Contents: About NAQCPA, Membership Newsletters Donate to NAQCPA Almaden Quicksilver Park Info Mining Museum Museum Archives Outdoor Museum Pioneer Days New Almaden Days News, Media, Articles, and Links Pictures, Special Reports Almaden Quicksilver Park Events _____________ Links: New Almaden and Almaden Quicksilver: New Almaden Self-Guided Walking Tour Almaden Quicksilver Mining Museum Mining Museum Archives Directions to Almaden Quicksilver Almaden Quicksilver County Park Trail Map Open Road TV show on Almaden Quicksilver Santa Clara County Parks: Santa Clara County Parks Homepage Calendar of County Parks Activities Play Here! Activities Guide Park Here! Guide to the County Parks County Parks Volunteer Information Volunteer Calendar County Parks Healthy Trails Program Parks for Life Challenge Santa Clara County Parks on Facebook Ron Horii's Pictures of the Santa Clara County Parks Ron Horii's Pictures of County Park Volunteer Activities Parks and Community: Ron Horii's SF Bay Rec & Travel Friends of Santa Teresa Park Friends of Los Alamitos Watershed New Almaden Community Club (webpage under construction) Webmaster Contact |
Welcome to the New Almaden Quicksilver County Park Association (NAQCPA) website. Our purpose is to promote the educational and interpretive activities of the Santa Clara County Parks and Recreation Department, particularly in Almaden Quicksilver County Park. See below for information about NAQCPA, our past and present activities, and how you can join or help with the park. Also below is information about Almaden Quicksilver County Park, maps, trail descriptions, and park events. See the links on the side for related websites. Visit our Facebook page. We have a new email address: naqcpa.newalmaden@gmail.com News: Note: See here for archived news from 2015,
2016, 2017, and 2018. The following
is news from 2019-2022 (click here
for the latest news. Jump to old
pictures of Kitty Monahan. Jump to pictures and videos of Kitty's
Celebration of Life.):
Ron
Horii had an exhibit at the Campbell Library in downtown Campbell from
2/1 to 2/28/19. It was based on his 2011
exhibition at the Santa Teresa Library.
He had posters with pictures of Santa Teresa County Park, Almaden
Quicksilver County Park, other County Parks, open space preserves, San
Francisco Bay parks, and San Jose parks. Here
is an album showing the exhibition.
A new
map is available for Almaden Quicsilver County Park.
Maps are being updated for all the County Parks. They show numbers at
every trail junction. Trail signs will have those numbers on them
eventually. The idea is that problems can be reported by listing the
nearest trail junction numbers.
On
7/7/19, there was a small grass fire on the north side of Alamitos Road
below the Alamitos Vineyard. San Jose Fire Department and CalFire
crews, including a Calfire helicopter, were able to stop the fire
before it could spread to the vineyard or surrounding hills in Almaden
Quicksilver County Park. The Alamitos Vineyards has their own fire
truck, which has appeared in the New Almaden Parade. It also fought the
fire.
From
7/8-7/12/19, the Casa Grande was closed for fumigation to kill pests.
The
annual Play Like a Miner event was held at the Casa Grande on 8/3/19.
About 450 people attended. Here are pictures: Play
Like a Miner Part 1, Outside Activities 8/3/19, Play
Like a Miner Part 2, Casa Grande & Blacksmith Shop 8/3/19
On
8/16/19, several NAQCPA members went on a boat tour of the Alviso
Slough. It was narrated by Park Interpreter Luke Bailey. Here are more pictures of the
boat tour.
The boat went down the Alviso Slough all the way to its confluence with
Coyote Creek. We saw lots of birds along the way, including an osprey.
Luke talked about the history of the Bay, plants and animals in the
wetlands, and the future challenge of sea level rise.
The New Almaden
Day Parade was held on 9/14/19.
Afterwards, the carnival
was held at the Community Center.
