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All the United States California San Jose Ruins of the Bayside Cannery
AO Edited

Ruins of the Bayside Cannery

This crumbling warehouse was once the third-largest cannery in the U.S. and the first in the world to can green asparagus.

San Jose, California

Added By
James Ricci
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The front of the ruins.   James Ricci / Atlas Obscura User
The front of the ruins.   James Ricci / Atlas Obscura User
View from the back of the ruins.   James Ricci / Atlas Obscura User
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About

Once the third-largest cannery in the United States, the ruins of the Bayside Canning Company are emblematic of the rise and fall of the town of Alviso, California.

Sai Yen Chew founded the Precita Canning Company in San Francisco in 1890, but after the 1906 earthquake and ensuing fires, he moved his business to Alviso, the bustling port at the southernmost tip of the San Francisco Bay. In a xenophobic time when Chinese laborers were shunned and discriminated against, Sai Yen Chew built lodging for hundreds of Chinese laborers, paid for additional laborers to be bused into his factory, and employed an almost exclusively Chinese workforce.

Thomas Foon Chew joined his father at Bayside Cannery at age 17 and proceeded to revolutionize the business. Among his many innovations were improved sanitation techniques, the introduction of ketchup to save spoiling tomatoes, and most notably, canning techniques for green asparagus. It was during Thomas Foon Chew’s tenure as the “Asparagus King” that Bayside Cannery became the third-largest cannery in the U.S. and Chew became the wealthiest Chinese American in the nation. When he passed away at the age of 42, Thomas Foon Chew’s funeral drew an estimated 25,000 mourners. In 1936, five years after Chew’s death and in the midst of the Great Depression, the Bayside Cannery closed for good.

In the middle of the 20th century, both the cannery and the town of Alviso fell into rapid decline. Due to the overuse of the aquifers under Alviso, the city progressively sunk into the ground, now resting several feet under sea level and protected by a series of levees. While the technologies developed at Bayside Cannery are still in use today, the buildings in Alviso were sold and repeatedly ravaged by flooding. In 1968, Alviso was annexed by the city of San Jose. Today, all that remains of the once-prominent cannery are sparse ruins adorned with a mural depicting Alviso’s past.

But while Alviso’s time as a city of industry is long over, this once-troubled neighborhood still has a bright future ahead of itself. Today, the ruins of the Bayside Cannery are part of the Alviso Marina County Park, which for thousands of hikers, birdwatchers, naturalists, and other outdoor enthusiasts is largely regarded as the gateway to the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Preserve. This area not only provides ample mixed use nature trails, but invaluable wildlife refuge for birds and other Bay Area wildlife.

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Abandoned Industry Food

Know Before You Go

The ruins of the Bayside Cannery are easily accessed from the street, but the best view of inside the property and most convenient parking is at the parking lot for the Alviso Marina County Park, near the boat launch.

Community Contributors

Added By

James Ricci

Published

January 8, 2025

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Sources
  • http://www.sanjose.com/underbelly/unbelly/Alviso/alviso12.html
  • https://www.sccgov.org/sites/parks/parkfinder/Pages/AlvisoMarina.aspx
  • Burrill, R., & Rogers, L. (2006). Alviso, San Jose. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Pub.
  • Gong-Guy, L., Wong, G., & Chinese Historical and Cultural Project. (2007). Chinese in San Jose and the Santa Clara Valley. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Pub.
  • Johnson, B. (2010). San Jose
Ruins of the Bayside Cannery
1290 Hope St
San Jose, California, 95002
United States
37.428263, -121.979115
Get Directions

Nearby Places

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Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of San Jose

San Jose

California

Places 25
Stories 5

Nearby Places

Shrine of Our Lady of Peace

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Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of San Jose

San Jose

California

Places 25
Stories 5

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