From 1920 to1960, what we now call “Silicon Valley” was known as “The Valley of the Heart’s Delight,” the world’s largest fruit producing and processing center, largely dependent on a labor force of Mexican immigrants working migratory field and orchard jobs. During and after WWII, as higher paying cannery jobs and other skilled labor opened up to them, Mexicans and Mexican Americans took on year-round work and settled into local communities.

The United States is a nation of immigrants who, whether driven from their homeland or drawn here by family and opportunity, have contributed to the country’s cultural and economic development. Before becoming legal citizens, Mexican immigrants created a distinctive culture and community. Living in the United States as a disenfranchised group facing discrimination and segregation, they established an identity as Mexican Americans, becoming engaged citizens and laying the groundwork for a national Mexican American Civil Rights Movement.  

This exhibit portrays the experiences of Mexicans and Mexican Americans who lived and worked in Santa Clara County from 1920 to 1960. The exhibit links the contributions of Mexican residents in the “Valley of the Heart’s Delight” to the universal struggle for equality and civil rights in America.