On 9/28/19, there was an ice cream social event for County Parks volunteers at Vasona Lake. On
9/29/19, there was a Quicksilver
History Hike,
led by Park Interpreters Chris Carson and Steve Leong, accompanied by
Park Docent Ron Horii. The hike went along the Wood Road Trail to Mine
Hill and the Rotary Furnace. There will be more hikes like this on
10/26/19, 11/24/19, 12/28/19, 1/26/20, 2/29/20, 3/29/20, 4/25/20.
On
9/30/19, a County Parks ranger promotion and badging ceremony was held
at the Casa Grande. Flint Glines was promoted to Chief Park Ranger.
Julie Cooper and Frank Weiland were promoted to Park Ranger
Supervisors. Ruben Suarez, Melissa Rodriguez, Christopher Shear,
Jackson Bramham, Bryce Winter, and Carley Bolitho received their badges
as Park Rangers. Above, left to right are Supervising Ranger Aniko
Millan, Ruben Suarez, Melissa Rodriguez, Christopher Shear, Frank
Weiland, Flint Glines, Julie Cooper, Jackson Bramham, Bryce Winter, and
Carley Bolitho.
On
Sunday, December 15, 2019, this event was held at the Casa Grande:
"Learn about the Victorian era at Casa Grande while participating in
activities from the 1880s with costumed staff and docents. There will
be demonstrations, crafts, and guided tours of the museum. Fun for the
whole family." Here
are pictures of the event (Facebook sign-in required). Above
are park interpretive staff members Whitney, Victoria, and
Lynda in period dress.
Below
are pictures of the historic wagon restoration project from 2014 to
2019:
NAQPA
members have been restoring an historic wagon at the Blacksmith Shop.
It was once parked in the yard behind the Casa Grande and used as a
stage. The elements have taken their toll on the wooden parts. They
have been replaced with new wood. The latest addition is the bench on
top. The most challenging part will be restoring the wooden wheels.Front of wagon, 6/29/14 Rear of wagon, 6/29/14 Wagon 2/14/15 Wagon 10/26/19 Wagon Restoration 12/15/19
There have been personnel changes in the County Parks' Department since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic:
Mary Lee Baiocchi January 6, 1934 - November 21, 2020 Resident of San Jose Mary Lee Baiocchi,"Cookie" to her family and friends, passed away peacefully Saturday, November 21, 2020. She was a loving wife, mother, sister, aunt and godmother. She is survived by her two sons Greg (Josie) and Ken (Stephanie), sister Barbara and niece Stacia. She is together now in heaven with her devoted husband Jerry Baiocchi, daughter-in-law Sharon Baiocchi, and sisters Georgia Lumley and Bea Lumley. Mary Lee was the daughter of George and Irene Smoot. She was a San Jose native and proud graduate of Notre Dame High School Class of '51 and San Jose City College. She worked as an instructor for Pacific Bell, becoming one of the first female supervisors and trainers in the San Jose area. After taking time off to raise her boys, she returned to the phone company, working in various roles until retirement in 1988. Mary Lee had a vibrant "second act" after retirement. As the granddaughter and daughter of New Almaden Quicksilver mine workers, she had a strong connection to the rich history of the area. She served as a history docent for over 30 years at the New Almaden Quicksilver Mining Museum and served on the board of the New Almaden Quicksilver County Park Association, activities that she shared with her lifelong friend Kitty Monahan. She was recognized as the Santa Clara County Parks Volunteer of the Year in 2006. Mary Lee was involved with many other groups and activities, including the San Jose Women's Club, Almaden Valley Rotary Club, Transfiguration Catholic Church, Santa Theresa Women's Golf Club, and numerous book clubs. Mary Lee also acted and sang with the Almaden Senior Players acting troupe. Mary Lee had an inquisitive mind, a faith-filled heart and a thirst for knowledge. Her library is full of books that range in topics near and far. She loved all animals and enjoyed art classes and piano lessons. She loved to travel, explore cultures and meet people. Her favorite spot was Hawaii by far. Due to pandemic restrictions, Mary Lee was laid to rest in a private family service. A memorial mass will follow when it's safe to gather. We loved Cookie and if you knew her, you loved her as well. In honor of Mary Lee, you may light a candle or make a donation in her memory at San Jose's Notre Dame High School or Transfiguration Catholic Church. In January of 2021, John Slenter passed away at his home in Arizona. John was a longtime resident of New Almaden. He was an active volunteer for NAQCPA and helped with the Pioneer Day events. He later became an interpreter for the County Parks, working at Almaden Quicksilver. For many years, he gave van tours of the park. At the 2009 Pioneer Day, he drove guests to the event in a park van and served as the master of ceremonies (see picture above). After he retired from the County Parks, he moved to Arizona to be with his family. On May
4, 2021, longtime NAQCPA member and County Parks docent John Atwood
passed away at his home in San Jose. Here
is his obituary. He knew the Almaden Quicksilver Mines better
than most people because he worked as a surveyor in the mines for 2
years, before spending 33 years as a surveyor for Santa Clara County.
