Agricultural Exhibit - Yesterday's Farmer: Planting an American Dream

By 1900, Japanese immigrant families began to establish permanent homes, primarily in Morgan Hill, Gilroy, Watsonville, Salinas, Monterey, Mountain View, Sunnyvale, Milpitas, and San Jose. Many of the Issei (first generation) adapted intensive farming techniques, where high yields were achieved by creating the best conditions possible in a limited space. Their considerable success led to hostility, which contributed to the passage of the Alien Land Act in 1913 (preventing ownership of land by aliens ineligible for citizenship).