First Normal School in California (San Jose State College)

Santa Clara County · San Jose · location approximate

Originally founded as a private institution in 1857 under the name of "Minns' Evening Normal School." By act of the State Legislature on May 2, 1862, the school became a public institution. In 1868 the board of trustees took up the matter of permanent location, and Washington Square in San Jose was chosen. The school was destroyed by fire February 11, 1880, and partially by the 1906 earthquake. After each disaster the school was rebuilt.

1971 register text, presented as a historical document. It uses the period's terms for Native people; the state's landmark listings still carry most of this wording, and the California Office of Historic Preservation maintains the program's current texts.

Many of these plaques have since been recast or their texts revised. The California Historical Landmarks program and its current texts are maintained by the California Office of Historic Preservation. California Office of Historic Preservation ↗

David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries

Marker data: State of California, Department of Parks and Recreation, California Historical Landmarks (1971)

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