Campbell, California
Encyclopedia
Campbell is a city in Santa Clara County
Santa Clara County, California
Santa Clara County is a county located at the southern end of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. As of 2010 it had a population of 1,781,642. The county seat is San Jose. The highly urbanized Santa Clara Valley within Santa Clara County is also known as Silicon Valley...

, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

, a suburb
Suburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...

 of San Jose
San Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...

, and part of Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley is a term which refers to the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area in Northern California in the United States. The region is home to many of the world's largest technology corporations...

, in the San Francisco Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...

. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, Campbell's population is 39,349. Although not a major high-tech city like many of its neighbors, Campbell is the original home of eBay
EBay
eBay Inc. is an American internet consumer-to-consumer corporation that manages eBay.com, an online auction and shopping website in which people and businesses buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services worldwide...

 and of its creator, Pierre Omidyar
Pierre Omidyar
Pierre Morad Omidyar is a French-Iranian American entrepreneur and philanthropist/economist, and the founder/chairman of the eBay auction site...

.

Campbell is home to the Pruneyard Shopping Center
Pruneyard Shopping Center
The PruneYard Shopping Center is a sprawling 250,000 square foot shopping center located in Campbell, California at the intersection of Campbell Avenue and Bascom Avenue, just east of State Route 17. It also features three office towers, one of which is the tallest building in the area outside of...

, a sprawling open-air retail complex which was involved in a famous U.S. Supreme Court case
Pruneyard Shopping Center v. Robins
Pruneyard Shopping Center v. Robins, , was a U.S. Supreme Court decision issued on June 9, 1980 which arose out of a free speech dispute between the Pruneyard Shopping Center in Campbell, California, and several local high school students...

 that established the extent of the right to free speech in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

.
The larger of the associated Pruneyard Towers, built in 1970, was for many years the tallest building between
San Francisco and Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

. Today the Pruneyard Shopping Center
Pruneyard Shopping Center
The PruneYard Shopping Center is a sprawling 250,000 square foot shopping center located in Campbell, California at the intersection of Campbell Avenue and Bascom Avenue, just east of State Route 17. It also features three office towers, one of which is the tallest building in the area outside of...

 is home to Democrat Mike Honda
Mike Honda
Michael Makoto "Mike" Honda is an American Democratic Party politician. He currently serves as the U.S. Representative for , encompassing western San Jose and Silicon Valley...

 and the South Bay offices of the FBI.

Geography

Campbell is bordered on the east and north by San Jose
San Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...

 and on the south by Los Gatos
Los Gatos, California
The Town of Los Gatos is an incorporated town in Santa Clara County, California, United States. The population was 29,413 at the 2010 census. It is located in the San Francisco Bay Area at the southwest corner of San Jose in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains...

. A narrow strip of San Jose separates Campbell on the west from Saratoga
Saratoga, California
Saratoga is a city in Santa Clara County, California, USA. It is located on the west side of the Santa Clara Valley, directly west of San Jose, in the San Francisco Bay area. The population was 29,926 at the 2010 census....

.

According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...

, the city has a total area of 5.9 square miles (15.3 km²). 5.8 square miles (15 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square mile (0.258998811 km²) of it is water.

Of the total area, 1.49% is water, consisting of percolation ponds in Los Gatos Creek Park
Los Gatos Creek Park
Los Gatos Creek Park is a park in Campbell, California, a town that is bisected by the Los Gatos Creek.-Location:Vehicular access is off of Dell Avenue, just North of East Hacienda Avenue. A parking lot is at the end of the access lane. California State Route 17 runs just to the East of the...

 and in other locations; San Tomas Aquino Creek
San Tomas Aquino Creek
San Tomas Aquinas Creek, known locally as San Tomas Aquino Creek, is a stream that heads on El Sereno mountain in El Sereno Open Space Preserve in Saratoga, California in Santa Clara County, California, United States...

, which flows north on the west side of the city, is completely enclosed with fence
Fence
A fence is a freestanding structure designed to restrict or prevent movement across a boundary. It is generally distinguished from a wall by the lightness of its construction: a wall is usually restricted to such barriers made from solid brick or concrete, blocking vision as well as passage .Fences...

s and runs through concrete
Concrete
Concrete is a composite construction material, composed of cement and other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, aggregate , water and chemical admixtures.The word concrete comes from the Latin word...

 culvert
Culvert
A culvert is a device used to channel water. It may be used to allow water to pass underneath a road, railway, or embankment. Culverts can be made of many different materials; steel, polyvinyl chloride and concrete are the most common...

s; and Los Gatos Creek, which flows north-north-east on the east side of the city and has paths
Trail
A trail is a path with a rough beaten or dirt/stone surface used for travel. Trails may be for use only by walkers and in some places are the main access route to remote settlements...

 along both banks for hikers and joggers (locally called the "Par Course").

