Tag Archives: stones

The State of Public Arts

August 22, 2016Concept, Historical Research, Project launchaborn, aborn road, art portfolio, arts, arts commission, city of san jose, Discoveries, downtown, ear, evergreen, glider, John J. Montgomery, Larry Kirkland, library, montgomery, mouth, park, plane, public art, review, san felipe road, san jose, San Jose Public Library, SJPL, state of the arts, stones, the Evergreen Glider, Willow Glen, wing, yerba buena roadevergreen

Needless to say, I’m letting my nerd flag fly with every blog post for the Evergreen Mural Walk. If you think I enjoy Evergreen, consider how much I love Public Arts. As a San Jose Native and based Artist, how could anything be more personal or provocative to me as San Jose’s Public Arts’ Scene. I’m going to narrow my review to the Visual Arts’ for the most part because it’s my expertise and experience. I still don’t get out often enough to be a critic of our performing arts or festivals, which San Jose has a ton of! Well done, us. There is constantly something happening in San Jose and a holistic approach to the public spaces being highly considered makes those more engaging. City Hall is somewhere I find inspiration and a lot of support.

Since coming up with this crazy Evergreen idea a year ago, I’ve been to every City of San Jose Arts Commission and Public Art meeting open to the public. San Jose’s art portfolio is vast with a wide variety of investments and installations. Overall beautiful and well considered, I cannot help but to notice lots of funding going to out of state artists for their unique concepts. There’s been two pieces that people hate in Downtown. The Arts Commission funds programs like the Ballet, Symphony and other performing Arts. Illuminating Downtown appears to be a success with more projects on the way, a series of light Public Arts Installations to Downtown’s Underpasses. Brand new pieces have been installed on Lincoln Avenue in Willow Glen.

The Art Box program finds itself empowering charming pieces in already charming, walking Communities. To engage this program, you must have an artistically or culturally valid concept and private sponsorship. Its this programs’ intent to create opportunities for professional artists, though the stipend is low. I think this is why there are some done to a lesser quality than others. It takes a larger commitment of time from the artist than the program pays. This program adds to San Jose’s rich culture by creating exposure for artists. The location is chosen by the Arts Commissioner in charge and the private donor, so the pay off is in the location. Because of these elements, the Art Boxes have not been employed in Evergreen, or other graffiti ravaged Communities, though this Public Arts approach could help the safety and walkability of Evergreen. You’ll find Art Boxes in Willow Glen, Downtown, and the Alameda.

There is such a lack of color in San Jose, it’s known as Tan Jose to those in the Arts Community. People lament the boredom of San Jose’s Airport, knowing the Cultural hotspot that waits for them outside. San Jose State University trains brilliant, competent artists, but we outsource the Artistic Identity of San Jose to others. Those like Erin Salazar, with the Exhibition District, finds private funding and public walls to empower San Jose’s Arts Community to have a hand in its Individuality. Sadly, the Exhibition District focuses Downtown. Not in Evergreen. Cherri Lakey, too, with Two Fish Designs, brings Artists Opportunities forth in her successful galleries and SOFA events. SOFA, however, still isn’t Evergreen. Love seeing strong women creating business opportunities and cohesion for the Arts in San Jose. That connectivity to opportunities and empowering artists is crucial to San Jose’s Artistic Identity.

What has Public Art done for Evergreen lately? Does Evergreen have Public Art?

It’s gotta be asked because it’s not widely known or appreciated. It’s often teased for its curious shape. This first of these is a contribute to John J. Montgomery, the pioneer aviator who lost his life flying in our Evergreen hills. This is a recreation of a wing from his Evergreen glider. This stands at the park on the corner of Yerba Buena Road and San Felipe Road, within a mile of where the glider crashed on the Ramonda Ranch.

The importance of this shape is it is the modern shape of wing. John Montgomery flew before the Wrights Brothers and had the guidance systems in mind in advance. The East Coast bias goes back before National Sports leagues. Publication and their Printers were in high volume along the East Coast while the West Coast enjoyed the last standing Old West and settling. Circulation to local outlets would’ve been easy, but getting publications of Montgomery’s early flights back East were a feet. The Wrights Brothers have the public’s opinion on Flight’s First, however it was Montgomery and he simply did it better than others until his unfortunate landing.

