1961 Map of San Jose

About this map

San Jose and its burgeoning suburbs dominate this early 1960s landscape, a moment when the Santa Clara Valley was rapidly transitioning from its agricultural roots into a metropolitan center. The dense urban grid of Santa Clara and San Jose is bisected by the modern Nimitz Freeway and Bayshore Freeway, while traditional anchors like the University of Santa Clara and San Jose State College remain prominent. To the north, the industrial and marshy fringe near Alviso and the Mud Slough salt evaporators contrasts with the residential expansion pushing into Willow Glen, Burbank, and Evergreen.