State Route 17 runs roughly parallel to Los Gatos Creek on its eastern side; State Route 85
California State Route 85
State Route 85 is a freeway which connects Mountain View and southern San Jose. The entire freeway is named the West Valley Freeway. The majority of the route is also named the Norman Y. Mineta Highway, with the exception of the portion of Highway 85 passing through Saratoga which is named the CHP...

 runs roughly east-west through Los Gatos just south of Campbell and cuts through the southwest corner of the city.

2010

The 2010 United States Census reported that Campbell had a population of 39,349. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

 was 6,685.2 people per square mile (2,581.2/km²). The racial makeup of Campbell was 26,315 (66.9%) White, 1,158 (2.9%) African American, 275 (0.7%) Native American, 6,320 (16.1%) Asian, 161 (0.4%) Pacific Islander, 2,713 (6.9%) from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, and 2,407 (6.1%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7,247 persons (18.4%).

The Census reported that 39,148 people (99.5% of the population) lived in households, 79 (0.2%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 122 (0.3%) were institutionalized.

There were 16,163 households, out of which 4,897 (30.3%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 7,133 (44.1%) were opposite-sex married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

 living together, 1,741 (10.8%) had a female householder with no husband present, 812 (5.0%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 1,092 (6.8%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships
POSSLQ
POSSLQ is an abbreviation for "Persons of Opposite Sex Sharing Living Quarters," a term coined in the late 1970s by the United States Census Bureau as part of an effort to more accurately gauge the prevalence of cohabitation in American households....

, and 138 (0.9%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 4,805 households (29.7%) were made up of individuals and 1,328 (8.2%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42. There were 9,686 families
Family (U.S. Census)
A family or family household is defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes as "a householder and one or more other people related to the householder by birth, marriage, or adoption. They do not include same-sex married couples even if the marriage was performed in a state...

 (59.9% of all households); the average family size was 3.05.

The population was spread out with 8,271 people (21.0%) under the age of 18, 2,982 people (7.6%) aged 18 to 24, 12,834 people (32.6%) aged 25 to 44, 10,868 people (27.6%) aged 45 to 64, and 4,394 people (11.2%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38.3 years. For every 100 females there were 96.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.2 males.

There were 16,950 housing units at an average density of 2,879.7 per square mile (1,111.9/km²), of which 8,093 (50.1%) were owner-occupied, and 8,070 (49.9%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.8%; the rental vacancy rate was 4.6%. 20,975 people (53.3% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 18,173 people (46.2%) lived in rental housing units.

2000

As of the census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

of 2000, there were 39,200 people, 15,920 households, and 9,122 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

 was 6,802.8 inhabitants per square mile (2,624.8/km²). There were 16,286 housing units at an average density of 2,905.0 per square mile (1,120.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 72.78% White, 2.53% African American, 0.65% Native American, 14.16% Asian, 0.23% Pacific Islander, 4.87% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, and 4.77% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 13.33% of the population.

28.0% of the households had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.6% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

 living together, 10.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.7% were non-families. 30.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 3.02.

The city population was 21.6% under the age of 18, 7.6% from 18 to 24, 40.2% from 25 to 44, 20.9% from 45 to 64, and 9.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 98.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.7 males.

About 48% of the adult population has at least one college
College
A college is an educational institution or a constituent part of an educational institution. Usage varies in English-speaking nations...

-level degree
Academic degree
An academic degree is a position and title within a college or university that is usually awarded in recognition of the recipient having either satisfactorily completed a prescribed course of study or having conducted a scholarly endeavour deemed worthy of his or her admission to the degree...

. However, this has declined in recent years as a greater number of working-class immigrants move into the city.

The median income for a household in the city was $67,214, and the median income for a family was $78,663 (these figures had risen to $70,928 and $89,285 respectively as of a 2007 estimate). Males had a median income of $52,454 versus $43,750 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...

 for the city was $34,441. About 3.2% of families and 4.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.2% of those under age 18 and 8.3% of those age 65 or over.

Climate

The average rainfall, based on the last nine years (1998-99 to 2006-07 rain season) of data, is 14.82 inches (376.4 mm).

Economy

Barracuda Networks
Barracuda Networks
Barracuda Networks, Inc. is a privately held company providing security, networking and storage solutions based on appliances and cloud services. The company’s security products include solutions for protection against email, web surfing, web hackers and instant messaging threats such as spam,...

