Bay Area and Silicon Valley Magazines to keep you informed about business, technology, travel, garden, entertainment, and other trends.
Bay Area Family Travel
We will focus on a specific Bay Area locale for our monthly cover story. And in the How-to with Kidsdepartment, writers provide the essentials on how to ski with kids, camp with kids, visit museums with kids…you get the idea.
Bay Area Parent Has great ideas of what is open for kids and what is not. Events calendar, articles of interest to parents. Childcare resources, plays, museums, field trip ideas.
Bay Nature
A quarterly magazine dedicated to the intelligent and joyful exploration of the natural places of the San Francisco Bay Area and the species that inhabit them.
Content Magazine
A bimonthly magazine promoting the people, events, and businesses of the South Bay. With headquarters in San Jose, Content Magazine articulates the innovative and creative culture that is unique to Silicon Valley.
Dr. Dobb’s
Software tools for the professional programmer. The premier geek magazine for Silicon Valley. Includes source code. Published in San Mateo. Now archived. No new content since 2014.
Metro
Silicon Valley’s weekly news magazine emphasizes arts, contemporary culture and politics.
SiliconBeat
Inside news, big ideas and small nuggets of info about technology innovation in Silicon Valley and the money that drives it. Now part of the Mercury News.
SiLiCoN vAlLeY dE-bUg
A collective of writers, artists, organizers, and workers based in San Jose, California. As we grew as a collective we began exploring all of the issues of our community – in the workplace, schools, streets, relationships, and everything else.
Wired News
The business, culture, technology and politics of the wired, Silicon Valley culture.
See our weather forecast widget on every page in the lower right column. It includes hourly forecasts and you can click through to minute by minute forecasts so you know when a storm cloud is about to dump on exactly where you are.
Apocalyptic Wednesday!.
Dog still needs to be walked in spite of smoke in the air.
The Weather Channel Hourly weather forecast for the Milpitas area, with other links to maps, travel conditions, gardening and allergy tips, advisories for those flying or boating. You may change settings.
Spare the Air
Click here to see if it’s a good idea or not to light a fire in your fireplace tonight. Runs from November 1 through February.
Confronting Climate Change in California
As we enter the 21st century, a powerful new agent — global climate change — will increasingly interact with the human pressures that continue to stress California’s natural environments. From the Union of Concerned Scientists.
Area Vibes: Milpitas CA Weather
For today and the coming week, as well as historic averages for each month. Lots of other data about Milpitas you may want to know.
Which City Has The Most Unpredictable Weather?
Not Milpitas! San Francisco’s weather patterns are unusual as compared to the rest of the country (September has historically been San Francisco’s warmest month, for instance). But they’re predictably unusual, at least on a day-to-day (if not necessarily hour-to-hour) basis. And San Francisco, like the rest of the West Coast, rarely gets severe weather. In other words, it is fairly easy for the weather forecast you see on TV to be correct.
Drought in San Francisco Bay Area
Fire on the hillside during July heatwave
Inside Bay Area Drought
News, water saving tips, maps and data, on how drought is affecting the Bay Area.
Historic Weather Events
Storm Events Database
Search Results for Santa Clara County, California. 397 events were reported between 01/01/1980 and 01/31/2018 (13911 days). Sortable data base. You can also change the date range to suit your study. Due to Trump cuts to the NOAA budget, the data hasn’t been collected for several years.
Sunnyvale Tornado 1998
Tornadoes are extremely rare here, but one did occur in 1998. This one did some destruction in Sunnyvale. Here’s the weather analysis from SFSU. Stormy Recovery: 16 months after tornado, Sunnyvale church finally begins major repairs.
Wind Storm, October 22, 2000 GO MILPITAS ARTICLE
Photo essay by your Go Milpitas! Guide, Ann Zeise, showing damage done by windstorm.
Images
Mt Hamilton HamCams
We’ve added a second, fixed Hamcam (Hamcam #2) to provide the popular and useful western view, thus freeing the original Hamcam (Hamcam #1) to roam the mountain top at our whim.
Milpitas once had an encampment of Ohlone Indians. Two adobe rancheros still stand from the early days of the Spanish. An early motto was “As goes Milpitas, so goes the State!” For centuries, Milpitas has often taken the lead in new ways of living and governance. If you want to live in the City of the Future, with a lively part in California history, too, come live in Milpitas.
About Milpitas
The Milpitas Historical Society
General meeting is the second Wednesday of each month, 7 PM, in the assembly room of the Milpitas Community Library.