Have you heard of these delights to the left and right? Evergreen Library has beautiful pieces of Public Art, but I had to hear about it in a Public Art Meeting. That would lead me to believe perhaps you’ve not seen Larry Kirkland’s “Discoveries” either. The Washington DC based artist here uses the senses and scale to engage his audience in an association with nature. Mr. Kirkland’s work can be seen in airports around the world, and here at the remodeled Evergreen Library off Aborn Road. Though little known, it think this is a wonderful addition to San Jose’s and Evergreen’s Artistic Identity. I think I’ll take a selfie with the giant ear. I love the honest qualities to the rock with the smooth contours of the skin. It’s a powerful textural contrast that leads us to opinions of our relationship with nature.

Enough La-Ti-Da. We’re done. That’s it in San Jose’s District 8. The largest Rancho in Santa Clara County has 2 pieces of Public Art. We’ve recognized and tried to bring relevance to the Montgomery piece in our proposed artwork. There’s splendorous fountains and decorations in new home and retail areas, but we have an artwork portfolio of two and no non-profits receiving operational grants in Evergreen, though I’m sure we have some budding ballerinas and musicians from Evergreen in our Arts Organizations. Andrew Bales of the SV Symphony discusses the 90% decrease in philanthropy over the last decade, which the Arts has endured. There are funds set away from every new development that goes towards things like Public Art. This too gets trimmed away by other needed services like homeless housing. What’s odd to me is that Evergreen is continuously development the rolling hillside but the 1% for the Arts doesn’t come back here in proportion. If Corporate Giving and governing agencies cannot fund the Arts, it’s going to go away unless someone gets creative.

Evergreen sees epidemic graffiti in public spaces and on historic grounds. Graffiti is a broken window to the factory that is the Evergreen Community. I can’t help but to think Public Art and bringing charm and romanticism to Evergreen could improve safety and tensions.

Tensions will naturally occur where you have a socio-economic contrast like ours and residents don’t feel like they have any options to improve their own situations. I maintain this Community is colorful, not unsafe. Those committing this vandalism are our target volunteer from our high school crowd. Their ownership and individuality brought to the project bring it success and authenticity. This was a wildly walkable Community when I was a little girl on my red bike. Before that, farmers freely roamed through the shortest path through their neighbors’ orchards on horseback. This project seeks to find that walkability and boost in tourism in Evergreen’s third piece to the Public Art Portfolio.

Fowler Road and Creek

July 16, 2016Historical Researchandrew fowler, Chaboya, Chaboya Middle, cobble, cobble stone, cortona Drive, creek, creeks, district, evergreen, Evergreen Elementary, evergreen people, Evergreen School District, fowler, fowler creek, fowler road, generations, Matsumoto, modern, san felipe, settlers, stone, stones, street nameevergreen

I work a lot at Chaboya Middle School, in fact its the first school I ever painted at. People often ask, “Chaboya On Fowler Road?” And I always say yes, but I know its address is on a different street. Fowler Road is indeed very close by, but Chaboya is on Cortona Drive. What’s the confusion? It’s been redundant for me throughout my career, so I checked it out on behalf of the Evergreen Mural Walk.

Fowler Creek was named after Andrew Fowler, whom I’m enjoying getting to know. The street was one of the first in Evergreen, as was the man. We’ll discuss him in further detail later. This road was built before Chew Lane/Aborn Road’s eastward section. This 1876 map hasn’t put a name to the street, but you can see A. J. Fowler’s property along the south side of the road. This was William Matthew’s portion of the attorneys fees paid out by Chaboya in his lengthy court battle.

In 1899, Fowler’s name finally appears on the road. This Fowler Road runs all the way through. It did when I was a kid. What happened? This is Fowler Road’s modern path below.

By 1956 however, Fowler is the straight thing I remembered it being as a child. It ran east of Ruby Avenue. This map cuts off the windy portion but it was a solid straight line.

Below, Fowler Road is broken up into two parts and straightened out in portions. There are switchbacks indicated on Fowler Road in 1899 on the Eastern zig zag which appear true on the modern map, but the road also ends sooner in the modern map. It ends even sooner if you’re driving. It ends at the straight spot. This road kept going in 1899. What gives?

Here’s what gives. New homes plans were put in place back in 1991 to get this area built out. Before that point, in was rolling Mirassou vineyards and orchards. Chaboya was built on Fowler Road in 1991, but the road’s path would change names as homes were built. The new bend in the western part of the road came with the build out of the the Classico neighborhood. Historic homes still line the straight entrance, but then Fowler Road takes a turn towards the development and later becomes Cortona Drive. Fowler Road would be built straight during the before 1956 but between proposal in 1991 and build out, something changed. A portion of the existing Fowler roadway, which clung to Fowler Creek, would become Cortona Drive. That’s the portion of Fowler which ran through P. Kelliher’s ranch in 1899. Fowler Road then picks up on the other side of a small park on Chaboya Middle School’s East corner, where the road turns in the Western most part of H. W. Pierce’s acreage. That’s where the arrow lands. Today, Fowler Road straightens out, drops again and is private roadway after that. You can see the windy road, but it appears to be shorter today.