, Move and YouSendIt
YouSendIt
YouSendIt is a Web-based secure digital file delivery company, which lets users securely send, receive and track files on demand. It is an alternative to sending large e-mail attachments, using FTP, and sending CDs or DVDs or tape or USB flash drive via Sneakernet...

 are among the companies based in Campbell.

Top employers

According to the City's 2010 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city are:
# Employer # of Employees
1 Fry's Electronics
Fry's Electronics
Fry's Electronics is a big-box store and retailer of software, consumer electronics, computer hardware, with in store computer repair and custom computer building services and household appliances with a chain of superstores headquartered in Silicon Valley...

287
2 Whole Foods Market
Whole Foods Market
Whole Foods Market is a foods supermarket chain based in Austin, Texas which emphasizes "natural and organic products." The company has been ranked among the most socially responsible businesses and placed third on the U.S...

250
3 Barracuda Networks
Barracuda Networks
Barracuda Networks, Inc. is a privately held company providing security, networking and storage solutions based on appliances and cloud services. The company’s security products include solutions for protection against email, web surfing, web hackers and instant messaging threats such as spam,...

210
4 The Home Depot
The Home Depot
The Home Depot is an American retailer of home improvement and construction products and services.The Home Depot operates 2,248 big-box format stores across the United States , Canada , Mexico and China, with a 12-store chain...

209
5 Mohler, Nixon & Williams 178
6 City of Campbell 164
7 Safeway
Safeway Inc.
Safeway Inc. , a Fortune 500 company, is North America's second largest supermarket chain after The Kroger Co., with, as of December 2010, 1,694 stores located throughout the western and central United States and western Canada. It also operates some stores in the Mid-Atlantic region of the Eastern...

159
8 Durham School Services
Durham School Services
Durham School Services is a school bus operator providing tendered pupil transportation throughout the United States, currently operating in 29 states, primarily along the West Coast, in the southern United States, the Midwest, and parts of the Northeast...

143
9 Pacific NetSoft 138
10 Signature Building Maintenance 136

Politics

At the county level, Campbell is located entirely within the 4th supervisorial district, represented on the Santa Clara County
Santa Clara County, California
Santa Clara County is a county located at the southern end of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. As of 2010 it had a population of 1,781,642. The county seat is San Jose. The highly urbanized Santa Clara Valley within Santa Clara County is also known as Silicon Valley...

 Board of Supervisors
County board of supervisors
The Board of Supervisors is the body that supervises the operation of county government in all counties in Arizona, California, Iowa, Mississippi, Virginia, Wisconsin, and Sussex County, New Jersey as well as a handful of counties in New York...

 by Ken Yeager
Ken Yeager
Ken Yeager is an American politician from California, currently serving on the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors, representing District 4. First elected to the board in 2006, he represents the cities of Campbell and Santa Clara, as well as west San Jose and the Burbank and Cambrian...

.

In the state legislature
California State Legislature
The California State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of California. It is a bicameral body consisting of the lower house, the California State Assembly, with 80 members, and the upper house, the California State Senate, with 40 members...

 Campbell is located in the 11th Senate district
California's 11th State Senate district
California's 11th State Senate District is one of 40 Senate Districts. It is currently represented by Democrat Joe Simitian of Palo Alto.-District profile:...

, represented by Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

 Joe Simitian
Joe Simitian
Saren Joseph Simitian is a Democratic California State Senator elected in 2004. Simitian represents the 11th Senate District, which encompasses all or part of 13 cities in San Mateo, Santa Clara, and Santa Cruz counties....

, and in the 24th Assembly district
California's 24th State Assembly district
California's 24th State Assembly District is one of 80 districts in the California State Assembly. It is currently represented by Democrat Jim Beall of San Jose, who succeeded Rebecca Cohn.-District profile:...

, represented by Democrat Jim Beall.

Federally, Campbell is located in California's 15th congressional district
California's 15th congressional district
California's 15th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of California that covers part of Santa Clara County west of San Jose and includes the cities of Los Gatos and Cupertino in Silicon Valley...

, which has a Cook PVI
Cook Partisan Voting Index
The Cook Partisan Voting Index , sometimes referred to as simply the Partisan Voting Index , is a measurement of how strongly an American congressional district or state leans toward one political party compared to the nation as a whole...

 of D +14 and is represented by Democrat Mike Honda
Mike Honda
Michael Makoto "Mike" Honda is an American Democratic Party politician. He currently serves as the U.S. Representative for , encompassing western San Jose and Silicon Valley...

.

The City is represented by the City Council who internally elects a mayor and vice-mayor every calendar year. In December 2009, Evan Low
Evan Low
Evan Low is an American politician and a member of the Campbell, California City Council. In 2009 and 2010 his colleagues on the Council selected him to serve as Mayor. He current term on the council expires in 2014....

 and Jason Baker were elected Mayor and Vice-Mayor, respectively.

