California, Santa Clara County, San Jose
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Welcome to the
Gordon House
Home of the Rotary Club of San Jose
Hanford Lennox Gordon was born in 1846 and over his lifetime held a variety of positions as attorney, and officer for the Union Army during the Civil War, a farmer, and a rancher.
Hanford and his wife, Mary, moved to San José from Minnesota in 1887. Upon arrival, the Gordons moved into this house, originally located at 5303 McKee Road. Hanford owned four ranches, including over 100 acres of olive grove on McKee Road, also known as Pala del Rancho.
Shortly after the move West, the Gordons divorced. Hanford remained embroiled in legal issues including a paternity suit involving a home domestic and at least one dispute which resulted in gunfire. In the late 1890s Hanford moved to Los Angeles, eventually re-married and later died in 1920. Mary Gordon remained in the home until her death in 1929.
The house was built in the 1870s. Thanks to the Rotary Club of San Jose, the house moved to History Park in the late 1980s and was restored. Care was taken to restore the veranda in the same manner as the original and the fireplace is made from the original brick. The windows are also original to the house. The Gordon House was dedicated June 6, 1990.
During the past 100 years, Members of the Rotary Club of San Jose have volunteered over 3 million hours for community and international service and given over $5 million in grants to 150 community organizations in San Jose.
In addition to sending hundreds of wheelchairs, ambulances, mammogram machines, and medical equipment around the world for international projects, San Jose Rotary has provided over 40 Gifts of Life heart operations here in San Jose for adults from developing countries. Partnering with surgeons who repair cleft palates, Rotary has also sponsored several international Rotaplast missions.
Since 1985, members have generously supported Rotary International’s commitment to eradicate polio around the world. Working with the United Nations, Rotary has helped prevent over 30 million cases of polio worldwide.
In San Jose Rotary has built or made major contributions to
San Jose’s First Street Signs (1915) • Downtown Drinking Fountains (1922) • Ryland Pool (1925) • Rose Garden Reflecting Pool (1929) • Alum Rock Park (1936) • USO Building (1940) • Camp Costanoan for the Disabled (1954) • Happy Hollow Park and Zoo (1958) • Peralta Adobe Restoration (1960s) • O’Brien’s Candy Store (1975) • Center for Performing Arts’ Bear (1978) • Children’s Discovery Museum (1986) • Gordon House Restoration (1990) • Morone Senior Center (1992) • The Tech Museum (1996) • Rotary Summit Center (2003) • Rotary Heritage Plaza (2008)
(Fraternal or Sororal Organizations • Notable Buildings) Includes location, directions, 4 photos, GPS coordinates, map.
Welcome to theGordon House
Home of the Rotary Club of San Jose
Hanford Lennox Gordon was born in 1846 and over his lifetime held a variety of positions as attorney, and officer for the Union Army during the Civil War, a farmer, and a rancher.
Hanford and his wife, Mary, moved to San José from Minnesota in 1887. Upon arrival, the Gordons moved into this house, originally located at 5303 McKee Road. Hanford owned four ranches, including over 100 acres of olive grove on McKee Road, also known as Pala del Rancho.
Shortly after the move West, the Gordons divorced. Hanford remained embroiled in legal issues including a paternity suit involving a home domestic and at least one dispute which resulted in gunfire. In the late 1890s Hanford moved to Los Angeles, eventually re-married and later died in 1920. Mary Gordon remained in the home until her death in 1929.
The house was built in the 1870s. Thanks to the Rotary Club of San Jose, the house moved to History Park in the late 1980s and was restored. Care was taken to restore the veranda in the same manner as the original and the fireplace is made from the original brick. The windows are also original to the house. The Gordon House was dedicated June 6, 1990.
During the past 100 years, Members of the Rotary Club of San Jose have volunteered over 3 million hours for community and international service and given over $5 million in grants to 150 community organizations in San Jose.
In addition to sending hundreds of wheelchairs, ambulances, mammogram machines, and medical equipment around the world for international projects, San Jose Rotary has provided over 40 Gifts of Life heart operations here in San Jose for adults from developing countries. Partnering with surgeons who repair cleft palates, Rotary has also sponsored several international Rotaplast missions.
Since 1985, members have generously supported Rotary International’s commitment to eradicate polio around the world. Working with the United Nations, Rotary has helped prevent over 30 million cases of polio worldwide.
In San Jose Rotary has built or made major contributions to
San Jose’s First Street Signs (1915) • Downtown Drinking Fountains (1922) • Ryland Pool (1925) • Rose Garden Reflecting Pool (1929) • Alum Rock Park (1936) • USO Building (1940) • Camp Costanoan for the Disabled (1954) • Happy Hollow Park and Zoo (1958) • Peralta Adobe Restoration (1960s) • O’Brien’s Candy Store (1975) • Center for Performing Arts’ Bear (1978) • Children’s Discovery Museum (1986) • Gordon House Restoration (1990) • Morone Senior Center (1992) • The Tech Museum (1996) • Rotary Summit Center (2003) • Rotary Heritage Plaza (2008)
(Fraternal or Sororal Organizations • Notable Buildings) Includes location, directions, 4 photos, GPS coordinates, map.
