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Historical trivia: Milpitas’ history as the constant butt of nationwide jokes
By Eric Shapiro, June 17, 2023, in The Milpitas Beat 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…
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Hobbies & Interests Groups in Milpitas
If you’d like to join with others who have a hobby, talent or interest like you in Milpitas, you’ll find a long list here. Advocacy and Service Arts & Creative Hobbies Charitable Groups Ethnic Organizations Gardening History Kids & Teenagers Neighborhood Associations Resources for Clubs Technical Hobbies Advocacy & Service Graffiti Terminators Become a graffiti terminator and help beautify Milpitas Silicon Valley Women’s Organizations and Resources Whether you are a woman wanting to network with other moms or business women or those of your culture, we have links to women’s organizations for you! Arts & Creative Hobbies Camera Club Meets monthly for a meeting on second Tuesdays, and holds field…
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Sunnyhills Neighborhood History
Please join Executive Producers Donnie Eiland and David Mosqueda for a special virtual viewing of… 54: The Story Of The First Planned Integrated Community In The Country History of the Sunnyhills Neighborhood Association Sunnyhills was the first planned racially-integrated community in the United States in 1956, arranged by a Union co-op of the United Auto Workers. Today, Sunnyhills still has one of the highest levels of integration of any neighborhood. More detailed version. Sunnyhills Neighborhood Association June 2022 Breakfast Meeting K’Meyer related the story of how the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC), a Quaker social action organization, and the United Auto Workers union cooperated in the early 1950s to build…
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Indigenous People (Ohlone Indians) of Silicon Valley
History of the Ohlone Indians, the indigenous people who inhabited the south San Francisco Bay region of California. Bloody Island Massacre To this day, the US Army, State of California, or County of Lake, have made no attempt to apologize for nearly annihilating the innocent Pomo people of Bodanapotti. California Powwow Calendar Check here for powwows of indigenous people being held in California. California Cultures: Native Americans At the time of Spanish colonization in the late 1700s, California was home to more than 300,000 indigenous people in more than 200 tribes. Their centuries-old way of life was brought to an end relatively quickly: native Californians soon established regular trading relationships with…
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Mysterious Rock Walls
East Bay Mysterious Rock Walls are also known as the Berkeley Mystery Walls. These crude, stone walls are located in the San Francisco Bay Area in California. In places, they are up to a meter high and a meter wide; the walls run in sections anywhere from a few meters to over a half mile long. The rocks used to construct the East Bay Walls are a variety of sizes. Some are basketball-sized rocks, while others are large sandstone boulders weighing a ton or more. Parts of the wall seem to be just piles of rocks, but in other places it appears the walls were carefully constructed. The exact age…
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Museums In and Near Milpitas
I’m not counting the “collection” in our garage, no I’m not! As some of you know, we homeschooled our son. So I’m going to talk about our favorite “field trips” in the area. I’m going to focus on museums for children and the young at heart. Plans for Milpitas History Museum Milpitas is the only large city in Santa Clara County without a museum. Locating a museum next door to the Milpitas Public Library and Municipal Parking Garage is ideal and must be preserved. The Children’s Discovery Museum We were members for years when Scott was younger, going to the BIG PURPLE BUILDING where they “let you play in the…
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Pledge of Allegiance
I decided it was time to see how well my seven year old daughter knew the Pledge of Allegiance. We had been to many events that said the pledge at the beginning, but I wasn’t sure how well she knew it. So to begin, I said a phrase and she would repeat it back to me. By the end we were saying it together and she finished with, “…one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all… You may be seated.” I guess we need some work on this!!!!!!!! — Contributed by Tom Jollie Does your youngster have a unique way of saying the Pledge or any country’s…
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Ancient & Medieval History in the South Bay Area
You can find out more about ancient and medieval times right here in the South Bay Area. Learn about the mysterious rock wall formations, too. Paleontological Boy Paleontologists In the Irvington gravel pits, known as Bell Quarry, located off of Osgood Road from 1944 to 1960, the Boy Paleontologists of Hayward unearthed plant and animal fossils including mammoths, saber cats, horses, camels, and even rodents. A new species named Tetrameryx irvingtonensis, a four-pronged antelope, was the most significant find. Presently Freeway 680, between Washington Boulevard and Durham Road, covers this fossil field. Children’s Natural History Museum Including “Irvingtonian Fossils”, the “Boy Paleontologist” Room, “Bones of Vertebrates,” and “Environments through Time”…
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Main Street History Tour
Joann Souza narrates a tour of Main Street telling about the historic buildings and sites along the way. Created by MilpitasHistory
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Milpitas Historical Society April 14, 2021 with Mort Levine & Deva Luna
Milpitas Post founder Mort Levine, with his daughter Deva Luna, reflects on his family’s history in Milpitas, and talks about the life of his wife Elaine Levine, co-founder of The Milpitas Historical Society and original publisher of the Milpitas Post. Video from the Milpitas Historical Society.
