The San Jose community preserves a number of historic sites as a way for its citizens to engulf themselves into the history, aside from just reading a history book. San Jose has preserved a structure that is as old as the United States itself, with a rich history within its four walls and roof, lies within the downtown district of San Jose. Peralta Adobe house is the oldest building in San Jose and California as a whole, with an extensive history, focusing on the Gonzales and Peralta families that occupied the Peralta adobe house. The Gonzales family had built the Adobe house and was part of the original building that formed the first municipal government in San Jose history. The Peralta family added many changes to the house during the early …show more content…
1810’s. Aside from the people that had lived in the Peralta adobe home, the historical architecture tells us a lot about the society, and culture at that time and place. Even though there are modern changes to the building, such as lighting and safety code standards, the real history lies within the building itself. The Peralta Adobe house is a home that became a museum and eye candy for restaurant customers to enjoy in the modern day, it’s historical significance is in the location of the site, the architecture, and most importantly the culture. The original builder of the Peralta Adobe home was an Apache Native American named, Manuel Gonzalez, he had accompanied the Juan Bautista De Anza expedition. Gonzalez was one of the founders of the city of San Jose that came with his family, the De Anza party was a Spanish colonial military expedition led by Jean Bautista into the California territories that had settled Spanish colonists in San Jose which is the location of the first municipal government, which was set up in 1776. The Peralta Adobe home was not the first home that Gonzalez had built, it was his second home, as his initial home had been in a flood-stricken area, and a number of his crops had been destroyed by the floods forcing him to relocate. After Gonzalez’s death in 1804, the house would then revert to Luis Maria Peralta in 1807, a soldier in the Spanish army and the most wealthy ranch owner in San Jose. This switch of hands from Native American to Spanish colonial is what makes the house so special on both a cultural and architectural level. As it allows for the blend of cultural and architectural features into the Adobe house. Although the Peralta adobe house may seem like a small and insignificant building when in actuality it is a crucial building to San Jose’s cultural and architectural history.
When the adobe house was constructed, a number of the homes around it were small huts or mud brick buildings built by the Native American’s in the area. The construction of adobe buildings with the Spanish people was the starting effort of building a city, even though the adobe house was made of earth brick. This building symbolized the heart of San Jose and as a whole, greater California, as the adobe house became part of several different sovereign nations, Spain, Mexico, and lastly America. The Peralta adobe house is a mixture of Spanish colonial and Native American style construction. Spanish colonial style is a home that is “one with its environment” as said by Lisa Stacholy, of LKS Architects in Atlanta. What is meant by that is, it uses the components of the indigenous area, making the adobe house, not another building constructed by the colonial times, but a living part of San Jose. But to ensure the occupants can endure the heat, the building has thick walls as to absorb the heat during the day, and release the heat during the evening. These features of the adobe house come from its Spanish colonial side. It’s Native American (Navajo) origins takes root from the Hogan huts. Hogun huts are sacred homes that are used for Navajo ceremonies. The adobe house has a cone-shaped chimney that is a trait that comes from the Hogan huts, allowing for the entirety of the house to be warm when a fire is lit, without the risk of smoke being released inside the house. This combination of cultures and architectural features are a critical part of what makes the Peralta adobe house so unique and historically significant to San Jose’s history as it shows the cities
culture. As time goes on society adds alterations to a historical location, and this changes how it’s presentation is done and one’s own experiences at the location. This site is presented today as a part restaurant and part museum, as it uses the space surrounding the fire pit as a restaurant and the house itself as a historical piece that acts as an enjoyable view for the customers. There is a rope fence that separates the restaurant customers from the Adobe house preserving the quality of the house as well as a short brick wall near the tables of the restaurant customers. These changes done to the Adobe house itself are little to none as to keep it historically the same, but the surrounding area is converted into a family friendly area. They have added a gate to the Adobe house area to control the tour groups, and have placed picnic tables with a roof on top near the house. One of the most noticeable alterations to the site is the lamp shaped-like heaters that were placed outside for the restaurant customers. Some of the alterations to the Adobe house area is meant to provide shade or rest for the public that is toured in the house such as the picnic benches. Most of the alterations to the Adobe house area are done by the restaurant to provide an enjoyable experience. My own experience at the Adobe house was through the experience of the restaurant, as to get a tour is more difficult to do as it’s timings were unclear and mostly unavailable, mainly operating on appointments for large groups. The cost of the admission to be toured is five dollars per adult, but they do not sell any products regarding the Adobe house.The restaurant part had a warm and friendly presence that welcomed you to the area, as the adobe house itself had a commanding presence as you could feel the people that lived there before had been leaders of sorts. I felt inspired by the house, feeling both proud. Despite the changes and the way it was presented, the Adobe house still provides a clear historical understanding but should be presented more as a cultural piece through tours than eye candy for customers. The significance that the Peralta Adobe house plays indirectly in California’s culture is through its change of hands, which is seen in the reading Gold. When gold was publicized after the Mexican-American war in 1848 a number of people rushed to the San Francisco area for the hunt for gold. The