As a volunteer for NAQCPA, he worked in the Casa Grande as a docent,
giving tours to visitors. During events at the Casa Grande, like Play
Like a Miner, he would bring out his surveying equipment and
show kids how to use them, as well as how to read maps.
Update 2021: The past 2 years have been difficult for NAQCPA. The last board meeting was held on 2/12/20. The board has been unable to meet due to COVID-related closures and the death and disability of many of the board's members. We could not even meet on Zoom. The Casa Grande was closed for over a year, starting in March of 2020, so volunteers could not go in to work on the archives or the NAQCPA newsletter. Docent activities were suspended, and most of the County Parks' interpretive staff were re-deployed as Disaster Service Workers (DSW) to help with the pandemic. In 2021, the Casa Grande re-opened, and some activities and events are starting to come back. However, many staff members, including several park interpreters, are still on DSW assignment. It was unclear when and if the NAQCPA board would meet again. Key volunteers working on the newsletter have health issues and are no longer able to work on it, even if facilities were available. It's not clear whether the newsletter will be published again. Pioneer Day was cancelled in 2020 and 2021. It may be held again in 2022. NAQCPA is still partially active. A small group of members still does maintenance projects in the park. Update 4/15/22: Starting in January 2022, Melissa Hippard, the County Parks Strategic Partnership and Revenue Development Manager, wanted to have a discussion about NAQCPA's partnership with the department. This started a series of Zoom meetings, initiated by Tere Johnson, to discuss NAQCPA's fate and future plans. The first meeting was on 1/24/22. We decided to keep NAQCPA going, maintain and possibly enhance our partnership with the County Parks, elect new board members, recruit new members, start a Facebook page, keep the small maintenance group active, publish an e-newsletter and email it to members, participate in park activities at the Casa Grande, and hold a Pioneer Day. Tere Johnson was elected President. Art Bouldreault volunteered to serve as temporary treasurer. Mike Cox agreed to serve as temporary secretary. In later meetings, Mike Cox was elected vice president and Lisa Laymon was elected secretary. Sue McLain is being trained by Art to eventually become treasurer. Ron Horii continued as webmaster. At the County
Parks' 27th Annual Volunteer Recognition event on 4/23/22,
Kitty Monahan talked about the history of the volunteer program.
Several Almaden Quicksilver volunteers and NAQCPA members were
recognized at the event.
The County Parks' PixInParks
Challenge
runs from May 1 until December 15, 2022. Participants hike 7
trail
routes in different parks, take a picture at the prescribed destination
points, and post the pictures on social media, with the hashtag
#PixInParks. After completing the challenge, they can get a t-shirt or
bandana. The route at Almaden Quicksilver follows the Deep Gulch Trail
to English Camp and returns on the Mine Hill Trail, with a picture spot
at English Camp (above). Other hikes are at Santa Teresa, Ed Levin, Mt.
