Santa Clara City Map Poster

About Santa Clara

The city is named after the Spanish mission that was established there in 1777. The present-day site of the mission, which was originally called San Jose Mission and now goes by the name Mission Santa Clara de Asís, is located in Santa Clara at . The town of "Santa Clara" first appeared on a map in 1852; it changed its name to "Santa Clara" as it grew. In 1851, California became part of the United States following the Mexican–American War and admission into statehood (the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo). After briefly serving as a farming community beginning in 1860, rapid growth ensued with an influx successive waves of immigrants drawn by jobs associated with both agriculture and mining during California's Golden Age.