The Santa Clara County Fairgrounds Heritage Basis (FHF) is creating a everlasting fairgrounds historical past museum within the 1949 State Home Reproduction positioned on the fairgrounds property.
The State Home Reproduction was constructed to commemorate the centennial celebration of San Jose because the state capitol. The FHF additionally hopes to boost funds to revive the constructing to be an correct copy of the 1849 California State Home.
The FHF hopes to deal with a year-round show of fairgrounds historical past plus storage for the gathering and assembly house within the State Home Reproduction. The muse is at first levels of implementing museum software program to scan and doc every merchandise in a searchable database.
“The Santa Clara County Fair is vitally important to the Silicon Valley,” mentioned Salene Duarte, interim co-executive director and truthful supervisor. “We must all understand the heart of a county fair is agriculture, and without agriculture, we would all be naked and hungry.”
The truthful has typically served as a museum for San Jose and Santa Clara County. Elementary faculties usually scheduled area journeys so younger residents may find out about native historical past.
“The fair is still a gathering place for family and friends to see the canned fruit, the quilts and photography, the baby piglets that the city kids haven’t ever seen before,” mentioned Marcella Gulmon, longtime San Jose resident and the fairgrounds heritage curator. “[Children] learn that chocolate milk does not come from a brown cow.”
The Gulmon household has been instrumental in amassing the truthful’s historic assortment. In addition to serving on the inspiration board, Gulmon has been dubbed the “fairground historian.”
“All you need to do is call Marcella,” Duarte mentioned. “She either knows the answer or can find the individual who can give you that answer.”
Gulmon’s analysis into the historical past of the truthful and fairgrounds consists of in search of out historic memorabilia and artifacts on-line, talking with longtime truthful attendees and supporters, and researching historic archives.
“Over the last four years, Marcella has become a fixture here at the fairgrounds,” mentioned Duarte. “She has been meeting new individuals all the time and collecting as much data as possible about all things related to the fairgrounds.”
Gulmon’s assortment is increasing to incorporate any occasion that occurred on the fairgrounds, reminiscent of cultural occasions, concert events, scouting occasions, horse and automobile racing, and marriage ceremony receptions.
“One of the things that brings joy to me, and to all of those that are helping to collect, preserve and document our fairgrounds history,” mentioned Gulmon, “is hearing someone say, ‘That’s my grandma! I’ve not seen photos of her at that age, and I never knew she canned peaches.’”
Gulmon has all the time loved the Santa Clara County Truthful.
“My parents instilled in me the love of the fair from an early age,” she mentioned. “They were both educators at Campbell High School. Part of their job was to encourage their students to enter their projects into the competitive entries at the annual fair. We came as a family every year.”
Gulmon’s household walked by all of the reveals to see the scholars’ tasks. She has fond recollections of seeing the livestock, consuming strawberry shortcake and Italian sausage, strolling by the industrial reveals and driving carnival rides.
Gulmon’s daughter joined 4-H in 2008, and shortly the Gulmon household was again to actively collaborating on the truthful. In 2019, Gulmon attended a planning assembly for the seventy fifth annual truthful.
“I raised my hand to help set up a fair heritage exhibit,” she mentioned. “What I didn’t know was that the only item that the fairgrounds had was a partially filled banker’s box of old black and white photos labeled with only the year.”
And for Gulmon, the remaining is historical past.
“The realization that there were no other local museums or collections that had a comprehensive 80-plus years of fairgrounds history has motivated me to continue this history work,” she mentioned. “In 2020, I joined the Fairgrounds Heritage Foundation board.”
The muse was created in 2015 to protect, promote and develop the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds.
In 2023, the nonprofit Truthful Administration Company agreed that the heritage assortment must be moved to the annex constructing on the fairgrounds property.
A small portion of the historic assortment was displayed on the eightieth annual truthful in over 60 classic show circumstances, Gulmon mentioned.