Madonna, Coyote Lake/Harvey Bear, Upper Stevens Creek, and Sanborn.
The intent of the SCCPA Awards Night is:
This
is NAQCPA's and FOSTP's table at the Preservation Alliance Awards Night
at History San Jose. Veronica Jordan staffed the table, talked to
visitors, and passed out information. The table, which had pictures and
brochures, was shared with Mike Boulland and the Friends of Santa
Teresa Park. Mike had pictures of Kitty Monahan, who besides serving as
President of NAQCPA, was also Vice President of the Friends of Santa
Teresa Park.
At the Preservation Alliance Awards Night, Bruce Bartlett received the Distinguished Preservation Service Award for his work on projects at Almaden Quicksilver. At
the Preservation Alliance Awards Night, former NAQCPA President Kitty
Monahan was awarded the
Preservation Lifetime Achievement Award. Tere Johnson (left), read the
award, while Mike Cox (right) accepted the award for Kitty. She could
not attend due to her health conditions. Kathy Sutherland (center),
assistant to County Supervisor Cindy Chavez, is holding a commendation
from the Board of Supervisors to Kitty. Here's a link to the video
of the award presentations to Kitty.
On June 1, NAQCPA members visited Kitty Monahan at her house and presented her with the awards. She was happy to see everyone and receive the awards. On
July 9, 2022 from 11 am to 3 pm, after a 2-year absence, the Play Like
a Miner event was
held again at the Casa Grande: "Imagine a day in the life of a mercury
miner and other 19th century residents of New Almaden at this fun
family event, featuring games, crafts, rocks, and mining-era activities
for all ages." There was a simulated mine tunnel (above). Here are pictures
of the event. Here
are pictures from the previous Play Like a Miner in 2019: Play
Like a Miner Part 1, Outside Activities 8/3/19, Play
Like a Miner Part 2, Casa Grande & Blacksmith Shop 8/3/19.
Here are pictures of some of the past Pioneer Days, with a list of all them and excerpts of newsletter articles about them. Above is Pioneer Day 2016. We are very sad to report that NAQCPA's co-founder and President for nearly 40 years, Kitty Monahan, passed away on July 25, 2022. She has been in declining health the past few months. Most recently, she fell and suffered a hip fracture. She received hospice care and passed away peacefully at home. A celebration of life/memorial for Kitty will be held at the Santa Clara County Horsemen's Association at 20350 McKean Road, San Jose, on September 4 at 1:00 pm. Here's a biography of Kitty from 2018. Here's an article about her death in the Mercury News. Here's her obituary. Here are pictures of Kitty over the years at different events for different organizations:
On
9/4/22, there was a Celebration of Life for Kitty Monahan at the Santa
Clara County Horsemen's Association. Kitty was a lifelong member of the
club. She joined
it in 1983 and was an
avid equestrian. A couple hundred people came to the
celebration.
There were scheduled speakers and an open mic where anyone could come
up and share their memories of
Kitty. Here are pictures and videos of the event:
The
38th annual Pioneer Day, in the 40th year since NAQCPA was founded, was
held at the Casa Grande on 10/8/22. The theme was to honor and
memorialize NAQCPA leaders who have recently passed away. They included
John Slenter, John Atwood, Mary Lee Baiocchi, Bob Meyer, and of course,
Kitty Monahan. Speakers and audience members gave tributes to them.
Visiting dignitaries included San Jose City Councilmember Matt Mahan,
State Senator Dave Cortese, and Melissa Hippard representing County
Parks Director Don Rocha. Senator Cortese presented a recognition
certificate to NAQCPA. Boy Scouts led the flag salute. The Stargeezers
provided musical entertainment during lunch, which was empanada meals
from the Big E Cafe. Russell Pearce showed a New Almaden voter registry
from 1896, showing names of many well-known New Almaden ancestors.