Gemellos, why did you think about that? Cobble Stone. Now that I’ve investigated Cottle’s Cobble Stone and now Cadwallader Avenue’s fallen cobble stone bridge, I know there’s something up in areas where I find it in volume. It’s too heavy to clear and it was clearly a favorite of late 1800’s farmers marking their homesteads. I was in between appointments around Evergreen and I stopped when I saw it in volumes all over this area. In fact, I traced Fowler Road’s old path following the stone. I started at the most eastern section I could legally get to. I soaked up some rustic Evergreen treasures then saw this row of cobble stone.

It feels like trail markers hikers make to let you know you’re headed in the right direction. When I found this kind of cobble stone along Keaton Loop, I knew it was roadway markers. This was something. I wasn’t sure this was Fowler’s original roadway, though. It’s not lining up with my understanding of the historic maps I’ve found.

I found it again on Yerba Buena Road. Nothing creates perpendicular intersections up here in old Evergreen. What am I seeing? Every time I see this kind of rock, I know something is going on. Just before I turned right and westward looking for Fowler Road again, I looked left and bang.

This water station was built out prior to 1956, and improved in 2000. It controls flooding in Fowler Creek. Fowler Creek now trickles in the winter but the homes are safe and the groundwater is saved for less than rainy days. This is at the intersection of Altia Avenue and Yerba Buena Road. This road looks like old Silver Creek Road, and would’ve been paved around the same time, being the same age. This is a little better maintained and a little less traveled as a City of San Jose Water Station. I think the stones were rolled over when the ranches turned into farms before they turned into home development. This undeveloped area shows us what it used to look like. That straight section of marker and present day Fowler Road is possibly the boundary of M. P. Ramus and Kellihore’s ranches in 1899.

So, I met up with Fowler Road at Chaboya Middle School and the marker continued. Heading West, the Cobble Stone reoccurred at Fowler Creek Park. Makes sense. Evergreen used Cobble Stone to protect from flooding. Fowler Creek would be dammed up by cobble stone in several sections. Today, Fowler Creek only trickles in the rainy season. That makes sense, too, because the Creek is captured by a water tower at its most eastern and uphill point.

And then I started feeling silly because I’m excited about rocks. I followed it all the way to Ruby Avenue and Cortona Drive, once Fowler Road. So, what part of Cortona is old Fowler Road?

Let me get nerdy for a second, find north on each map and scale them. There. So, what happened?

Maybe a little clearer still, with the paths traced on one map….

Fowler Road’s path was straightened through the early 1900’s then altered by the schools built to service this growing Community. Evergreen School would have a horse tie up instead of a parking lot for a long time. The District Office was originally located there along with the school but as time went on, a larger school was needed and the office moved. Many District services still operate out of this office, though. Matsumoto Elementary School was also built on the Fowler Road path. When people ask me about Chaboya on Fowler Road, they mean built on top of Fowler Road itself. They were more correct than I ever realized. The cobble stone I observed was in the Yerba Buena Road portion of one time Fowler Road. The changes that occurred over time were fairly straight forward and made the road more useable. It’s cobble stone roots are still showing on both Cortona Drive and Fowler Road today.

Cadwallader Avenue Bridge

July 12, 2016Artwork, Concept, Historical Researchbridge, cadwallader, cadwallader ave. avenue, cobble, Cottle, creeks, decorative, downtown evergreen, evergreen, Evergreen School, evidence, mystery, remnants, san felipe, schoolhouse, settlers, silver creek, stone, stones, street name, township, women's relief corps, WRCevergreen

Pat Loomis once wrote about Cadwallader Avenue’s driving bridge over Thompson Creek that had been washed away in a flood in January 1893 in her series of Sign Posts published in the San Jose News Newspaper in the 1970’s. Today, we all remember the walking paths connecting these neighborhoods. We rode our bikes over wooden planks and metal rails with lush creek beds beneath us as children. I went poking around in the old Dry Creek looking for remnants of the Cadwallader Avenue bridge because I’d been there recently researching San Felipe Road with Judge Jerry Kettmann. Maybe he assumed I knew about the bridge, but I couldn’t envision a bridge in this “S” curved portion of Dry Creek.

