GIS MAP OF HISTORIC DISTRICTS AND CONSERVATION AREAS

Alviso National Register District

Alviso was one of the earliest ports on the west coast of the United States and one of the earliest towns, incorporated in 1852, in Santa Clara County. It was expected to be a "great city" due to its location, but after it was bypassed by railroads, it was "almost totally deserted" and was not annexed to the City of San José until 1968. The Port of Alviso is also a State of California Point of Historical Interest (SHPI SCL-061); listed in the California History Plan and California Inventory of Historic Resources; and one contributor to the district, the former Old Union Warehouse, is one of the seven buildings/building clusters/sites of the Bay Side Canning Company and one of the 94 Chinese American State of California Ethnic Sites.

Alviso was annexed by the City of San José in 1968. The Alviso (District), known as "Port of Alviso (San José)," is a listed National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) district, but is not a designated City District. As a NRHP property, this district is automatically included on the California Register of Historical Resources (CRHR). The district is bounded on the north by an arm of Alviso Slough, on the west by the Alviso Slough, the 1850 canal, and the Guadalupe River, on the south by Moffat Street, and, on the east by a line down the center of Gold Street to Catherine Street, west on Catherine to the center of the block between El Dorado and Gold, and then south to Moffat.

Alviso National Register District

Downtown Commercial National Register District

The San José Downtown Historic District (also known as the San José Commercial District), a National Register of Historic Places district, is located within the area between E. Santa Clara, S. First, Second, and S. Fourth Street (along E. Santa Clara) to E. San Fernando Street. This area contains architecturally and historically significant buildings dating from the 1870s to the early 1940s and continues to serve as Santa Clara Valley's mercantile and financial center. As a listed NRHP property, the district is automatically included on the California Register of Historical Resources (CRHR).

Downtown Commercial National Register District

Guadalupe / Washington Conservation Area

The Guadalupe/Washington Conservation Area is located south of Downtown San José south of I-280, generally bounded on the east by the rear property lines of commercial properties on the west side of S. First Street, on the west by the Guadalupe River, and on south by portions of Willow Street and the rear property lines of properties on the north side of Willow Street within the Washington Strong Neighborhoods Initiative [SNI] Planning Area.

The district is characterized by streetscapes of mostly late 19th and early 20th century National, Queen Anne, Neoclassical, Craftsman, and Minimal Traditional cottages with a similarity of scale and setbacks, mature landscaping, etc. which convey a clear historical association with the development of the neighborhood.

Guadalupe/Washington Conservation Area

Hanchett and Hester Park Conservation Area

The Hanchett and Hester Park City Conservation Area consists of two adjacent neighborhoods that are generally bounded by Magnolia Street to the north, The Alameda to the east, Park Avenue to the west, and Mariposa Avenue to the south. Hanchett and Hester Park were designed by John McLaren (1846-1943), the designer of San Francisco's Golden Gate Park.

Hanchett Park, originally part of the fairgrounds, was surveyed in 1906 and opened in 1907. The Hester District dates to 1893 and included the former Gardner District (annexed 1911). The Hester-Hanchett-College Park district was annexed to the City of San José in 1925.

These mostly single family residences date from ca. 1906 to 1935 and include Queen Anne, Craftsman Bungalow, and Spanish Mission Colonial Revival styles as well as several Prairie style in Hanchett Park. The Hanchett Park neighborhood retains some of the best mix of Prairie, Spanish Revival and, Craftsman residences in San José. In addition, Martin Avenue between Park Avenue and The Alameda includes City of San José Heritage Trees - 80 Mexican Fan Palms (Washingtonia robusta; (HG-06-007).

Hensley City Landmark District

The Hensley Historic District is part of the former estate of Major Samuel J. Hensley (d. 1866) which extended from N. First to Fourth Street and Empire to what became the railroad right-of-way and was subdivided in 1886. The extremely irregularly shaped Hensley City Landmark District (HD89-51) is listed under the theme of Architecture and Shelter for the Horticulture period (1870-1918). The district is bounded for the most part by Second Street on the west, Empire Street on the north, Sixth Street on the east, and Julian Street to the south.

The National Register listed Hensley Historic District consists of 279 properties with 207 contributors. The City Landmark District includes 24 additional properties located at the north and south ends of the National Register District (Winter 2003:103). The mostly single family residences of various architectural styles were built between 1865 and 1930, mostly between 1880 and 1900, with in-fill to 1930.

