The Leonard McKay Collection

For over 55 years, local historian Leonard McKay assembled a distinctive body of work comprised solely of historic paintings by Santa Clara Valley artists. McKay began collecting as early as World War II when he served with the U.S. Army First Infantry Division in Germany after the Battle of the Bulge. While overseas he collected several European art works. However, by 1960 he began focusing exclusively on work created by Santa Clara Valley artists.

The McKay Collection at History San Jose contains thousands of photographs. Leonard worked with HSJ staff and volunteers to dictate information about each image for over three months. These photographs span over a wide period of Santa Clara Valley history from the late 1800s to 1970s and this online exhibit represents only a small portion of the total collection. These images offer a wide range of Santa Clara Valley history. Their great value comes from the personal stories Leonard gathered and shared, bringing the photographs to life.