History

Campbell was founded by Benjamin Campbell, after whom the city was named. He came to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

 in 1846 with his father, William Campbell. William started a sawmill in Saratoga
Saratoga, California
Saratoga is a city in Santa Clara County, California, USA. It is located on the west side of the Santa Clara Valley, directly west of San Jose, in the San Francisco Bay area. The population was 29,926 at the 2010 census....

 and surveyed the cities of San Jose
San Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...

 and Santa Clara. In 1851, Benjamin bought 160 acre (0.6474976 km²) in southern Santa Clara Valley
Santa Clara Valley
The Santa Clara Valley is a valley just south of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California in the United States. Much of Santa Clara County and its county seat, San José, are in the Santa Clara Valley. The valley was originally known as the Valley of Heart’s Delight for its high concentration...

 and cultivated hay
Hay
Hay is grass, legumes or other herbaceous plants that have been cut, dried, and stored for use as animal fodder, particularly for grazing livestock such as cattle, horses, goats, and sheep. Hay is also fed to pets such as rabbits and guinea pigs...

 and grain on it. This area later became Campbell's historical downtown core.

About a third of Campbell was a part of the 1839 Alta California
Alta California
Alta California was a province and territory in the Viceroyalty of New Spain and later a territory and department in independent Mexico. The territory was created in 1769 out of the northern part of the former province of Las Californias, and consisted of the modern American states of California,...

 Rancho Rinconada de Los Gatos
Rancho Rinconada de Los Gatos
El Rancho Rinconada de los Gatos was a Mexican land grant in present day Santa Clara County, California made in 1840 by Governor Juan Alvarado to Jose Maria Hernandez and Sebastian Fabian Peralta. Located in the southern San Francisco Bay Area, the grant included present day Los Gatos and Monte...

 land grant. The Northern extent of the granted land was along present-day Rincon Avenue and across the North end of John D. Morgan Park in central Campbell.

In 1878, Campbell sold his land for $5 an acre
Acre
The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...

 to a railroad company. By 1887, the first subdivision was recorded west of the railroad from Campbell Avenue to the spot where the Water Tower Plaza now stands. The area became the center for shipping fruit grown in the surrounding area, and within a short time, the drying grounds and canneries made Campbell an important rail center. The Campbell Fruit Growers' Union became a well-known cooperative with its 17 acres (68,796.6 m²) drying yard. J.C. Ainsley Packing Company, Hyde Cannery, and Payne Cannery were the main fruit packing companies. The Bank of Campbell was founded in 1895.

Campbell was officially incorporated as a city in 1952. The city then grew rapidly as orchard lands disappeared tract by tract. Today, Campbell is a suburban residential neighborhood in the southern part of the Santa Clara Valley
Santa Clara Valley
The Santa Clara Valley is a valley just south of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California in the United States. Much of Santa Clara County and its county seat, San José, are in the Santa Clara Valley. The valley was originally known as the Valley of Heart’s Delight for its high concentration...

.

Layout

Campbell is situated in the southern portion of the Santa Clara Valley
Santa Clara Valley
The Santa Clara Valley is a valley just south of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California in the United States. Much of Santa Clara County and its county seat, San José, are in the Santa Clara Valley. The valley was originally known as the Valley of Heart’s Delight for its high concentration...

, with Highway 17 passing through eastern Campbell and Highway 85
California State Route 85
State Route 85 is a freeway which connects Mountain View and southern San Jose. The entire freeway is named the West Valley Freeway. The majority of the route is also named the Norman Y. Mineta Highway, with the exception of the portion of Highway 85 passing through Saratoga which is named the CHP...

 to its south. The historic downtown section sits just west of the railroad in the central area. The southwestern area of Campbell is known as the San Tomas neighborhood and varies somewhat from most of Campbell in the size of its lots and styles of housing. Hamilton Avenue is one the northernmost roads in Campbell.

The largest park in Campbell is Los Gatos Creek Park near Highway 17, and the second largest is John D. Morgan Park.

Transportation

Campbell is served by several major roads, including State Route 17, State Route 85
California State Route 85
State Route 85 is a freeway which connects Mountain View and southern San Jose. The entire freeway is named the West Valley Freeway. The majority of the route is also named the Norman Y. Mineta Highway, with the exception of the portion of Highway 85 passing through Saratoga which is named the CHP...

 and San Tomas Expressway (Santa Clara County Route G4). Major local arterial roads include Winchester Boulevard and Bascom Avenue.

