Willow Glen, California
Encyclopedia
Willow Glen is a neighborhood of San Jose
, California
, in Santa Clara County
. Geographically speaking, the Willow Glen neighborhood is centered around Lincoln Avenue, which was re-named from "Willow Glen Road" in 1865 shortly after the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln
.
By 1863 the small unincorporated community needed its first school. Willow Glen Elementary School
was founded in 1863. Willow Glen continued as an unincorporated community until the 1920s, when the City of San Jose ordered the Southern Pacific Railroad to re-route the Southern Pacific Railroad
trunk line which at that time was going down Fourth Street. The Southern Pacific then proposed to re-route down Lincoln Avenue. In order to forestall that attempt, Willow Glen was incorporated as a city in 1927. The railroad was instead re-routed to its current route through a then-unincorporated area now known as North Willow Glen, where its principal user is now Caltrain
.
Being a city, however, required thinking about issues such as sewage. Willow Glen had no sewer system – individual homes had their own cesspool or septic system. Because the area was marshy before being drained for Willow Glen, the high water table resulted in raw sewage often spilling above-ground from flooded cesspools. Rather than build their own very expensive sewage treatment system, in 1936 Willow Glen's residents opted to be annexed to San Jose and be linked to San Jose's sewage
system, the measure passing by a vote of 978 to 871.
Today Willow Glen's historic downtown on Lincoln Avenue between Willow Street and Minnesota Avenue is a well-known "walkable" downtown community, with a variety of restaurants and shops. Willow Glen is located in zip code 95125 and part of 95124. Rough boundaries
Willow Glen residents have a distinct Christmas tree decoration tradition, often called the "Charlie Brown Trees". This tradition involves buying similar, very small, Christmas Trees and placing them in the front yard 10 feet from the sidewalk with multicolored lights. The uniform look is striking. People and businesses in the neighborhood generally make significant decorations every year, both within the neighborhood and in the Lincoln Avenue business district.
San Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, in Santa Clara County
Santa Clara County, California
Santa Clara County is a county located at the southern end of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. As of 2010 it had a population of 1,781,642. The county seat is San Jose. The highly urbanized Santa Clara Valley within Santa Clara County is also known as Silicon Valley...
. Geographically speaking, the Willow Glen neighborhood is centered around Lincoln Avenue, which was re-named from "Willow Glen Road" in 1865 shortly after the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
.
By 1863 the small unincorporated community needed its first school. Willow Glen Elementary School
Willow Glen Elementary School (San Jose, California)
Willow Glen Elementary School, or Willow Glen School, is an elementary school located in San Jose, California, in the United States. It is a part of the San Jose Unified School District. Willow Glen School is a uniform school which enrolls approximately 700 students annually...
was founded in 1863. Willow Glen continued as an unincorporated community until the 1920s, when the City of San Jose ordered the Southern Pacific Railroad to re-route the Southern Pacific Railroad
Southern Pacific Railroad
The Southern Pacific Transportation Company , earlier Southern Pacific Railroad and Southern Pacific Company, and usually simply called the Southern Pacific or Espee, was an American railroad....
trunk line which at that time was going down Fourth Street. The Southern Pacific then proposed to re-route down Lincoln Avenue. In order to forestall that attempt, Willow Glen was incorporated as a city in 1927. The railroad was instead re-routed to its current route through a then-unincorporated area now known as North Willow Glen, where its principal user is now Caltrain
Caltrain
Caltrain is a California commuter rail line on the San Francisco Peninsula and in the Santa Clara Valley in the United States. The northern terminus of the rail line is in San Francisco, at 4th and King streets; its southern terminus is in Gilroy...
.
Being a city, however, required thinking about issues such as sewage. Willow Glen had no sewer system – individual homes had their own cesspool or septic system. Because the area was marshy before being drained for Willow Glen, the high water table resulted in raw sewage often spilling above-ground from flooded cesspools. Rather than build their own very expensive sewage treatment system, in 1936 Willow Glen's residents opted to be annexed to San Jose and be linked to San Jose's sewage
Sewage
Sewage is water-carried waste, in solution or suspension, that is intended to be removed from a community. Also known as wastewater, it is more than 99% water and is characterized by volume or rate of flow, physical condition, chemical constituents and the bacteriological organisms that it contains...
system, the measure passing by a vote of 978 to 871.
Today Willow Glen's historic downtown on Lincoln Avenue between Willow Street and Minnesota Avenue is a well-known "walkable" downtown community, with a variety of restaurants and shops. Willow Glen is located in zip code 95125 and part of 95124. Rough boundaries
Annual events
Christmas Tree LightsWillow Glen residents have a distinct Christmas tree decoration tradition, often called the "Charlie Brown Trees". This tradition involves buying similar, very small, Christmas Trees and placing them in the front yard 10 feet from the sidewalk with multicolored lights. The uniform look is striking. People and businesses in the neighborhood generally make significant decorations every year, both within the neighborhood and in the Lincoln Avenue business district.
External links
- Willow Glen History
- Downtown Willow Glen
- The Willow Glen Neighborhood Association
- Willow Glen branch of the San Jose Public Library system (under reconstruction from January to July 2008)
- Willow Glen Resident
- Willow Glen Times
- Shop Willow Glen
- Willow Glen Extra
- Willow Glen 2.0 A social network for Willow Glen neighbors
- Lincoln Avenue in Willow Glen Shopping and Services in Willow Glen
- A Christmas Tale: Family that started the tree tradition A Christmas Tale: Family that started the tree tradition
- North Willow Glen Neighborhood Association North Willow Glen Neighborhood Association