Photo albums from the NAQCPA archives, containing
hundreds of pictures of past NAQCPA events and historic scenes of New
Almaden were on display. There was a door prize drawing. For pictures
and videos of the event, see these Facebook albums:
Composite
animated photo prepared by Charles Cox from 1863 Carleton Watkins photo
of New Almaden and the same scene recently photographed by Charles Cox.
Please credit the gif to Charles Cox if sharing or reposting, and
please do not post to online photography resellers or use for
commercial purposes.
On
February 26, 2023, long-time NAQCPA member and former treasurer Marvin
Tanner passed away. Here
is his obituary.
He was a dedicated volunteer who helped with projects in the park, at
the Casa Grande, and at Pioneer Days. The picture above is from Marv
helping to check-in visitors and collect donations at the last Pioneer
Day he attended on 10/12/19. Here are more pictures
of Marv at Pioneer Days, Volunteer Recognition events, and NAQCPA
parties.
A celebration of life and reception was held on Saturday, March 25,
2023 at 1:00 pm at Cambrian Methodist Church. In lieu of flowers, the
family asks for any donations to be made to New Almaden Quicksilver
County Park Association (NAQCPA) - PO Box 124, New Almaden,CA 95042.
Santa
Clara County Parks is in the process of updating
the Countywide Trail Master Plan.
The plan was originally adopted in 1995. It is intended to be used for
trail planning. It includes trails of countywide significance, not all
trails. Here's the description of the updates: "Since the Countywide
Trails Master Plan was developed in 1995, trail segments have been
refined and implemented on the ground, local governments have adopted
new trail plans, new public lands have been acquired, mapping and
landscape-level understanding of trail feasibility has improved
substantially, additional constraints and opportunities have been
identified for trail implementation, and potential new trails have been
identified that may serve a regional purpose. The proposed Map Update
will consider these types of changes while remaining centered around
improving regional connectivity and maintaining the core vision of the
Countywide Trails Master Plan." There's an interactive
map and feedback tool,
where you can see the map, zoom in and out, and complete a survey about
it. Rebecca Coates-Maldoon is the Countywide Trails Program
Manager.Contact: rebecca.coates-maldo@prk.sccgov.org.
2023
Santa Clara County Preservation Alliance, Historic
Preservation Awards Night,
Friday, May 19th, 7:00 pm at History San Jose Park. Gates open at 6:45
pm. $20 General Admission, Under 18 Free. The intent of the SCCPA
Awards Night is:
The New Almaden Quicksilver County Park Association will honor Michael Cox with the Distinguished Preservation Service Award for five decades of preserving and sharing New Almaden mining history. NAQCPA is a co-sponsor of this event. On
May 19, 2023, at Historic Preservation Awards Night in History San Jose
Park, NAQCPA Vice-President, Mike Cox, was awarded the Distinguished
Preservation Service Award by the Santa Clara County Preservation
Alliance. It was "for five decades of preserving and sharing New
Almaden Mining History."
On
6/24/23, members of the Friends of Santa Teresa Park and the
New Almaden Quicksilver County Park Association went on a field trip to
visit Black
Diamond Mines Regional Preserve
in Antioch. We got a guided tour of the open parts of the mines, led by
Naturalist Jaclyn Caldwell, who was previously a Park Interpreter at
the Almaden Quicksilver Mining Museum, so we knew her. Here
is an album of the tour.
On July
4, 2023, San Jose District 10 Councilmember Arjun Batra hosted
the 8th annual 4th
of July Fireworks Festival at
Almaden Lake Park. There was live entertainment, games, crafts,
food vendors, facepainting, and booths. The Friends of Santa Teresa
Park had an information booth there, along with the New Almaden
Quicksilver County Park Association and the Friends of the New Almaden
Ting. This
is what the booth looked like.