Public transport
Public transport
Public transport is a shared passenger transportation service which is available for use by the general public, as distinct from modes such as taxicab, car pooling or hired buses which are not shared by strangers without private arrangement.Public transport modes include buses, trolleybuses, trams...

 in Campbell is operated by the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority
Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority
The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority is a special-purpose district responsible for public transit services, congestion management, specific highway improvement projects, and countywide transportation planning for Santa Clara County, California, United States...

 and includes several local and express bus lines that link the community to nearby towns, including Cupertino
Cupertino, California
Cupertino is an affluent suburban city in Santa Clara County, California in the U.S., directly west of San Jose on the western edge of the Santa Clara Valley with portions extending into the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains. The population was 58,302 at the time of the 2010 census. Forbes...

, Los Gatos
Los Gatos, California
The Town of Los Gatos is an incorporated town in Santa Clara County, California, United States. The population was 29,413 at the 2010 census. It is located in the San Francisco Bay Area at the southwest corner of San Jose in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains...

, Palo Alto
Palo Alto, California
Palo Alto is a California charter city located in the northwest corner of Santa Clara County, in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, United States. The city shares its borders with East Palo Alto, Mountain View, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Stanford, Portola Valley, and Menlo Park. It is...

 San Jose
San Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...

, Santa Clara
Santa Clara, California
Santa Clara , founded in 1777 and incorporated in 1852, is a city in Santa Clara County, in the U.S. state of California. The city is the site of the eighth of 21 California missions, Mission Santa Clara de Asís, and was named after the mission. The Mission and Mission Gardens are located on the...

 and Saratoga
Saratoga, California
Saratoga is a city in Santa Clara County, California, USA. It is located on the west side of the Santa Clara Valley, directly west of San Jose, in the San Francisco Bay area. The population was 29,926 at the 2010 census....

. Additionally, the town is served by three light rail
Light rail
Light rail or light rail transit is a form of urban rail public transportation that generally has a lower capacity and lower speed than heavy rail and metro systems, but higher capacity and higher speed than traditional street-running tram systems...

 stations on the Mountain View - Winchester
Mountain View - Winchester (VTA)
Mountain View–Winchester is a light rail route operated by Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority . The Mountain View–Winchester route is one of three existing VTA light rail routes. The other two light rail routes are the Alum Rock–Santa Teresa line and Ohlone/Chynoweth–Almaden line...

 line, including Hamilton Station
Hamilton (VTA)
Hamilton is a light rail station operated by Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority . Hamilton is served by the Mountain View–Winchester light rail line. The station has a single track used by trains traveling in both directions...

, Downtown Campbell Station
Downtown Campbell (VTA)
Downtown Campbell is a Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority light rail station, located in downtown Campbell. Downtown Campbell station contains one island platform, and marks the beginning of a double-track section which continues to the end of line, Winchester station in western Campbell...

, and the line's terminus at Winchester Station
Winchester (VTA)
Winchester Transit Center is a light rail station and park-and-ride lot operated by Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority in Campbell, California. Winchester is the southern terminus of the Mountain View–Winchester light rail line.-History:...

. These stations were opened as part of the first phase of the Vasona Light Rail project; the line will be extended past Winchester to Vasona Junction in Los Gatos
Los Gatos, California
The Town of Los Gatos is an incorporated town in Santa Clara County, California, United States. The population was 29,413 at the 2010 census. It is located in the San Francisco Bay Area at the southwest corner of San Jose in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains...

 once funding is secured. That line is now served by buses.

The extension was the subject of a minor dispute with the Federal Railroad Administration
Federal Railroad Administration
The Federal Railroad Administration is an agency in the United States Department of Transportation. The agency was created by the Department of Transportation Act of 1966...

 over the sounding of train horns late at night. This dispute delayed the opening of most of the extension for two months before the grand opening on October 1, 2005.

Housing and businesses

There are few large shopping centers or business complexes in the city, as Campbell is primarily a suburb
Suburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...

an residential area. Fry's Electronics
Fry's Electronics
Fry's Electronics is a big-box store and retailer of software, consumer electronics, computer hardware, with in store computer repair and custom computer building services and household appliances with a chain of superstores headquartered in Silicon Valley...

 and The Home Depot
The Home Depot
The Home Depot is an American retailer of home improvement and construction products and services.The Home Depot operates 2,248 big-box format stores across the United States , Canada , Mexico and China, with a 12-store chain...

 each have stores within the city limits and are two of the city's largest employers.

