Sunnyvale Public Library Podcasts

“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.

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.

 Standard Podcast [9:34m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

“My name is Marian Hendy Rust. My father was Samuel Hendy Jr., son of Samuel Hendy Sr., who was the nephew of Joshua Hendy, the founder of Joshua Hendy Iron Works. I’d like to share with you in my own words the saga of the Hendy family.”

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.

 Standard Podcast [7:31m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Betsy Carpenter is a counselor for Advance Directives at the Health Resource Center, El Camino Hospital. In this informative presentation, she explains the living will, the Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care, the Advance Health Care Directive and also discusses the difference between them. Betsy also shows how a well-crafted Advance Directive can help families with decision making and make things smoother for care-givers. Lastly, she discusses the Pre-Hospital Do Not Resuscitate Form.

 Standard Podcast [93:18m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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.

This overview 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.

 Standard Podcast [7:39m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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.

This overview 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.

 Standard Podcast [7:34m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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.

This overview 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.

 Standard Podcast [7:07m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Nonpartison information on ballot propositions. This November election, California voters are facing 13 statewide propositions. Avoid feeling overwhelmed with so many issues on the ballot by listening to pro and con explanations of each proposition from the League of Women Voters.

 League of Women Voters [96:52m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Mother Goose Storytime for infants until walking.

 Mother Goose Storytime [15:58m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Interviewed by City Communications Officer John Pilger, Sunnyvale Public Library Director Deborah Barrow talks about Sunnyvale’s Library of the Future. Where are we now and where do we go from here? For the very latest information on the Library of the Future project, be sure to visit libraryofthefuture.inSunnyvale.com.

 Library of the Future Conversation [27:44m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Find the information you want in minutes. Learn effective search techniques, discuss search engines and indexes, and discover great places to start your search. Meet some specialized search engines, visit the Invisible Web, and explore some special features of your favorite research tools. For those unfamiliar with the Internet. Taught by Librarian Joan Jackson.

 Searching the Internet [49:26m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Vince Cala talks about life in Sunnyvale in the 1930s and 1940s. He describes the hard work in the fruit orchards and dancing the night away in Santa Cruz.

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.

 Standard Podcast [4:12m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Dave Johnson tells the story of how his great, great grandfather won title to El Quito Rancho, a land grant along Lawrence Road, in a card game with Manuel Arguello, an Emissary of King Phillip of Spain, in Paris, France in 1854. He also reminisces about life on a ranch before Silicon Valley was developed the way it is today.

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.

 Dave Johnson - A Prune is a Prune [4:57m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

A presentation by Paul Krug, President of the Iron Man Museum in Sunnyvale. Founded in San Francisco in 1856, the Joshua Hendy Iron Works produced mining equipment used all over the world, from Alaska to Africa. The Iron Works also produced a wide variety of heavy machinery and metal castings. Following the destruction of Hendy’s San Francisco shops in the earthquake and fire of 1906, the company acquired property in Sunnyvale and rebuilt. The “Iron Men of Hendy” assumed critical roles in the war efforts of both World War I and World War II. Westinghouse purchased the Iron Works in 1947 and continued to build a wide variety of heavy industrial and defense products, becoming the corporation’s Marine Division in 1965. The plant was sold by Westinghouse in 1996 and is now operated as Northrup Grumman Marine Systems.
View/download the Powerpoint slide presentation.

 Standard Podcast [54:51m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Michele Detwiler sings “Una Voce Poco Fa” from Rossini’s The Barber of Seville, and General Manager Larry Hancock at Opera San Jose introduces each of the season’s operas.

 Opera San Jose [33:32m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download