A History of Main Street: A Trip Through Historic Milpitas
A live presentation with Host: Bill Hare, President and Speaker: Joseph Ehardt, Research Docent, Educational Outreach Program. This special presentation was held on Saturday, December 19, 2020, on Facebook and Zoom.
Milpitas: A look back
Outline of Milpitas History from the Mercury News story published on Aug. 27, 2006.
Portuguese Pioneers in Milpitas
Settlers from the Azores, a group of islands west of Portugal, began coming to California in Gold Rush times, and later for the economic opportunities. As they encouraged families and friends to join them, they became an important element in California and in the Santa Clara Valley as hard-working farmers and land owners.
California History
A major collection of documents from and about California’s rich history. The documents range from books, maps, newspapers, and periodicals, to pictorial materials (including daguerreotypes, lithographs, stereographs, and paintings) and ephemera (such as posters, programs, pamphlets, and sheet music).
California History Online
Lovely California Historical Society website includes geographic information, California natives, early explorers, to modern times.
California as I Saw It: First-Person Narratives of California’s Early Years, 1849 to 1900
The collection covers the dramatic decades between the Gold Rush and the turn of the twentieth century. It captures the pioneer experience; encounters between Anglo-Americans and the diverse peoples who had preceded them; the transformation of the land by mining, ranching, agriculture, and urban development; the often-turbulent growth of communities and cities; and California’s emergence as both a state and a place of uniquely American dreams.
Heyday Books
Publishing books about California history, culture, and literature.
Mark Hylkema: California during the Spanish and Mexican Colonial Periods
Mark begins with the first Spanish explorers conquering the Aztecs, and tells about the Portolá expedition in 1769, when California suddenly went from prehistory to history, like “the flip of a switch.”
Santa Clara County Historical Landmarks
My mother used to call these hunks of stone with metal plaques “Hysterical Landmarks” because so often there is nothing left at the site but the stone! But you’ll find one at the garage where H-P got started and where Noyce invented his first semiconductor. None in Milpitas…hmmmm.
Historical Figures in Early California
Cabrillo
On June 27, 1542, an explorer under Spanish command, named Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo, left the port of Navidad on the Pacific Coast of what is now Mexico and headed north.
Juan Bautista de Anza
Juan Bautista de Anza was the first European to establish an overland route from Mexico, through the Sonoran Desert, to the Pacific coast of California. New World Spanish explorers had been seeking such a route through the Desert Southwest for more than two centuries.
Governors of California
A tribute to the individuals who have served as chief executive of the State of California from 1849 to present.
Notable People of Milpitas
The “Notable People” project adds to our knowledge about the history of Milpitas. For more information, please click on a link located on the right sidebar of the Historical Society’s page.
History of Russian America
So moved was Rezanov by the misery of the colonists that he purchased a vessel from Americans in Alaska and sailed to San Francisco Bay early in 1806 to purchase grain and, if possible, to establish trade relations with the Spanish in Upper California on a continuing basis.
Sir Francis Drake
The British explorer, Sir Francis Drake, sailed up the coast of California in 1579. Could he have discovered Milpitas?
Milpitas has been growing at an unprecedented rate compared to other Santa Clara County Cites. We’ve been growing faster than all but one other nearby cities. The population estimate for Milpitas in 2024 is 81,773 people. Milpitas is the 117th largest city in California. It is a little smaller than Mountain View, and a little larger than Palo Alto. More people moved into Milpitas in the last year. We gained 0.17% of our previous population, 138 people.
This report provides revised population estimates as of January 1, 2023, and provisional population estimates as of January 1, 2024, for the state, counties, and cities and includes a calculation of annual percent change. These population estimates incorporate 2020 Census counts.
The Housing Unit Method (HUM) is used to estimate total and occupied housing units, household size, household population, and group quarters population. American Community Survey (ACS) data were used to distribute 2010 census housing units into our standard housing types (single detached units, single attached units, two to four units, five plus or apartment units, and mobile homes). Housing units are estimated by adding new construction and annexations and subtracting demolitions, and adjusting for units lost or gained by conversions. Annual housing unit change data are supplied by local jurisdictions and the U.S. Census Bureau. Occupied housing units are estimated by applying a derived civilian vacancy rate to the estimated civilian housing units. Vacancy rates are based on 2010 Census benchmark data, adjusted to incorporate the directional changes described by the latest available ACS data. Exact data on foreclosures or other housing market indicators are not reliably available to adjust vacancy rates and are not used.
