Saratoga, CA

Saratoga began as a community in 1847, when William Campbell built a saw mill in an area which became known as Campbell’s Gap, about two and a half miles southeast of today’s downtown Saratoga. Martin McCarthy leased the mill from Campbell in 1851, built a toll road from the mill to the growing settlement at the mouth of the canyon, and the area became known as Tollgate. McCarthy began further development of the town and named it McCarthysville. Other milling businesses were built in the area, a paper mill near 6th street, and a four mill near Hakone Gardens; this, in 1863, briefly caused the name to change to Bank Mills. The final name of Saratoga came in 1865, when the villagers found similarities of mineral springs in the area to the Congress Springs in Saratoga Springs, New York. The name Saratoga is derived from an Iroquois word which means “floating scum upon the water”.

Orchards and vineyards sprang up in and around Saratoga as the valley began its shift from manufacturing (lumber, paper, flour) to agriculture. The rich soil was well-suited for prunes, cherries, apricots and vineyards; in 1890 a French immigrant named Paul Masson brought grape cuttings from France and established the Paul Masson Winery, and the world’s largest prune orchard was established on Glen Una Ranch.

After World War II, as the agricultural Santa Clara Valley gave way to industrial and technological development, Saratoga’s residents wanted to maintain their quaint small town atmosphere and incorporated in 1956, to avoid being annexed by San Jose. Saratoga has developed into a bedroom community; its current population is about 30,000, with a total land area of 12.4 square miles. Local businesses make up the largest employers in Saratoga, none employing more than 100 workers. The median household income in Saratoga is about $140,000.