulb


Urban Spiral


The Caterpillar


Super Natural Skypark


San Jose


Kinetic Obelisk


Land Lux


The Guadaloop


The Infinity Ring

Tuesday, April 14, 2020

Free private screening of "The Light Between Two Towers"

An excellent documentary that juxtaposes the San Jose Electric Light Tower with the Eiffel Tower will be available for free, starting immediately. "The Light Between Two Towers" is a great watch, especially if you live in the San Jose area and know some of our local history (and if you don't, this is a great place to start). You can start watching over here.

Below is the full announcement by the creator of the documentary, Thomas Wohlmut.



In this terribly disruptive time of the Coronavirus outbreak we are required to isolate ourselves. Each and every one of us who are shut-in feel alone and disconnected. We are living in a type of darkness.

Sometime in the future we will emerge from the darkness into an enlightened world. The documentary "The Light Between Two Towers" drives home a powerful inspirational message of enlightenment and what people can do to emerge from darkness. The film describes how people from all walks of life were motivated to achieve and did achieve a better life.

The story of the building of the San Jose Electric Light Tower by immigrants and its relationship to the Eiffel Tower is a story worth remembering in this time. It's a story that reminds us of how the people of Silicon Valley are innovative leaders and trend setters.

Now may be the time for us to begin to imagine and prepare for a future that brings us back into the light.

As a special gift during this challenging time, we are offering a free private screening of “The Light Between Two Towers”. Share the above link with your family and friends - our gift to you. We hope it will give you a lift and be an inspiration to what we can achieve together and individually when we set our hearts and minds to it.

With best wishes ...

Thomas Wohlmut


You can watch the entire film for free over here.



Wednesday, October 9, 2019

CREATV to air the Light Between Two Towers

An excellent documentary that juxtaposes the San Jose Light Tower with the Eiffel Tower will be airing on the Silicon Valley Channel (Channel 30 in San Jose & Campbell) on Fridays at 10pm and Saturdays at 12:30pm. The Light between Two Towers is is a must watch for any San Josean. If you haven't seen the documentary yet, this is your best opportunity to do so at no cost.

It will also air during other times throughout the week and you can check out the CREATV website for the full schedule.


Thursday, September 12, 2019

San Jose Light Tower Blueprint

A historically accurate blueprint of the San Jose Light Tower is now available as a poster. This was commissioned to demonstrate the technical features of the tower for the documentary film "Light Between Two Towers."

The poster is available in a variety of sizes and is a great way the show off your San Jose historical cred. You can order it over here.


Thursday, May 9, 2019

Flicks and Grooves at History Park


History San José invites you to enjoy great movies and music under the stars during the Flicks & Grooves outdoor cinema and concert series in History Park. This year's outdoor cinema line up will showcase the quirky genius of director Wes Anderson the second Friday of each month. The Flicks & Grooves concert slate features an eclectic array of live bands to enliven your Friday nights on the Fire House Green. No movie or concert is complete without great food and beverage offerings. Each Flicks & Grooves event will feature a variety of local brews, wine, and food vendors. And of course, popcorn and local ice cream from O’Brien’s Ice Cream Parlor!

Cinema Dates
Friday, May 10th 7:30 pm (Moonrise Kingdom)Friday, June 14th 7:30 pm (Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou) 
Friday, July 12th 7:30 pm (Rushmore)Friday, August 9th 7:30 pm (The Grand Budapest Hotel)
Friday, September 13th 7:30 pm (The Royal Tenenbaums)
Friday, October 11th 7:30 pm (Fantastic Mr. Fox) 

Concert Dates
Friday, May 31st at 7:30 pm (Kiva Uhuru + Noop & Neens)
Friday, June 28th at 7:30 pm (Steely Nash + Q&A)
Friday, July 26th at 7:30 pm (Aki Kumar + DJs Albert Jenkins and Basura and Guests)
Friday, August 30 at 7:30 pm (Le Vice + Ian Santillano and the Housewarmers)
Friday, September 27 at 7:30 pm (Valley Wolf + Deseos Primitivos)
Friday, October 25 at 7:30 pm (Gene Washington and The Sweet Sounds + Rhythm  and Folk)

Outdoor Cinema
This year's outdoor cinema line up will showcase the quirky genius of director Wes Anderson the second Friday of each month. The beautiful and relaxing Fire House Green inside History Park serves as a perfect backdrop for the unorthodox filmmaker's cinematic gems including Rushmore, The Life Aquatic, and The Royal Tenenbaums to name just a few. Oscar-nominated Wes Anderson has created films that are bonafide cult classics resonating with audiences of all ages.