Census Data for Milpitas
If you’ve come to this page to see if your family or business would thrive in Milpitas, you are in the right place to find census data for Milpitas.
In a nutshell, the population for Milpitas is 81,773, a increase of 138 people, or a 0.17% increase overall.
Maps of California, showing location of Santa Clara County, and the county showing location of Milpitas.
Why is Milpitas a Best Place to Live?
Milpitas is a fair sized, suburban city that is situated between San Jose and Fremont, but has retained that small town feel, making us a best place to live. City Council and School Board meetings are social events, and are currently online during Covid-19, so even if you live elsewhere, you can still attend. Politically, we tend to vote Democrat, but every nuance of progressive politics is evident.
Being in Northern California, it is cooler than the southern end of the state, yet because of the Silicon Valley mountains that block the worse weather, it tends to be “nice” year around so heating and cooling bills are trivial. Frost is rare, and it never snows in the valley. Heat is seldom unbearable. Prevailing winds are typically toward the eastern hills, so if grass fires start there, they tend to go away from the town. Landslides are not a concern.
Santa Clara County
aka Silicon Valley
SE San Francisco Bay Area
California, United States
37n26 (Latitude)
121w54 (Longitude)
13.6 square miles Zip code is 95035
P.O. Box Zip code is 95036 Area Code is 408
(Some cell phones and faxes have 669 or 650 area codes.)
Time Zone: Pacific We do observe daylight savings time.
COST OF LIVING
Milpitas, California’s cost of living is 110% higher than the national average. Compare Milpitas’s Cost of Living to where you live now.
WEATHER & CLIMATE
Milpitas is the best place to be in August, July and September our most pleasant months, while December and January are the least comfortable months when you might need an umbrella. February is often surprisingly warm. Today’s Weather | Climate Averages. Milpitas is 20 ft (6 m) above sea level. The climate here is mild, and generally warm and temperate. The average temperature in Milpitas is 15.3 °C | 59.5 °F. In a year, the rainfall is 496 mm | 19.5 inch.
TRANSPORTATION Transportation expenses like bus fares and gas prices are 23% higher than the national average. Data older than June 13, 2020 about average commute time is outdated, as the BART station opened in Milpitas. This substantially shortens commute time to places along the BART routes. For example, a commuter can get from Milpitas to the Salesforce Plaza in San Francisco in 1:12h, including a 10 minute walk. Google Employees can catch Google Bus on Calaveras, just west of Hillview.
MUSD’s Strategic Goal #1, Build a Culture of We, is about diversity, equity, and inclusion in our policies, practices, and especially, in our relationships with one another. Striving for this goal requires a commitment to learning about others, and ourselves, which is why we have established a Culture of We Equity Team this year to accelerate our growth.
COMMUNICATIONS
Civic and social organizations have fully adopted modern means of social networking and other means of getting information out to Milpitas. For social networks, click on the “Social” tab to find social networks hosted by this community website, and other social networking groups.
We have two newspaper resources, plus a very good high school online newspaper, The Union.
A search on “Milpitas” in YouTube brings up thousands of locally made videos demonstrating our interests and showcasing the talents of our videographers.
Milpitas was along the route taken by the De Anza Expedition, and between Mission San Jose and Mission Santa Clara. There is a sign posted near the intersection of Calaveras and Milpitas Blvd., near City Hall, showing where the expedition passed through.
Alviso Adobe Park
The adobe’s history can be traced back to 1834, when its original owner, José Maria de Jesus Alviso, penned a petition describing what he had built: “two walled houses,” outside of which were 600 cattle, a 600-vine vineyard, and an orchard bearing 60 fruit trees. The function of the petition was for Alviso to gain formal ownership of the property, which he cited as “the place named Milpitas.” Tours are offered at 1PM, 2PM, and 3PM on the second Saturday of every month. You can RSVP here. If you have the app AdventureLab on your smart phone, there are 5 clues outside at this location. There is also 1 geocache. 2087 Alviso Adobe Ct.
A demonstration of the 20-foot-long wrap the women on the De Anza Expedition wore to carry their babies and supplies.
Adobe Peralta House
The Peralta Adobe is San José’s oldest address. Built in 1797, the Peralta Adobe is the last remaining structure from El Pueblo de San José de Guadalupe.
California Missions Interactive Internet Field Trip
In May of 1995, some bicyclists road along the El Camino (King’s Highway) between 12 of the California Missions. They kept up an internet dialog with 4th grade students in Palo Alto.
