This site is what remains of the original Mission Santa Clara corral, which once covered about 6 acres and was enclosed by an adobe wall.
In 1847, marking the transition from Spanish/Mexican mission to American town, William Campbell mapped the Mission land, designating the corral as a "Public Square". The Town's first official survey in 1866 reconfirmed this use, although the area had been reduced in size.
By the late 1800s it was called Plaza Park. A bandstand had been erected, and the existing circle of trees planted. In 1904, as their first community project, the Women's Club improved the park, landscaping, painting fences and benches, and later placing a foundation.
Today, with the old structures gone (the bandstand moved to the San Jose Historical Museum and the fountain top placed at the Women's Club Adobe), the Mission Library and small park occupy this remnant of the corral site; steeped in Santa Clara's early history.
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