7/8/23: Signs
like this have been posted on trailheads throughout the park. These
trails are closed on weekdays due to construction work related to the
Calcine Remediation Project. Calcines are rocks and sediment that were
left over after mercury ore was smelted to remove the mercury. They
were considered a waste product and were dumped or used to pave roads. Regulatory
agencies are concerned that
there may be trace amounts of mercury in the calcines, and it could
leach out and contaminate the watershed, so the calcines need to be
removed. An earlier and larger calcines roads project involved the
removal of calcines from park roads. The current project will remove
them from hillsides above Deep Gulch and Alamitos Creek. Here's
more information about the project.
For additional information on the Hacienda and Deep Gulch Calcine
Remediation project, contact Alicia Flynn, Project Manager, at
(408) 355-2209.
On 7/9/23, the second annual Water & Wags Festival was held at Calero County Park. This was the description: "Join us for a paw-some time at the Calero Water and Wags Festival on Sunday, July 9th, from 10:30 am to 2 pm, at Calero Reservoir. Discover the incredible efforts of Santa Clara County Parks and Valley Water in safeguarding our precious water against invasive quagga and zebra mussels. Get ready to celebrate clean and pristine waterways while having a blast! Meet the Mussel Dogs, learn how to prevent the spread of invasive species, and indulge in delicious food, exciting games, and more!" NAQCPA had a booth there, staffed by Lisa Laymon and Mike Cox. Here are pictures of the festival. The
Yellow Kid Trail in Almaden Quicksilver County Park has been renamed
the Kitty Monahan Trail. Changing the name of a trail is not an easy
process. Fortunately, this trail was being considered for renaming
anyway because its name was controversial, though
misunderstood. NAQCPA recommended that it be renamed in memory
of its late President, Kitty Monahan. To do that, the name had to be
approved by the County Parks Trail Naming Committee, the County's Parks
& Recreation Commission, and the County Board of Supervisors.
They all approved, so the trail was renamed. Here is an excerpt from
the County Parks report to the Board of Supervisors, who approved the
name on August 29, 2023: "The Department recommends renaming to Kitty
Monahan Trail, which meets criteria guidelines of the Naming Parkland
Policy and recognizes in memoriam her association with the New Almaden
area for a long period of time and distinguished involvement relating
to parks or park service. Kitty Monahan worked significantly with
County Parks for nearly 50 years. She moved into San Jose’s New Almaden
neighborhood in 1972 and fell in love with the open space and historic
land in that area. By the mid 1970’s, she was known as the unofficial
“Mayor of New Almaden” due to her advocacy and preservation efforts.
Kitty left behind a long list of accomplishments, most notably a
pivotal role encouraging the County to purchase the 4,163-acre Almaden
Quicksilver County Park in 1976."
After
being closed since November of 2022, the Almaden Quicksilver Mining
Museum in the Casa Grande finally reopened to the public in October of
2023. It was originally closed because of problems with the HVAC
system. Part of the problem was that there was not enough power being
delivered to the Casa Grande. This required power upgrades to the site
by PG&E. After this was fixed, they found the smoke screens in
the elevator weren't working properly. All of this was fixed.
Volunteers and staff cleaned up the interior and prepared the museum
for the public. See here for pictures
of the Almaden Quicksilver Mining Museum after it opened.
Donated
in recognition of
Kathleen "Kitty" Monahan A lifelong advocate of historic and natural preservation, Kitty helped create the Almaden Quicksilver County Park The Catherine Tunnel Trail is a short trail off the Mine Hill Trail just north of Bull Run and the junction of the MIne Hill Trail and the Castillero Trail. (See the park map.) It's in the heart of the park and has a panoramic view of the Almaden Valley. Donations for the table were raised through GoFundMe. (Picture by Bruce Bartlett, 11/8/23.) On
11/28/23, there was a dedication ceremony held outside the Casa Grande.