The California missions school project is becoming a thing of the past. Here’s why
Building missions from sugar cubes or popsicle sticks does not help students understand the period and is offensive to many,” the new History-Social Science Framework adopted last year says. “Missions were sites of conflict, conquest, and forced labor. Students should consider cultural differences, such as gender roles and religious beliefs, in order to better understand the dynamics of Native and Spanish interaction.”
California Missions Resource Center
Your comprehensive guide to discovering the history behind the California missions and the people who founded and shaped the character of California.
El Camino de San Jose
El Camino nominally links the missions, but Mission San José in Fremont is nowhere near today’s El Camino Real. So what route did early Californians take from Mission Santa Clara to Mission San José? It goes along Main Street and Milpitas Boulevard in Milpitas!
Milpitas
Images of America
by Robert Burrill
$21.95 or $25 with author signature.
Call 408-263-5468 to order.
Robert L. Burrill, Milpitas filmmaker and photography teacher for more than 35 years, has combed the archives of the Milpitas Historical Society, private local collections, and his own works to find more than 200 vintage photographs chronicling the heritage, enterprise, and wit of Milpitas from the 1700s to the present day.
The Missions
The Franciscans came to California not merely to convert the tribes to Christianity but to train them for life in a European colonial society. Conversion was seldom an entirely voluntary process.
Model Behavior
The agony of the tradition of 4th grade Mission model building. The author wonders: What does this really teach? By David Templeton
Peralta Adobe
A 200-year old adobe home in the heart of downtown San Jose. This page tells you about its history.
The Milpitas Beat last Saturday caught up with Milpitas Historical Society President Bill Hare for a fun, quick chat about our city’s long yet forgotten history as the butt of endless jokes around the nation…
According to Hare, for about a century, a comparable cultural sentiment was in circulation about a “man from Milpitas…” No man in particular, just a general, fictional Milpitas resident…
The Milpitas Historical Society can trace the whole thing back to news articles from the 1860s. According to Hare, “In 1863, there was talk of California maybe leaving the union and becoming a slave state…There was enough Southern sympathy that there was talk of this. So there were various meetings going on [across the state]…”
At one such meeting, a pro-Union group from Milpitas brought in a banner (or, depending upon which accounts you believe, a kerosene wall projection powered by a lantern) that was visible to everyone there. Upon it were the words “As goes Milpitas, so goes the state.”
With a smile, Hare said, “People found this very amusing…” The attitude was, “You think a whole lot of yourself, don’t you, Milpitas?” Hare continued, “The Oakland Tribune was a big factor in this. They loved to make fun of Milpitas.”
Back in the late 1800s, the Oakland Tribune would sometimes run a serious article, then end it with a dose of mockery at Milpitas’ expense.
Milpitas Town Center is near City Hall, the Community Center, and the Senior Center. Anchor stores are Safeway and Staples. There are banks and credit unions, health and fitness products and services, grooming, restaurants, and other services, too.
BevMo Now delivers to your door or pick up at the store. Shipping, too. Liquor store chain offering a big selection of wine, beer & spirits, plus barware, mixers & snacks. 709 E Calaveras Blvd. 408-946-8112
Safeway
Other than groceries, it features an Amazon Locker, grocery delivery, First Community Bank, Starbucks and Western Union inside. Keys made. 555 E Calaveras Blvd. (408) 262-9850
European Wax Center 493 E. Calaveras Blvd.
Sign up for Preview Week – a week of complimentary wax services. First-time guests can enjoy a complimentary brow, underarm or bikini line wax for women or ear, nose or brow for gents.
Hair Plus
Hair Plus is a full service hair and skin care salon. We offer the most advanced techniques, services and products from the Americas, Asia and Europe. 495 E Calaveras Blvd. (408) 623-5264
Nail Nook
Yelp reviews. Nancy is the lady who pampered me from my head to my toes. She took her time to make sure my mani and pedi came out good to my liking. 146 N Milpitas Blvd. (408) 946-6414
Miracle-Ear
Our hearing aids use the latest digital advancements. Hearing aids with GENIUS™ Technology process sound from microphones in both ears smoothly and automatically the same way your brain does. 531 E Calaveras Blvd. 408-883-3128
Quest Diagnostics
MyQuest allows you to use your computer or smartphone to access your test results, schedule appointments 24/7 for testing, and track your health conditions. 649 E Calaveras Blvd. (408) 945-1903
Town Center Restaurants
List on GoMilpitas.com for restaurants in and near this shopping center.