Most residences are single-family homes, although there are some areas with condominiums, duplex
Semi-detached
Semi-detached housing consists of pairs of houses built side by side as units sharing a party wall and usually in such a way that each house's layout is a mirror image of its twin...

es, and apartment
Apartment
An apartment or flat is a self-contained housing unit that occupies only part of a building...

s. Single-family homes typically have one or two bathroom
Bathroom
A bathroom is a room for bathing in containing a bathtub and/or a shower and optionally a toilet, a sink/hand basin/wash basin and possibly also a bidet....

s and three or four bedroom
Bedroom
A bedroom is a private room where people usually sleep for the night or relax during the day.About one third of our lives are spent sleeping and most of the time we are asleep, we are sleeping in a bedroom. To be considered a bedroom the room needs to have bed. Bedrooms can range from really simple...

s and are between 1000 square feet (92.9 m²) and 1600 square feet (148.6 m²) on lots
Lot (real estate)
In real estate, a lot or plot is a tract or parcel of land owned or meant to be owned by some owner. A lot is essentially considered a parcel of real property in some countries or immovable property in other countries...

 typically measuring about 6000 square feet (557.4 m²). The vast majority were built in the 1950s through 1970s. There are pockets of older homes, mostly near downtown
Downtown
Downtown is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's core or central business district ....

, often in demand for their architectural styles. There are also pockets of newer, much larger homes about 3500 square feet (325.2 m²), mostly built in the 1990s on subdivided lots previously occupied by homes dating from the first half of the 20th century. Most of Campbell's apartments are located in northern Campbell on Hamilton and Campbell Avenues.

Campbell's downtown is located near where Campbell Avenue intersects with the railroad. The downtown has many shops, bars, and restaurants.

The oldest commercial building in the city was erected in 1920, originally for the Grower's Bank. The building was converted to a movie theater in 1938. In 1968, The Gaslighter Theater company purchased and refurbished the building with a small stage and bar. The Gaslighter produced melodrama
Melodrama
The term melodrama refers to a dramatic work that exaggerates plot and characters in order to appeal to the emotions. It may also refer to the genre which includes such works, or to language, behavior, or events which resemble them...

s and Vaudeville
Vaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...

-style shows there until it closed in 2006. The building was sold and is currently undergoing refurbishment to become a lounge.

As of October 2006, the median price of single-family homes and condos was $707,500, up 4.8% from the previous October, and averaging $472 per square foot ($5,080/m²) according to the San Jose Mercury News
San Jose Mercury News
The San Jose Mercury News is a daily newspaper in San Jose, California. On its web site, however, it calls itself Silicon Valley Mercury News. The paper is owned by MediaNews Group...

; the average single-family home price, excluding condos, was $645,000 in January, 2004 (according to the Santa Clara County Association of Realtors). The price is based largely on the land value; the replacement cost for homes is about $150 to $200 per square foot ($1,600 to $2,200/m²).

Like many other cities in the Santa Clara Valley
Santa Clara Valley
The Santa Clara Valley is a valley just south of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California in the United States. Much of Santa Clara County and its county seat, San José, are in the Santa Clara Valley. The valley was originally known as the Valley of Heart’s Delight for its high concentration...

, Campbell was originally orchard land that was later developed into housing tracts. A few small orchards remain, though their numbers continue to dwindle rapidly as they are converted to housing and shopping.

Points of interest

In the early 1990s, the Ainsley House
Ainsley House
Ainsley House is a restored English Tudor style building in Campbell, California. It is now a museum open to the public.- Ainsley House :The historic Ainsley House is an example of the English Tudor Revival style popular in the South San Francisco Bay Area during the 1920s...

, a unique English Tudor-style house built in 1925, was moved from its original site at the corner of Hamilton and Bascom Avenues (the current site of eBay's headquarters) to the downtown quad and furnished with many of the Ainsley family's original furnishings. It has become the centerpiece for the Campbell Historical Museum, which houses additional exhibits in the nearby old firehouse
Fire station
A fire station is a structure or other area set aside for storage of firefighting apparatus , personal protective equipment, fire hose, fire extinguishers, and other fire extinguishing equipment...

. The Ainsley House was built in the style of English country cottages for John Colpitts Ainsley, a canning
Canning
Canning is a method of preserving food in which the food contents are processed and sealed in an airtight container. Canning provides a typical shelf life ranging from one to five years, although under specific circumstances a freeze-dried canned product, such as canned, dried lentils, can last as...

 pioneer in Santa Clara County, which was at the time known for its vast spreads of fruit orchard
Orchard
An orchard is an intentional planting of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit or nut-producing trees which are grown for commercial production. Orchards are also sometimes a feature of large gardens, where they serve an aesthetic as well as a productive...

s.

