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Continued from last week…..
Ogan left the area a few years later, and a settler named Woolsey Shaw then laid claim to much of the land that would become Alum Rock Park. Knowing that the mineral springs in the canyon could be an attraction to local residents, Shaw immediately built a hotel and bathhouse near the creek and some of its more accessible springs. He advertised the new “health resort” to attract nearby residents interested in the therapeutic benefits of soaking in the mineral and hot springs.
Within a few years of Shaw building and developing the health resort within the canyon, the city of San José accused Shaw of occupying city property. The city claimed that the land Shaw developed was actually part of San José’s original Spanish land grant and was known by the city as “The Reservation.” Shaw argued that because the area had long been left vacant and unused by the city, it was available for enterprising settlers such as himself to develop and utilize. This disagreement marked the beginning of a lengthy court battle, during which Shaw sold the health resort and some of the land to landowner Joseph O. Stratton. An 1866 court-ordered survey determined that the city was the rightful owner of the land, and Shaw and Stratton were compelled to transfer ownership of the land, buildings, and resources to the city of San José.
Officially, Alum Rock Park as we know it was founded in 1872. It spans some 720 acres and is one of the oldest municipal parks in California.
Everything else is just history
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