The intersection here at Cadwallader Avenue and San Felipe Road is really ground zero for Evergreen. This was downtown Evergreen. The first residents’ homes still stand near ground zero. Keaton Loop, cuddled up next to Thompson Creek, was once part of San Felipe Road. Cadwallader Avenue, however, once met San Felipe Road before 1893. Here, in the map to the right, you can see the “C” of Cadwallader on top of San Felipe Road as it crosses Dry Creek, known as Thompson Creek today.

Here, the Women’s Relief Corps, Evergreen School house and Evergreen’s first dense home development grew off Cadwallader Aveunue. Mr. Cadwallader is fascinating as well. Though he never would call Evergreen home, he was certainly generous towards the Community of Evergreen. Cadwallader Avenue’s lost bridge was a new revelation along the research. It’s neat now when I learn brand new things about Evergreen. This Cadwallader Community seems so secreted away when it used to be at the heart of everything. It’s certainly the second smallest parcels on the map above, a precursor to what Evergreen would eventually become.

Here, I found deer frolicking. I found sun ripened wild berries. I found really old trees. I found the end of Fowler Creek here now under San Felipe Road and graffiti. There is a foot bridge now. This new bridge is the straightest line down the Avenue itself. Today’s foot crossing is certainly very permanent and wide, but a direct line down which didn’t feel true to my materials. I wouldn’t be too sure that’s all it was or created from what was left of the old crossing.

These sand bags would have been from any number of floods through the 1900’s. Sadly, I wouldn’t expect sandbags or burlap to stand up to 120 years of moisture, deterioration, rainfall and overflow. I could be wrong, though. These would’ve had to be treated with some sort of plastic to have survived this long. These bags protect the creek’s fragile lining at this pipe’s opening. Over saturation would result in things beginning to slip into the creek, like the old bridge did. This area was prone to flooding with a huge events as recent as 1969. I do however see lots of rock, thanks to all the unsightly graffiti highlighting them.

This large, metal pole is so random, and literally in the middle of the way creeks crossing. Its placement is so odd that this must be evidence of some sort. But what? Also, observe all the rock around it. That’s weird too. It caught my eye as we were taking cute photos of me gathering research. I took these in street clothes on a return visit because I just couldn’t stop thinking about this pole sticking out in the middle of the creek bed and that driving bridge.

Come to think of it, I was jumping over rocks taking those pictures that day; so much so, I forwent the heels on rocks concept because it was unsafe. It felt like Cottle’s Cobble Stone all over again, starring me right in the face. This pole would support a cobble stone bridge like the one my imagination conjured up. Cadwallader Avenue began with a slight bend, when today’s Cadwallader Avenue crossing is flush with the avenue’s direction, as it reaches Keaton Loop. What would convince me absolutely that this was the collapsed bridge? Another support pole or more cobble stone would prove it to me.

Done and done.

Sadly, the second pole I found also epitomizes the great need for the Evergreen Mural Walk. The general public doesn’t know the history of Evergreen and therefore doesn’t respect the land. It’s so sad to see the vandalism and destruction on school campuses and private properly. It’s a dang shame, but okay. Second pole, in the right place to support the San Felipe Road side of the bridge. Check.

Then as I was leaving, I stopped to admire some giant hundreds year old oaks and enormous 150+ year old eucalyptus trees when I noticed this congregation of rocks. This would’ve outlined San Felipe Road, now Keaton Loop, and protect horses and vehicles from running too close to the creeks’ edge, which often flooded in the early days. This cobble stone also though lines portions of San Felipe Road in from of L. C. Smith’s historic residence and several Cadwallader Avenue properties in the same pattern. This was a connected network of well traveled streets in the heart of Evergreen as one point. This bridge’s significance was bringing South Silver Creek to Downtown Evergreen and further connecting it with Norwood neighborhood and San Felipe Valley. Nearby Fowler Road would’ve also been a popular turn for the interior of Evergreen, as would Quimby Road.

This cobble stone street lining would end where a pump station currently sits, accommodating the flows of the creeks so as not to flood Evergreen. It is my belief this structure, not the current foot path from today’s Cadwallader Avenue, takes advantage of the previous Cadwallader Avenue bridge’s construction. Or at least near the opening of the bridge on the southeast corner of the three way crossing with San Felipe Road.

Jerry Kettmann would explain to me that patrons of his uncle’s bar on San Felipe Road would kiss under the bridge. That makes a lot more sense if the bridge in within view and reach of the watering hole. Down in the creek bed would’ve been a perfect place to hideaway and canoodle.