The Campbell Community Center is located on the northwest corner of Winchester and Campbell Avenues, in the building that used to be Campbell High School, the original school in the Campbell Union High School District
Campbell Union High School District
The Campbell Union High School District, referred to as the CUHSD, is a school district in the greater San Jose, California, USA area, including Campbell and Saratoga. Its five main campuses, Branham, Del Mar, Leigh, Prospect, and Westmont, serve more than 7800 students, and employ 550 teachers and...

. The Redwood Tree, which stands at the corner of Winchester Boulevard and Campbell
Campbell
-Places:In Australia:* Campbell, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb of Canberra, AustraliaIn Canada:* Campbell, Nova Scotia, on Cape Breton Island Nova Scotia* Campbell Road, Edmonton, AlbertaIn New Zealand:...

 Avenue was originally planted there on May 11, 1903 by then President, Teddy Roosevelt. The city acquired the property on August 1, 1985, five years after the school shut down. The Heritage Theater, formerly the high school's auditorium, was reopened after renovations in 2004. The Community Center holds classes, and portions are available to be rented for various events.

Campbell for many years had one of the most successful youth baseball programs in the country, reaching 14 World Series from 1960-87.

Campbell’s youth baseball system dates to 1909, when Campbell High School formed its first team and won the Interurban Athletic Union championship. The community’s first non-scholastic youth baseball organization was the Junior Hardball League, which began in 1947. In 1954, Campbell Little League and Campbell Pony League began operation, and Moreland Little League, which is located in west San Jose but historically has served many Campbell residents, started in 1959.

Moreland in 1962 became the only Northern California team to win a Little League World Series, with 6-foot-1, 210-pound Ted Campbell pitching a no-hitter in a 3-0 victory over Kankakee, Ill, in the championship game. Campbell Little League reached the Little League World Series championship game in 1970, 1976 and 1979, becoming one of only two American leagues to go to the LLWS three times in one decade. In all, Campbell-system teams have won six youth baseball World Series and finished second five times. Nine future major leaguers played in the Campbell youth baseball system: Don Hahn, George Tsamis, Steve Davis, Dan Gladden, Doug Capilla, Rich Troedson, Joe Ferguson, John Oldham and Greg Gohr.

“The Last Baseball Town,” a book by Campbell resident Chuck Hildebrand that chronicles the city’s baseball heritage, was published in May 2009.

Campbell was also the site of the 1896 spree-killing by James Dunham
James Dunham
James C. Dunham, was a multiple murderer who, on the night of May 26, 1896, killed his wife, her family, and two of that family's servants in Campbell, California.Using an axe and firearms, Dunham murdered:*Hattie Wells Dunham...

.

In 1975, Mayor Rusty Hammer, at 21, became the youngest mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....

 ever in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

.

In 2009 and 2010, Mayor Evan D. Low, at 27, became one of the youngest Asian-American mayors and one of the youngest openly gay politicians in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

.

The fruit cocktail was invented in Campbell.

Lars Frederiksen
Lars Frederiksen
Lars Erik Frederiksen is an American guitarist and vocalist, most notably for the punk rock band Rancid, and as the frontman of Lars Frederiksen and the Bastards and The Old Firm Casuals. He was also briefly a member of the UK Subs in 1991...

, singer and guitarist for the punk band Rancid
Rancid (band)
Rancid is an American punk rock band formed in Berkeley, California in 1991. Founded by Tim Armstrong and Matt Freeman, both of whom previously played in the ska punk band Operation Ivy, Rancid is credited—along with Green Day and The Offspring—for reviving mainstream interest in punk rock in the...

, grew up in Campbell and frequently mentions the town in songs by both Rancid and his side project Lars Frederiksen & The Bastards.

Eric Victorino, singer of now disbanded Strata
Strata (band)
Strata was a rock band from Campbell, California formed in 2001. They released two full-length albums with Wind-up Records, before disbanding after the departure of vocalist Eric Victorino on 19 January 2008.-History:...

, and currently singer of The Limousines
The Limousines
The Limousines are an American indietronica band based out of California's San Francisco Bay Area. Made up of multi-instramentalist/producer Giovanni Giusti andsongwriter/vocalist Eric Victorino, the duo formed in 2007 and has since gained...

, grew up in Campbell and often cites the town as his home. His production company, Orchard City Books and Noise, is based in Campbell and has put out two books of his short stories and poetry, including albums by The Limousines
The Limousines
The Limousines are an American indietronica band based out of California's San Francisco Bay Area. Made up of multi-instramentalist/producer Giovanni Giusti andsongwriter/vocalist Eric Victorino, the duo formed in 2007 and has since gained...

.

Notable residents

  • Alan Aerts
    Alan Aerts
    Alan Aerts is a world powerlifting and benchpress champion, born May 6, 1956. Aerts has polycythemia, a fatal blood disease. He is also the owner and operator of the largest vending machine business in the San Jose, California area, ""...