There were three things that were dedicated to the memory of the late
Kitty Monahan, NAQCPA's co-founder and its President for nearly 40
years. First was the renaming of the Yellow Kid Trail in Almaden
Quicksilver County Park to the Kitty Monahan Trail (see signpost on the
picture above). The second was the naming of the new bridge on Alamitos
Road to the Kathleen "Kitty" Monahan Bridge. Finally, there was a
picnic table (shown above) donated by NAQCPA, inscribed with a memorial
message about Kitty. County Supervisor Joe Simitian was the Master of
Ceremonies. Speakers included retired Supervisor Mike Wasserman, County
Parks Director Don Rocha, and NAQCPA President Tere Johnson. Here are pictures of the celebration. Here are videos of the speeches. Starting
in 2024, Tere Johnson will be passing on the reins of the NAQCPA
presidency to Veronica Jordan. She has been a member of the NAQCPA
board of directors for many years. Her roots are in New Almaden.
Members of her family worked in the mines. She is a board member of the
California Pioneers of Santa Clara County and manages the Hacienda
Cemetery in New Almaden. The picture above is Veronica speaking at Pioneer Day 2022. She also spoke about the Hacienda Cemetery at Pioneer Day 2023. March
2024: Kick off Women’s History Month by discovering great pioneering
women of New Almaden during crafternoons at the mining museum all March
long! Follow in 19th century artist and writer Mary Halleck Foote’s
footsteps by becoming an amateur journalist (3/1-31). Create a
nourishing meal like the women of the Barraza family by sewing together
a pretend pasty (3/8-31). Protect the great outdoors like 21st century
preservationist Kitty Monahan by making an artistic rendition of a park
(3/15-31).This is a free drop-in event. No registration required. Address: 21350 Almaden Rd, San Jose, CA 95120
Current NAQCPA Officers:
Here is a document about NAQCPA's history, originally prepared by Art Boudreault and passed out in 2017 at Pioneer Day. It was updated by Mike Cox for Pioneer Day 2022. (Updated 11/15/22 to correct errors and add John Drew to Obituaries.) NAQCPA has published and mailed out paper newsletters to members, usually quarterly, starting in April 1983. The last issue was published in 2020. It was stopped because of pandemic restrictions and disabilities of the editors. It has been resumed in 2022 as an e-newsletter. It was emailed to members whose email addresses are on file or if they sent their email addresses to:
NAQCPA
accepts donations of volunteer time, financial support, and artifacts.
Since NAQCPA is a nonprofit 501c3 corporation recognized by the state
of California and the IRS, donations may be tax-deductible.
FINANCIAL SUPPORT Financial support is important to serve our members with newsletter distribution, historical preservation efforts, as well as fund special projects throughout the year. You can donate online (also includes membership renewal). Financial contributions by check can be mailed to: NAQCPA
P.O. Box 124 New Almaden, CA 95042-0124 ARTIFACTS
If
you live in or near the Santa Clara Valley or Silicon Valley in
Northern California or are planning a trip to the area, you may enjoy a
visit to the New Almaden Quicksilver County Park. Come and see our
beautiful park and learn about its wildlife, and many historic
photographs, writings, relics, and landmarks. You can reach the park
office at (408) 268-3883. Note: the Casa Grande and the Almaden Quicksilver Mining Museum were closed due to problems with the facilities in the building since November, 2022. Those have been fixed. The museum reopened in October, 2023. The Casa Grande and the Almaden Quicksilver Mining Museum were closed for renovation starting in 2009. The Grand Re-Opening ceremony was held on Pioneer Day, November 13, 2010. It re-opened on January 14, 2011. The museum is open-year round except for Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Year's Day. Hours vary seasonally. You can reach the museum at (408) 918-7770. It is located at 21350 Almaden Road in New Almaden. Call the museum or check the website first to be sure it is open. These are the current hours: Fridays-Sundays: 12:00-4:00 pm Mondays-Thursdays: Closed Many NAQCPA members have served as docents in the museum, giving guided tours. There are frequent events at the Casa Grande, such as Living History Days, Play Like a Miner, and historical talks. See the events calendar below. There are education programs for 4-6 graders. (Here is the Teaching and Activity Guide for Almaden Quicksilver.) One of the period rooms in the Casa Grande Mining exhibits in the Almaden Quicksilver Mining Museum The Archives of the New Almaden Quicksilver Mining Museum are online. NAQCPA members have been helping to scan in thousands of historical documents and pictures into the archive. The archives are available for searching and viewing. You can search for specific topics using keywords or just display random images to get a sample of the collection. You can order high-resolution images without watermarks. Here is an example of an historic photo from the archives: This yard, at the former site of the Hacienda Reduction Works, contains a collection of equipment from the New Almaden Mine and the Guadalupe mine. One item of particular interest is an old wooden Cornish pump from an English design which was used to pump water out of the mine shafts. Another unusual item, a cylindrical piece of machinery, was a small rotary furnace used for extracting Mercury from crushed cinnabar ore. Hacienda
Mining Display Outdoor Museum
Displays at the Hacienda Outdoor
Museum
For years, there was an
unorganized collection of rusting mining equipment sitting behind a
fence in the Hacienda area of Almaden Quicksilver near the Deep Gulch
Trail entrance. Above is how it looked in 2008.
NAQCPA members, led by Bruce
Bartlett (above), organized, repaired, and re-arranged the equipment
and added other mining equipment. They had interpretive signs made,
paid for the fencing, and created life-size figures.
Pioneer Days Pioneer Day 2014, Rossi Retort Dedication Since
1983, NAQCPA has
held their
annual Pioneer Day celebration in Almaden Quicksilver County Park, in
partnership with the County Parks Department. The original purpose of
Pioneer Day was to be a get-together to share stories with former New
Almaden miners and people who remembered the mines. While that is still
the case, it has also been associated with the dedication of historic
sites, interpretive signs, or projects in the park. Most of these were
NAQCPA projects, or NAQCPA members were involved with them.
Pioneer Day – 10/14/23 NAQCPA's annual Pioneer Day is a time to remember and celebrate the glory days of the New Almaden Quicksilver Mine. There was food, giveaways, artifacts on display, historic pictures, and talks about the cemeteries of New Almaden. It was held on Saturday October 14, 2023 at the Casa Grande from 11 am to 2 pm.
New Almaden Days The Santa Clara County Horsemen's Association at the Jump-In Parade, 9/13/14 For more than 34 years, the
community of
New Almaden has held their New Almaden Day community celebration,
kicked off by the Jump-In parade. It's an informal parade around the
town, where anyone can jump in and join. Afterwards, there is a
carnival held at the New Almaden Community Club, featuring games,
prizes, food, and entertainment. The last New Almaden Day and
Jump-In Parade before the pandemic was held on Saturday September 14, 2019. It was canceled in 2020
and 2021 due to the pandemic. It came back on September 10,
2022. Last year, it was held on September 9, 2023. This year, it will be held on September 14, 2024, starting at
11:00 am at the New Almaden Community Club.
News, Media, Articles, and Links Recipients of the Lifetime Presidential Volunteer Service Award (L to R): Art Boudreault, Roy Ichinaga, Ron Horii, Mike Boulland, Ranger John Heenan accepting for Richard and Margaret Brunner, Kitty Monahan, Jaime Day
Pictures and Special Reports View of Almaden Reservoir from the Hidalgo Cemetery Trail
Living History Day, Casa Grande, 2/14/15, left to right: Mike Boulland, Mary Moran, Elaine Hill, Bridgett Orcutt, Doug Bergtholdt See here for the County Parks' Upcoming Events. See here for past events at Almaden Quicksilver and other parks.
For more
information about the organization and activities, send us an email
at naqcpa.newalmaden@gmail.com. |