Rose Garden

The Rose Garden neighborhood in San Jose, California, is a gentrified residential area, with significant commercial presence along its major streets.

In 1927, what is now the Rose Garden neighborhood was primarily pear and prune orchards, many owned by Food Machinery Corporation (FMC). The area was also home to farmhouses and a few mansions. In that year, the City purchased an 11-acre prune garden and converted part of it into the Municipal Rose Garden. In 1937, John Crummey, the chairman of FMC, subdivided his 25-acre pear orchard into residential lots sold for $5,00 each. This initial development established the core of the neighborhood called Rose Park.

For the most part, the neighborhood has preserved its residential housing. The original architecture of the 1920s and 1930s borrowed bits from the English Cotswold Cottage, Norman and Tudor design. Many of the original bungalows have been extensively remodeled or torn down and replaced with newer architectural styles. Almost all of the homes feature detached garages in the back of the property. This allows the front yards to feature large green spaces with a small long driveway to the back for the garage. The neighborhood is popular with walkers and joggers as the sidewalks are tree lined and bordered with large front yards.

The basic boundaries are Interstate 880 to the northwest, the Alameda (SR 82) to the northeast, and Forest Avenue to the south, although there are variations. The neighborhood surrounds and is named for the San Jose Municipal Rose Garden, a 5½ acre park with thousands of rose bushes.

In addition to the Municipal Rose Garden, the neighborhood is home to the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum, Rosicrucian Park, and O’Connor Hospital.