Services
AAA Insurance
Whether it’s helping you stay secure, save money or see the world, AAA has lots of ways to help make your life easier. Our famous tow trucks are just the beginning. 607 E Calaveras Blvd. (408) 635-0100
Homesite Services
Full service from start to finish. No need for you to arrange for multiple companies for each specific job…we do it all with our team of experts. Temporarily closed. 523 E Calaveras Blvd. (925) 237-3000
Milpitas Post
News stories now a part of the Mercury News, so you will only see a few news stories. To contact the Mercury News, use this page to get to the right department. No longer any physical presence in Milpitas. Ian Bauer was let go. No way to publish your local events or advertisements. Please consider using the GoMilpitas Events listings here for free. Contact me about advertising on GoMilpitas.com.
The Milpitas Beat
2018 startup as the Post starts to fail us. Our vision is to cultivate a more connected, conscious, and vibrant community by providing news coverage that truthfully reflects the expression, ideas, and culture of the people of Milpitas. Contact information. Facebook page. Black owned. Woman owned.
Soofa Expands Northern California Presence with Sign Installations in City of Milpitas
The Soofa Signs are located near key places of community gatherings, allowing residents to engage in city happenings and see public service announcements. For example, Milpitas often uses the signs to post about city job offerings or public reminders to stay hydrated.
El Observador
The #1 Bilingual Weekly Newspaper of Northern California. Based in San Jose.
India Post
Global in scope. Produced in Union City.
Punjab Outlook
English version.
The editorial team is totally committed to delivering accurate and impartial news with the aim of informing the public debate and enabling Indians to make educated choices. 88 South Park Victoria #149 408-221-5732
Silicon Valley Newspapers
The Almanac
Source for local news about Menlo Park, Atherton, Portola Valley and Woodside. Not blocked.
Berryessa Sun
ING Newspaper for the Berryessa neighborhood of San Jose. Can’t read much without subscription.
Palo Alto Weekly
Source for local news about Palo Alto. Not blocked.
The Silicon Valley Voice
We cover local news, issues, events and people that matter to the South Bay. Our reporters live here and know the community they write about. The Silicon Valley Voice is the online platform for The Weekly. We are a locally owned, independent media platform.
Stanford Daily
University news, entertainment, sports and student issues.
Tri-City Voice
An independently owned weekly publication covering the cities of Fremont, Newark, Union City, Hayward, Sunol, and Milpitas.
Favorite Columnists
I, Cringely
The sex symbol, airplane enthusiast and adventurer continues to write about personal computers and has an active consulting business in Silicon Valley, selling his cybersoul to the highest bidder.
Greater San Francisco Bay Area Newspapers
Fremont Argus
News from Alameda County. A’s baseball updates. Again, you must subscribe and remove your ad blocker to read anything.
MediaNews Group
Digital First Media, a business name of MediaNews Group. Portal to all the MediaNews Group newspapers in the Bay Area and beyond. This is the company that is buying up all the local newspapers around, including the Milpitas Post, which was bought by the San Jose Mercury News, which is owned by MediaNews Group. They are making all the once free community news into subscriber-only. You can’t read paper or online version without a subscription. Oh, and online you have to turn off your ad blocker.
San Francisco Chronicle
For the view of the news from The City! Other sections also available from this link. No blocking yet.
Monterey Bay Area Newspapers
Monterey County Herald
Place to find out more about Laguna Seca racing, dining and entertainment. Not blocked.
Santa Cruz Sentinal
Always something somewhat radical happening in this university town. Not blocked.
California Newspapers
California Newspapers
From the Internet Public Library. Links to newspapers all over the state.
CALmatters
A nonpartisan, nonprofit journalism venture committed to explaining how California’s state Capitol works and why it matters.
Illustration of future Innovation Campus. Photo courtesy of MUSD.
Milpitas Unified’s Innovation Campus slated for completion in 2024
By David Newman, Milpitas Beat, July 31, 2021
Programs will include new high school and alternative high school classes that will be dedicated to 11th- and 12th-graders needing special guidance to help them become successful. The campus will be located at 1331 E Calaveras Blvd., where the old Ayer High School site and district offices currently reside.
In Nov 2018, according to the Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters office, Milpitas Unified School District made history as it passed its largest school district bond – $284 million – by the largest margin of voters – 71%. This community investment will provide $66.8 million toward the development of the MUSD Innovation Campus, accommodating enrollment growth and ensure healthy learning environments. The campus will include education and research centers for students. $25 million more is needed to complete the full campus. Partner with us and take part in completing the vision.
