Sunnyvale Voices - Sunnyvale Memories
Friday, April 6th, 2007
Bob Balmanno relates life as it was in the 1950s as a boy growing up on Vine Street, then on the edge of the edge of Sunnyvale, a City with 9,000 people and growing fast. “There wasn’t a single commercial or residential area except for a couple of old houses and the Donut Wheel in Cupertino” on the seven mile stretch of road between Sunnyvale and Saratoga.”
This story was made possible through a Library Services & Technology grant from the California State Library. The goal of the Sunnyvale Voices project was to record and provide access to the early history of Sunnyvale as told by Sunnyvale residents. A compilation video of all stories recorded for this project, titled “Sunnyvale Voices: From Settlers to Silicon,” is available for checkout in the Library collection.
Mathilda Sousa remembers life in early Sunnyvale on her family’s four acre ranch, spending time with her sister doing the things she loved. “We picked prunes, and we cut apricots, and we loved it! I cannot believe every time I think of it I hear people saying how ‘we hated to pick prunes, and how we hated to cut apricots.’ And I say, ‘you know, we thought it was fun.’”
In the first of two podcasts, Vince Cala recalls his time in Sunnyvale before and after World War Two. “
In this first of three podcasts, Denise and Nancy Alexander recall their impressions of Sunnyvale when they first moved here in March of 1960. “We remember Sunnyvale looking a lot different than it does today. We came here and lived in this house and my father landscaped and put in these bricks and everything. As a child here it was a lot of fun because the neighborhood ended right over here and it was just orchards. That was our playground, where the orchards were.”
Edith Drewek speaks about the changes she has witnessed since coming back to Sunnyvale. “
Wallace Erichsen talks about what he saw during his time working at Joshua Hendy Ironworks. “
Chiyo Winters recalls the terrible tornado which hit Sunnyvale on January 11, 1951. “I remember it was a very stormy morning, there was the rain, and hail, and the roar of the wind sounded just like a freight train.” 
“My name is Jack Perry, and my story is about the Westinghouse Plant in Sunnyvale where I worked as an engineer and manager for 35 years.” The Sunnyvale division of Westinghouse designed and built many notable one-of-a-kind products, including Wind Tunnel Compressors for the Air Force’s Arnold Air Research Center, said to have been the world’s largest rotating machines. Other unique orders ranged from telescopes for Kitt Peak Observatory to “Deepstar” submersible vehicles such as the one pictured to the left.
Mary Jo Ignoffo, author of Sunnyvale: From the City of Destiny to the Heart of Silicon Valley, presents an historical overview of Sunnyvale’s High-Tech Era.
Mary Jo Ignoffo, author of Sunnyvale: From the City of Destiny to the Heart of Silicon Valley, presents an historical overview of Sunnyvale’s Defense Era.
Mary Jo Ignoffo, author of Sunnyvale: From the City of Destiny to the Heart of Silicon Valley, presents an historical overview of Sunnyvale’s Agricultural Era.
