Almaden Valley, San Jose, California
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Almaden Valley (often just called Almaden) is a neighborhood of about 37,000 in the southwestern portion of San Jose, California, USA, roughly equivalent to the 95120 ZIP Code.[1][2] The neighborhood is south east of Los Gatos, west of Santa Teresa, and south of Coleman Ave. It is named after the New Almaden Mines, which were named after the mercury mine in (old) Almadén, Spain. [3] The informal borders are generally Coleman Rd. at the northern end, McKean Rd. at the southern end, where the valley becomes mostly rural, and the town of Los Gatos to the west. The valley is located between a small series of hills and the Santa Cruz Mountains, with Mount Umunhum to the west dominating the local geography.
Like its Spanish namesake, California's Almaden had a number of quicksilver mines. The mercury was used during gold extraction in the California Gold Rush, but the mines were closed in 1975 and have been converted into Almaden Quicksilver County Park. Despite the closure of the mines, there still remains a high mercury content in the nearby soil, creeks and rivers, and signs are posted alongside them warning people not to eat the fish. Even still, many of the names in Almaden still retain their mercury mine themes. For example, there are streets called Silver Lode Lane and Silver Mine Drive (the latter of which was renamed). Also, many places in Almaden still use the name Quicksilver.
As part of the Silicon Valley, the main industry in the neighborhood is now high technology research and development; IBM's Almaden Research Center is located there.[4] The neighborhood is primarily upper class, with homes owned by local professionals, scientists, athletes, and Silicon Valley executives.[5]
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[edit] Schools
Schools in the area include: [6] [7]
[edit] High Schools
- Leland High School
- Pioneer High School
[edit] Middle Schools
- Bret Harte Middle School
- Castillero Middle School
- Challenger School
[edit] Elementary Schools
- Los Alamitos Elementary School
- Guadalupe Elementary School
- Simonds Elementary School
- Graystone Elementary School
- Williams Elementary School
- Challenger School
- Holy Spirit School
[edit] Recreation
One of the key attractions of the Almaden Valley is the abundance of public recreational sites.
- Lake Almaden
- Almaden Quicksilver County Park
- Calero Dam and Reservoir
[edit] References
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