Peralta family that lived at the adobe house in 1948, participated in the hunt for gold along with a number of other individuals in San Jose. The Peralta Adobe house has transformed into part of the restaurant's decoration piece for customers to enjoy their time and less as a museum, yet it’s historical significance has not changed as the cultural, architectural and location has remained the same over time. The Adobe house’s history is not with the people that had lived in it like Manuel Gonzalez or the Peralta family, however, the features the house has is where the history lies. Taking from its Navajo tribe roots, it’s architecture helps keep the entire adobe house warm during the winter time, due to its structure; as well as its Spanish colonial roots allowing it to use native resources of the land to be “one with the land” and not become invasive to the land. The number of changes to the Adobe house area and in which form that it is presented to the public is unorthodox. The Adobe house’s unorthodox presentation still gives the public a historical understanding as it displays information, yet the adobe house is also a piece of San Jose culture. The Adobe house is a home that is significant to California history as it was one of the first buildings that formed San Jose, which was the first government in California; and similar designs can still be seen in a number of homes in downtown San Jose. The Adobe house although placed in a corner and overlooked is an integral of San Jose’s history, as well as California's through its location, culture, and architecture
Smeltertown existed as a smelting industry company-community and border town in El Paso, Texas. Through her own familial connection to Smeltertown, Monica Perales “traces the formation, evolution, demise, and collective memory of one of the largest single-industry Mexican-American communities on Mexican-US side of border.” Smeltertown, as a community, was was made up of several real and imagined social worlds that were constantly shaped by ASARCO. The community that was forged in Smeltertown served as a way of survival for its residents, allowing the influence from ASARCO to be lessened. Smeltertown tells the story of how its residents ordered their immediate socials.
Deverell presents a clear analysis of race and labor segmentation of Mexican men to work in the brick making industry, which paid poorly. The workers and their families were confined to ethnic borders around the company town. Many of the worker’s homes were in poor conditions, none included gas, plumbing or electricity; not until the 1930s did electricity arrive. Rent for the houses was three to four dollars a month. Adobe (brick consisting of straw and mud), an antiquity to the Mexican people, was replaced by brick. According to the Anglos, brick was a symbol for their
Mission San Juan Capistrano is in the center of the small town named for it. Shops and restaurants also named for it are found on the streets in front of the entrance to the mission. A high adobe wall surrounds the mission grounds. There are many restored buildings in the inner patio, and the great stone church. Across the fountain there is the bell wall that sits beside the ruined church. Near the bell is a statue of Father Junipero Serra. The ruins of the original stone church are in front of the mission. Only the sanctuary and parts of the church remain, but that’s enough to have an idea of how big it was. The church walls are made of large stones and birds have build nests between them. Mission San Juan Capistrano was one of many Spanish
Maria did not merely buy her clay and materials in a local art supply, for in her pueblo culture and village, there weren?t any. Instead, as her ancestors did for numerous years before her, she learned how to harvest and collect the materials she needed to produce her work form then earth and surround lands of her village. Kilns were hand made and fired. Clay was dug from the ground and prepared in the same manner it had been taught and passed down from her ancestors. Glazes and finishing materials were also produced by hand (Peterson 48).
Kathryn book Life in the Pueblo is based on excavations that she did at Lizard Man Village (Kamp, 1997). This was a small pueblo located in Arizona which is believed to be inhabited between 11th and 13th century. These ancient excavations were first carried out by United States Forest Service and were parts of Grinnell College field school (Kamp, 1997). The aim of the book was to describe Lizard Man Village and present excavation processes and analysis. Kamp 1997 offers archaeological interpretation of the site in relation to the past understandings. She bring out successfully three narratives. These narratives include ethnographic data in relationship to traditional accounts from Hopi (a place which is believed to be the first resident of Lizard Man) (Kamp, 1997). He also bring out clearly the issue of archaeology as well as fictional account basing it on both ethnography and archaeology.
“Various animals build shelters but only humans built homes. (Pg. 1)” The word home evokes so many emotions and mental image of past and future. At the end of the day there is no greater comfort then going home. Yet in our daily hustle and bustle and hectic schedule we seldom take time to appreciate the most age old technology that keep us safe and provide comfort. From the basic shelter and cave dwelling of the earliest humans to the modern concrete jungle of the present, humans have move past the simple shelter. Technology has allowed us to build modern homes in various shapes and sizes but this technology follows thousands of years of footstep. The author did not just catalog different structures and domicile of human history but told a story of what these structure means to us. Moore starts off on a dig site searching for archaic structures. Moore explains how humans just don’t build shelter like most animals, human homes signifies social status, comfort, shelter and creativity. Moore uses the famous multimillion dollar house of Aaron Spelling in Hollywood as an example of how extravagant our humble dwelling can be. Human homes are different shapes and sizes and often build with different material and standard based on geographical location. I believe A Prehistory of Homes is a book about the history of technology because it is written about one of the most essential invention of human evolution. Human went from caves to build our own shelter. It allowed us to be mobile and become a foraging creature. The author addresses the most commonly shared interest and provides knowledge, history and relation to past and future of our homes.
