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Description

One of the Earliest Printed Maps (and Guides) for San Jose

Fine early map of San Jose, lithographed in San Francisco by Britton & Rey in 1872. The map provides a fine early look at San Jose, including street names, early buildings, railroad lines, public squares, fair grounds and the location of the California Pacific Railroad, the Southern Pacific Railroad and the "San Jose & Santa Clara Horse R.R."

A key at the left identifies 30 important buildings, schools, churches and public places, includes a Jewish Synagogue, Chinese Joss House and Turn Verein (Gymnastics) Hall.

The San Jose Synagogue (Bickur Cholim) was built for the first time in its current location at University and Myrtle Street in 1870, just two years before the printing of this map.

This is one of the earliest guide books to San Jose and almost certainly the rarest.

The map accompanies Hare's rare early guide book and map of San Jose and what is now Silicon Valley. The map is based upon a larger map prepared by Hare in the same year, entitled Map of the City of San Jose. Publ. by George H. Hare. San Jose. Comp. from official city surveys by Wm. Piper. Scale 600 ft. to 1 in.

Rarity

The guide book is extremely rare on the market. The present example, purchased at the Warren Heckrotte sale at PBA Galleries in 2016, was only the second example to appear at auction or a recorded dealer catalog, with the prior example appearing at the 4 day, Henry E. Huntington Literature of The West Sale, at Anderson Galleries in 1923 (complete with both maps). Eberstadt catalogued a copy in 1940 for $25 which included the 2 maps and again in 1963 for $100, which did not include the 2 maps.

OCLC locates copies at the Huntington, Yale, UCLA, Amon Carter Museum and Harvard (each with the maps), American Antiquarian Society (lacking maps).

Notably, OCLC does not locate a copy at the Bancroft, Stanford or the California State Historical Society.

Condition Description
Folding map, bound into Hare's Guide To San Jose and Vicinity For Tourists and New Settlers . . . The map of the Valley and its Vicinity referred to in the title is not present. 112 pp. (with pp. 86-112 being advertisements). Folding lithographed map. (12mo) 15.6x11.5 cm (6 ¼x4½"), original printed wrappers.