1961 Map of Calaveras Reservoir

About this map

Calaveras Reservoir dominates the northern landscape, its waters contained by a dam and surrounded by the peaks of Oak Ridge and Poverty Ridge. In the southwest, the expansion of San Jose and Milpitas is evident in the burgeoning street grids of neighborhoods like Alum Rock, where the city boundary meets the historic Pueblo Lands of San Jose. This era of growth is marked by a concentration of educational institutions, including Rancho Milpitas Jr High Sch and Piedmont Hills High Sch, which serve the newly developed suburban tracts. To the east, the terrain rises sharply into the Los Buellis Hills, where Alum Rock Park follows the winding path of Upper Penitencia Creek. The map documents a period of rapid suburbanization as urban footprints press against the long-standing agricultural and quarry operations of the Calaveras Valley.