This district has the largest concentration of Victorian-era residences in the City of San José and is notable as a residential district with the most complete concentration of architectural styles popular between 1856 to 1918 in the City. Larger and more elaborate homes are found on N. Third Street with modest workingmen's homes along N. Fifth Street built in Italianate, Stick-Eastlake, and Queen Anne styles. As a listed NRHP property, the district is automatically included on the California Register of Historical Resources (CRHR).

Hensley City Landmark District

Lakehouse City Landmark District

The Lakehouse Historic District, City Landmark District HD07-158, is generally bounded on the north by W. San Fernando Street, on the east by State Highway 87 and the VTA Light Rail right-of-way, on the west by Los Gatos Creek, and on the south by the rear property lines of lots on the north side of Park Avenue, and on the southeast by Sonoma Street and Lakehouse Avenue. This City District consists of mostly single family residential properties constructed from 1885-1925. The district includes a unique concentration of single story, Queen Anne Style houses along with some Craftsman and Period Revival through in and surrounding the 1891 Lake House Tract. No theme or period is listed for this City District.

NOTE: A smaller Lake House Historic District/Delmas Historic District), excluding properties on Gifford Avenue, was determined eligible for the National Register in 1999 due to a unique concentration of single story predominantly Queen Anne style houses built between 1892 and 1898.

Lakehouse City Landmark District

Market-Almaden Conservation Area

The Market-Almaden Conservation Area, surrounded by the Downtown core, is located just west of S. Market Street bounded by Almaden Avenue on the west, Balbach Street on the north and W. Reed Street and I-280 on the south. The area is characterized by mostly single family residences of Victorians and Craftsman bungalows dating from the late 1800s and early 1900s.

Market-Almaden Conservation Area

Martha Gardens Conservation Area

The Martha Gardens Conservation Area is generally bounded by I-280 on the north, Martha Street on the south, the alley between S. First and S. Second Streets on the west, and rear property lines of lots on the east side of S. Third Street on the east. The area includes vernacular and architect-designed single family residences dating from the mid- 1870s to ca. 1940, residences converted to boarding houses, and post-World War II multiple-unit residences (Note: the Martha Gardens Specific Plan, identifies a small potential Historic District within the Conservation Area on S. Third Street crossing E. Virginia Street).

Martha Gardens Conservation Area

Naglee Park Conservation Area

The Naglee Park Conservation Area is the former 140-acre estate of General Henry M. Naglee, a veteran of the Civil War (1861-1865). His heirs sold the estate under the guidance of T.S. Montgomery, San José's leading real estate developer and three years after its subdivision in 1902, 1,503 residences had been built. The Conservation Area is bounded by E. Santa Clara Street on the north, S. 11th Street on the west, Coyote Creek on the east, and E. William Street on the south.

This district is noted for fine early 20th century residences in an eclectic variety of architectural styles including bungalows and the Spanish Colonial Revival styles, many architect designed. The grounds also included the Naglee House and the still extant Naglee Carriage House at 49 S. Fourteenth and another at 95 S. Fourteenth Street, both listed in the City Inventory as eligible for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places (ENR).

North Willow Glen Conservation Area

The North Willow Glen Conservation Area encompasses neighborhoods south of Interstate 280 between the Guadalupe River, Willow Street, and Bird Avenue and includes a small neighborhood known as Gregory Plaza west of Bird Avenue. It is part of the larger Greater Gardner SNI Neighborhoods.

The North Willow Glen Conservation Area contains mostly small-lot residential properties, with a limited mix of commercial properties, that were developed during the first half of the twentieth century. The neighborhood contains similarly massed small houses with a diverse mix of period detailing and continues to represent an earlier sense of time and place, reflective of residential development beyond the southwest boundaries of the original city of San Jose between 1885 and 1955. Much of the development during this period is associated with housing related to agricultural regions to the north and east.

North Willow Glen Conservation

Palm Haven Conservation Area

The Palm Haven Conservation Area is bounded by Riverside Drive on the west and north, Bird Avenue on the east, and Coe Avenue on the south. The area includes residences constructed from ca. 1910, 1930s and 1940s which are noted for their excellence of design layout. Many of the residences were designed by architects. A gateway on the north side of the intersection of Plaza Drive and Coe Avenue leads into the subdivision. City of San José Heritage Trees (HG-06-008), mostly Mexican Fan Palms (Washingtonia robusta) with some Canary Island Date Palms (Phoenix canariensis) planted ca. 1913, line all the streets, are present within Palm Haven Park, and bisect the namesake Palm Haven Avenue median to the Park.

