Historical Marker · No. 461
Site of California's First State Capitol
San Jose, Santa Clara County · California
Erected by Historic Landmarks Committee, Native Sons of the Golden West, 1923
No state plaque stands here; the Native Sons cast this tablet in 1923, twenty-seven years before the state registered the site. The building opposite was a two-story adobe hotel, unfinished when the legislators arrived in December 1849 to a flooded town short of rooms. The Assembly met upstairs, and the Senate moved to Isaac Branham's house nearby. The session is remembered by a toast, credited to Senator Thomas Jefferson Green, who closed the day calling for a thousand drinks. By 1851 General Vallejo's offer of land had drawn the capital away.
What the plaque says
Directly opposite this tablet was located the first State Capitol Building in which California's first Legislature assembled in December 1849. San Jose was the seat of government from 1849 to 1851. Tablet placed by Historic Landmarks Committee Native Sons of the Golden West 1923
Where it stands
37.33271, -121.88960 · Directions
More markers nearby
- United States Post Office — steps away
- Site of World's First Broadcasting Station — steps away
- St. Joseph's Catholic Church — steps away
- Luis María Peralta Adobe — 0.4 mi