Silicon Valley's "Smithsonian West"

 San Jose is home to one of California's most unique and eclectic historic collections. The San Jose History Park is 14 acres of manicured grounds and historic structures. 

Japanese Internment Document
Courtesy History San Jose

"History San Jose' collects, preserves and celebrates the stories of diversity and innovation in San Jose' and the Santa Clara Valley." From HSJ Webpage

No where is this diversity reflected more than in the vast and varied collection of artifacts both on display and in the museum's collection center. 

What are some of the things one might find in this unusual collection?

Califaro Tank House- Built 1880
Courtesy History San Jose

Buildings: (1880s-1920s) Homes, Commercial Buildings, Small Businesses, Temples, Cabins, Barns

Dr. Warburton's Examination Chair
Courtesy History San Jose

Appliances/Machinery/Tools: 
(1800-2010) Kitchen Appliances, Utensils, Industrial Tools, Manufacturing Equipment, Tractors, Lathes, Printing Presses, Typewriters, Telephones, Ice Boxes, Plows, Wagons, Pianos, Household Furniture, Native American Bowls/Utensils

Milk Machine
Courtesy History San Jose

Transportation: (1840s-1940s) Automobiles, Bicycles, Motorcycles, Scooters, Trolleys, Trains, Trucks

1915 Excelsior Auto Cycle

Button Trolley
Courtesy HSJ

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Reality-Capture-Technology-Training-Center-at-History-Park/304789553009310Art/Documents: (1790s-2012) Paintings, Etchings, Carvings, Historic Documents, Letters, Spanish Regional Maps, Mexican Regional Maps, Arial Maps, Land Grant Documents, Newspapers/Periodicals, Films, Lithographs, Native American Tools

1917 Harley Davidson

Electronics: (1900-Present) Computers, Televisions, Teletype Machines, Transmitters, Decoders, Generators, PC Boards, Phonographs, Victrolas, Listening Devices, Tape Recorders, Radios, Broadcast Equipment, Video Recorders, Video Games, Prototypes.

Victrola

Varian-Klystron
Courtesy History San Jose

The San Jose History Museum is home to over 500,000 artifacts; 95% of these artifacts are currently in storage and unavailable to the public. There are three primary reasons for this;1) there isn't enough space to display all of the artifacts.2) the museum's collection is constantly expanding. History isn't just about what happened years ago, but what happened yesterday. 3)) most of the museum's work is conducted by volunteers. With over 500,000 artifacts and the research required to properly preserve them, the processes are time intensive.

1903 DeForest Wrls Responder
Photo Courtesy History San Jose

One of the major benefits to the "Capturing History" project is that many of these unseen artifacts can be displayed in the virtual museum setting. The virtual museum isn't restricted by walls and square footage that limit traditional museums. By digitally documenting the contents of the collection center, many of these artifacts will be seen by the public for the first
time in decades.