San Jose State founded as Minn's Evening Normal School

Background. San Jose State University is a public research university in San Jose, California. It was established in 1857 as the state's first normal school, making it the oldest public university in the western United States. The institution is the founding campus of the California State University system. The legacy row's claim that it was the first public university west of the Mississippi in 1857 is corrected, as it was a normal school at that time.

Founding. Janes sought to establish a normal school for San Francisco's public school system. The normal school began operations in 1857 and became known as the Minns Evening Normal School. The California State Normal School was then opened on July 21, 1862.

Relocation to San Jose. The California State Normal School did not receive a permanent home until it moved from San Francisco to San Jose in 1871. San Jose became the preferred site after the San Jose Railroad Company paid for the student and faculty body to tour the city and potential locations.