Reed City Landmark District

River Street City Landmark District

The River Street City Landmark Historic District HD96-107, listed under the theme of Architecture and Shelter for the Horticulture period (1870-1918), is located east of N. River Street with the Guadalupe River on the west, N. Almaden Boulevard and State Highway 87 on the east, W. Julian Street on the north, and the River Park and tennis courts on the south (parcels on the south side of W. St. John).

This 1875-1925 workingman's neighborhood, one of the largest concentrations of Italian immigrants in California, consists of mostly residences, but also includes the Torino Hotel, Almaden French Bakery, Prindiville Grocery, and a non-contributing machine shop in a variety of styles - Italianate, Greek Revival, Queen Anne, and Mediterranean Revival. Construction of the Guadalupe River Flood Control project resulted in the demolition of 21 buildings and the relocation of nine buildings. Most of the residences have been converted to commercial use. This neighborhood is now also known as "Little Italy".

River Street City Landmark District

St. James Square City Landmark District

The Saint James Square City Landmark District (HD84-36) is listed under the theme Social, Arts, and Recreation for the Early American Period (1846-1870). The park, the only public square in the Downtown Core Area, is surrounded by buildings significant for their civic design and uses from the 1860s through 1930s.

The park, originally laid out in 1848 by Chester Lyman, occupies a two block area bounded by E. St. James Street on the north, E. St. John Street on the south, N. First Street on the west and N. Third Street on the east. The City Landmark District area includes the park, the block west to N. Market Street and part of the block east to N. Fourth Street and part of the block south between N. Second and N. Third Streets. In contrast, the smaller National Register of Historic Places District (NRD) St. James Square (St. James Park) area consists of 10 contributors - the park and nine buildings and two non-contributors on blocks opposite the park.

As a listed NRHP property, the district is automatically included on the California Register of Historical Resources (CRHR).

Saint James Square City Landmark District

Schiele Subdivision and Alameda Park developed as two adjacent but related residential tracts with portions of the Schiele Subdivision underway in the late 1880s, and the final build-out of Alameda Park occurring by the start of World War II. The historic district consists of residential buildings initially constructed within an unincorporated area between the cities of San José and Santa Clara and later became part of the 1925 College Park, Burbank, and Sunol Annexation to the City of San José. Most of the properties were developed between 1889-1941 and the houses have architectural character reflective of this broad period. Much of the north side of Schiele Avenue remains a snapshot of the late 1800s, with what is probably the biggest collection of the existing work of San José master architect Theodore Lenzen. Those houses are mixed in with later twentieth-century vernacular houses reflecting many eras: Arts and Crafts, Period Revival, and Contemporary.

Schiele Subdivision and Alameda Park City Landmark District

The Alameda (right-of-way) City Landmark District

The Alameda ROW (Right-of-Way) City Landmark District HS84-26 is listed under the theme of Communication and Transportation for the Spanish period (1777-1822). This district consists of an important transportation corridor which includes trees from Race Street to I-880; parcels adjacent are excluded. The Alameda, part of the former Hispanic Period El Camino Real (The King's Highway) was the best road in the region - though at times impassable - connecting the Pueblo de San José with Mission Santa Clara. The Alameda west of the Guadalupe River also served as a boundary line between Rancho Potrero de Santa Clara on the north and Rancho de los Coches on the south.

In the 1850s the San José to San Francisco Stage ran along The Alameda. It was a toll road briefly between 1862-1868 and became a public road in 1871. Horse drawn trolleys ran along The Alameda in the 1870s, then electric trolleys in 1887, and later buses in 1938. "The Way of the Willows" along The Almaden is now bordered by 50-110 feet high Sycamore trees with 23-45 inch diameters. A single "offshoot" of one of the original trees was still growing in front to 1860 The Alameda" in 1982. A single City of San José Heritage Tree, a large 64-inch Quercus lobata (Valley Oak) is situated at 1570 The Alameda (HT-06-019). Many more Heritage Trees are located within "Garden Alameda" at 1510, 1520, 1550, 1570 and 1590 The Alameda.