Outdoor Concerts

History Park will also be a destination for live music the last Friday of each month. The Flicks & Grooves concert slate features an eclectic array of live bands to enliven your Friday nights on the Fire House Green. The San Jose Jazz Boombox Stage will host hot acts curated by Needle to the Groove Records and Quynh Mai. Confirmed acts include Neo-Soul songstress Kiva Uhuru (May 31), Hip Pop outfit Steely Nash (June 28), the neo-Jazz stylings of Le Vice (Aug 30), Cumbia/Latin Rock crooner Valley Wolf (September 27) and many more acts to be announced.

Tuesday, March 19, 2019

San Jose Light Tower v2.0 has a location!

There is finally has an official location for the resurrection of our most famous landmark. The City Council voted unanimously to approve the Arena Green near SAP and Diridon as the future home of a new San Jose Light Tower.

The next step is an international idea competition for the design of the tower called "Urban Confluence Silicon Valley." Individual teams will submit creative designs for the project and there will be an award for the top three.

The icing on the cake is that there will be a little extra height available for the new tower (see yesterday's post). By raising building height limits to FAA regulations, will gave the tower an extra 100 feet of potential. I'm sure the height will be full maxed and hope there are some options for virtual increasing that height as well (lighting, drones, etc.).

The official announcement from The San Jose Light Tower Corporation is below.


Wednesday, February 13, 2019

Souresseau News: When Artists Flew Like Birds

This week's history video is about historic drawings from bird's eye views. Artists had to get pretty creative before planes and drones were around, and many of these drawings are incredibly detailed. Ironically the newer maps featured in the video had a lot less detail and were not to scale.

To watch the two minute video, click here.


When Artists Flew Like Birds from WMS media Inc. on Vimeo.

Wednesday, February 6, 2019

Souresseau News: Horse Power!

This week's history video is about early transportation in San Jose--namely horses. It's difficult to imagine a time when blacksmiths used to be the most important people in town and a limo was a wagon pulled by 6 horses. Kick back and journey 110-120 years back in time with this short documentary.

To watch the two minute video, click here.


Wednesday, January 30, 2019

Souresseau News: When Letterheads Told a Story

This week's history video is about historic San Jose letterheads. Many of these were printed over a century ago and the quality of the artwork that went into them is quite impressive.

To watch the two minute video, click here.


Wednesday, January 23, 2019

Souresseau News: Women at Work

This week's history video is about women in the workplace, starting with an 1860's photo of two San Jose female ranchers. While we still have inequalities in the workplace even today, it appears that there were more opportunities for women in San Jose many decades (or even a century) ago that I would have assumed.

To watch the two minute video, click here.


Wednesday, January 16, 2019

Souresseau News: Gateways and Arches

This week's history video is about San Jose's gateways and arches. Did you know that San Jose once had a welcome gateway for visitors near the Basset St. station on North First Street? Or that after the electric tower fell, the city built a gateway with an electrified San Jose sign?

To watch the two minute video, click here.


Wednesday, January 9, 2019

Souresseau News: Signs

This week's history video is about San Jose signs. As you'll see in the video, the mid-century trend was neon. It would be amazing to restore the few signs from the video that are still around to their original glory.

To watch the two minute video, click here.


Wednesday, January 2, 2019

Souresseau News: Waterways and Floods

This week's history video is about waterways and floods. Interestingly enough, in 1915 the Guadalupe River was briefly dammed to great a lake in Downtown San Jose (photo below). Another interesting tidbit is that Alviso has been flooded more often than any other part of San Jose (likely the reason why the region never took off).

To watch the two minute video, click here.




Wednesday, December 26, 2018

Sourisseau News: New Almaden

This week's history video is about New Almaden, one of San Jose's most hidden neighborhoods. The Quicksilver (mercury) mine in New Almaden produced an incredible amount of wealth, more than any gold mine in the state. If you go to the site of the old mine today, there is actually a neat little museum there.

To watch the two minute video on New Almaden, click here.


Tuesday, December 18, 2018

Souresseau News: Ethnic Communities

This week's history video is about ethnic communities that moved to San Jose. Even 100 years ago, San Jose was surprisingly diverse with French, German, Mexican, Chinese, Japanese, Portuguese, Italian, and Filipino immigrants. At one point we even had the largest minority population in California.

To watch the two minute video, click here.


Wednesday, December 12, 2018

Sourisseau News: Early Banks

This week's history video is about banking. Below is a drawing of the Knocks and Beans bank, San Jose's first bank which opened in 1866 at 1st and Santa Clara. Eventually it was changed to the Bank of San Jose and moved across the street. Some of the most beautiful historic buildings in San Jose were once banks, and all of them are featured in this short 2 minute documentary.

To watch the video, click here.


Tuesday, December 4, 2018

Sourisseau News: Marching to a Different Beat

Over the next several weeks, I'll link to short San Jose historical videos commissioned by Linda L. Lester and published by WMS Media. The first video is a montage of eccentric San Jose personalities. The person photographed below is A. D. M. Cooper, who had a downtown studio filled with nude drawings, many of which were used as payments for bar tabs. It's only a two minute video with a lot of interesting facts.

To watch the video, click here.