The sandbags I found are probably a precaution from the bridge having been swept away and ongoing flooding. Cobble Stone is definitely a thing in Evergreen, then and now. It’s too heavy to really haul away and its so quaint. Why bother? I am so glad I took a second look at this crossing. It was really starting to bother me.

Cottle’s Cobble Stone

July 5, 2016Historical Researchargiculture, boundary, cobble, Cottle, creek, dove, dove hill, evergreen, family, farmers, farming, fence, generations, hike, hiking, hill, historic, mining, nature, orchards, silver, silver creek, Silver Creek Linear Park, silver creek road, stone, stones, traces, vineyards, wallevergreen

The Cottles were long time residents of Evergreen who lived in Silver Creek, creek adjacent along Dove Hill. You can see them here, O. B. Cottle, directly on Silver Creek Road on the left side of this map. Trusted historian, long time resident and valued Community member, Colleen Cortese, told me that I’d like pieces of Orval Cottle’s Cobble Stone fences along Silver Creek Road. Try to say that 5 times past. Cottles Cobble Stone, Cottles Cobble Stone…. I followed that lead and looked where she told me.

In fact, I followed that path specifically along Silver Creek, the creek, that continues once the road ends. This is a lovely little hike to commune with nature in a hurry. I had my computer packed with historic maps with me, trying to feel my way across the land and features. The Cottles lived around here somewhere. This beginning to the path would’ve been the first place the road and creek crossed. Where this meets Yerba Buena Road in another crossing of the creek as Silver Creek Road once led up the hillside. But… following the road didn’t do much for my hypothesis.

Along my hike to the West of the trail, I found two giant stones out in the open that I could align visually to be fence, but no visible guts of a stone wall like I’d suspect. I personally had zero desire to find out if there were rattle snakes certainly sunning on this gorgeous summer day. This path was old Silver Creek Road that connected to San Felipe Road some time ago, so it could’ve been the most Southern point of the Cottle Ranch.

I veered for a hike up to the base of the electrical towers here, which appears to be a dog friendly path into Silver Creek. Well, I found more giant stones like before, but there at the edge of the plateau was a great cobble stone barrier left in tact. At the high elevation, I could see it all over the place. I knew I had found it.

I found my way back to my car and saw a pile of the same stones at the base of the pond there, across from Silver Creek Linear Park, as I was leaving. I’ve been driving past here looking for Cottle’s Cobble stone a couple times and haven’t found it. That’s what this was the whole time. Not a decorative element by the home development company, but a genuine element. Rusted barbed wire along the path would’ve been the genuine article too. So I had to turn left off of Silver Creek Road and see if I could find anymore more of the cobble stone.

Jackpot. In fact, totally cobble stone wall formations left behind in construction. It’s apparent all over the place. It was probably expensive to remove but considered quite charming. This area, I suspect, was repurposed for the roadway here to the right. This cobble stone barrier is relic of a forgotten time. It’s beauty, however, never overlooked.

The Cottles were married in Wisconsin in 1842 and came West to Nevada County in 1850, where he entered the mining boom. Mr. Cottle did a little bouncing around as a kid. In 1854, the couple relocated the family to Evergreen. Orval had a hard time buying his property in Evergreen, Silver Creek adjacent specifically, and rumored to have paid for the same land 3 different times.

Thought the map above states 254 acres on Silver Creek Road, a contemporary 1860’s source describes the Cottle Estate as “Located seven miles south-east of San Jose, where the valley floor gives wasy to the low foothills of the Mt. Hamilton Range, was the Cottle Farm of some 320 acres.The little stream known as Silver Creek meandered through the Cottle acres at the foot of the hills and then some distance southward left the foothil area and ran through the valley lands.The home buildings of the Cottle Farm were located on the edge of the valley floor, as it broke into the wider expanse downward some ten or fifteen feet to the shallow bank of the creek.”

Children playing with their neighbors and cousins, rolling rocks down the hill would knock out a portion of the stone wall. That could be the reason these rocks have no noticeable debris between the giant rocks. It’s actually something I thought about looking at the landscape. The Cottles’ only daughter would end up marrying the neighbor boy, Frank McCray, who was present in the rocking and rolling that broke the cobble stone wall.

The Cottle Family cultivated orchards, vineyards, cattle, chicken and various other harvests. They would have taken full advantage of Silver Creek running through their yard, using the natural irrigation and spring nearby. It’s why the area is so grassy. It was cleared for farming over a hundred years ago. This is Mr. and Mrs. Cottle on their 50th wedding anniversary. They were very well liked and their grandkids were born in Evergreen as well.