    , world powerlifting champion and Campbell "Citizen of the Year" in 2006
  • Sylvia Browne
    Sylvia Browne
    Sylvia Browne is an American author who describes herself as a psychic and spiritual medium...

    , psychic, spiritualist, author
  • Steve Caballero
    Steve Caballero
    Steve Caballero is a professional skateboarder and musician. Steve was born in the year of the dragon, and has had several board graphics that feature dragons. He was born with scoliosis.-Life and career:...

    , skateboard professional with Powell & Peralta
  • Bob Burton
    Bob Burton
    Bob Burton is a freelance journalist and public relations analyst based in Canberra, the capital of Australia.He worked until the early 1990s as a researcher and campaigner on energy, mining and forestry issues for The Wilderness Society in Australia....

    , Cal State Fullerton men's basketball coach
  • Lars Frederiksen
    Lars Frederiksen
    Lars Erik Frederiksen is an American guitarist and vocalist, most notably for the punk rock band Rancid, and as the frontman of Lars Frederiksen and the Bastards and The Old Firm Casuals. He was also briefly a member of the UK Subs in 1991...

     of Rancid and of Lars Frederiksen & The Bastards
  • Don Hahn
    Don Hahn (baseball)
    Donald Antone Hahn, born November 16, 1948 in San Francisco, California, is a former Major League baseball player, an outfielder known primarily for his fielding ability. Hahn played for the Montreal Expos, New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies, St. Louis Cardinals, and San Diego Padres.Hahn...

    , major league
    Major League Baseball
    Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...

     outfielder
    Outfielder
    Outfielder is a generic term applied to each of the people playing in the three defensive positions in baseball farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder...

    , 1969-75
  • Dave Meltzer
    Dave Meltzer
    David A. Meltzer is the editor of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter . Sports Illustrated senior writer Frank Deford has praised Meltzer's work, saying that "Meltzer, I believe, is the most accomplished reporter in sports journalism." Meltzer has written for the Oakland Tribune, the Los Angeles...

    , editor and owner of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter
  • Craig Morton
    Craig Morton
    Larry Craig Morton is a former professional football player. He played quarterback in the National Football League for 18 seasons, 1965-82...

    , NFL
    National Football League
    The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...

     quarterback
    Quarterback
    Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...

    , 1965
    1965 NFL season
    The 1965 NFL season was the 46th regular season of the National Football League.Because the Green Bay Packers and Baltimore Colts ended up tied in the Western Conference standings after the regular season ended, a conference playoff game was held in Green Bay. Although the Packers had defeated the...

    -82
    1982 NFL season
    The 1982 NFL season was the 63rd regular season of the National Football League. A 57-day long players' strike reduced the 1982 season from a 16-game schedule per team to an abbreviated nine game schedule...

  • Catherine Sandoval
    Catherine Sandoval
    Catherine J.K. Sandoval is the first Hispanic commissioner of the California Public Utilities Commission. Sandoval is a professor at Santa Clara University School of Law...

    , first Latina Rhodes scholar
    Rhodes Scholarship
    The Rhodes Scholarship, named after Cecil Rhodes, is an international postgraduate award for study at the University of Oxford. It was the first large-scale programme of international scholarships, and is widely considered the "world's most prestigious scholarship" by many public sources such as...

    , first Hispanic on the California Public Utilities Commission
    California Public Utilities Commission
    The California Public Utilities Commission is a regulatory agency which regulates privately owned public utilities in the state of California, including electric power, telecommunications, natural gas and water companies...

  • Joe Staley
    Joe Staley
    Joe Staley is an American football offensive lineman for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League. He was drafted in the 1st round of the 2007 NFL Draft. The 49ers traded their first round pick in 2008 for Staley with the New England Patriots. He was the second 49er taken in the...

    , right tackle for the San Francisco 49ers
    San Francisco 49ers
    The San Francisco 49ers are a professional American football team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the All-America Football Conference and...

    , (2007 - )
    2007 NFL season
    The 2007 NFL season was the 88th regular season of the National Football League.Regular-season play was held from September 6 to December 30....

  • Billy Wilson
    Billy Wilson (American football)
    Billy Wilson was an American football wide receiver who played for the San Francisco 49ers from 1951 to 1960...

    , National Football League wide receiver, 1951–60
  • Scott Wilson
    Scott Wilson
    Scott Wilson was a judge on United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit from 1929 to 1942.-Early life:Scott Wilson was born on January 11, 1870, in Falmouth, Maine. He graduated from Bates College in Maine in 1892 and then studied at the University of Pennsylvania...

    , bodybuilder, former Mr. America and Mr. International

External links

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