It is a symbol created through the actions of law-makers, regulators, architects, and landowners who had previously and knowingly allowed the construction of the house upon sacred grounds and the desecration of burial site. Furthermore, the mound of narrator is described as “clearly marked” and well taken care of, thus proving that the colonizers from before were indeed willingly ignorant to the pre-existing graves on the land. The repetition of the line “renovating back hoeing new patio, new deck, new view” provides criticism on how colonizers are always seeking for more and can also be interpreted as historical commentary on how initial colonizers, blinded by greed for more land,
The Mystery of Chaco Canyon introduces viewers to a very complex structure that was built by Ancient Pueblo Indians. Although there is no language to explain the structure’s meaning and purpose, researchers were able to read their architecture as a language. Four themes that were extracted from the structure were, the native’s immense understanding of astronomy, the use for the structure, the level of spirituality that the structure represents, and migration from Chaco Canyon.
When researching Pueblo dwellings and the Anasazi people "Anasazi meaning ancient ones in the Navajo language"(Lynnd2012). Information retaining to the culture and how permanent dwellings did not start until the Anasazi started growing their food. Prior to agriculture, all food was product of hunting and gathering, this made moving across the country more frequent to be able to gather enough food. Once they started to farm and cultivate they stated building the first sets of housing which consisted of holes in the grounds and only later would they build on top of the holes with stone and mortar, this didn't happen till around 750AD and was a means for storage.
A valuable and vital resource to the people was water. The Cliff House Sandstone found in Mesa Verde served not only as a home for the Ancestral Puebloans, but also
The Cahuilla were a Native Southern Californian tribe that occupied the Riverside County, Higher Palomar Mountain Region and East Colorado Desert. The tribe was divided into two groups or moieties know as Wildcats or Coyotes. The Cahuilla lived in small clans that varied in population, and together all the separate clans made up a larger political group called a sib ”http://www.aguacaliente.org/content/History%20&%20Culture/.” The tribe was at first considered to be very simple and savage because they were never interacted with. As the Europeans and Spanish Missionaries considered the desert an inhospitable place that was better to avoid because of its lack of food resources. Little did those European and Spanish missionaries know that the land was ripe with food, only if you knew the land and the seasons. The Cahuilla were a very interesting tribe that cared and loved their land and in return the land would provide them with an abundance of food and resources. The Cahuilla had a very simple yet intricate life that involved a seasonal migration in order to gain access to different foods. They relied on different ways of acquiring food which involved both hunting and gathering.
Mandan villages were the center of the social, spiritual, and economic lives of the Mandan Indians. Villages were strategically located on bluffs overlooking the river for defense purposes, limiting attacks to one land approach. The Mandan lived in earth lodges, which are extremely large, round huts that are 15 feet high and 40-60 feet in diameter. Each hut had a vestibule entrance, much like the pattern of an Eskimo igloo, and a square hole on top, which served as a smokestack. Each earth lodge housed 10-30 people and their belongings, and villages contained 50-120 earth lodges. The frame of an earth lodge was made from tree trunks, which were covered with criss-crossed willow branches. Over the branches they placed dirt and sod, which coined the term earth lodge. This type of construction made the roofs strong enough to support people on nights of good weather. The floors of earth lodges were made of dirt and the middle was dug out to make a bench around the outer edge of the lodge. Encompassing...
The Spanish decided to build a settlement between New Spain and East Texas. It would be a midway stop. They decided it would be located on the San Antonio River. San Jose was one of these settlements. It was made of limestone and was built in 1720. A nickname it had was "The Queen of Missions". Close by was San Antonio de Valero, or also known as the Alamo. It had carvings in the windows and the doorways that were complicated and beautiful. The carvings were made when the limestone was just unearthed. When limestone is just quarried it's relatively soft.
The furnishings found in each hut also provide indications of how the people lived. In the centre of all the huts lay a fireplace that is thought to be the only source of heat and light in the entire hou...
Interior design is a complicated profession. It is sometimes referred to as interior architecture and often confused with interior decorating. It involves the design, organization and planning of an interior structure rather than just refinishing and furnishing existing interior spaces. It involves managing a business, hopefully meeting the desires of the client and delivering to them an interior environment that is both functional and aesthetically pleasing. There is a lot more to interior design than first meets the eye.