SANTA CLARA

city, Santa Clara county, west-central California, U.S. It lies along the Guadalupe River in the Santa Clara valley, about 48 miles (77 km) southeast of San Francisco and immediately adjacent to San Jose on the southeast. The original settlement grew around the Mission Santa Clara de Ass, which was founded in 1777 and was the eighth in the California chain of 21 missions. Santa Clara was incorporated in 1852. The Spanish historical influence is evident in the city's place-names, architecture, and restored mission. The city developed as a processing centre for the prunes, apricots, and other fruits and vegetables grown in the rich Santa Clara valley. By the 1940s, however, manufacturing had surpassed agriculture in importance, and since then Santa Clara's growth has reflected a balanced agricultural-industrial economy. The city's population has grown considerably from the 1950s. Great America, a 200-acre (81-hectare) amusement park, is an economic asset. Santa Clara University, which is the oldest institution of higher learning in California, was founded as a college by Jesuits in 1851 and became a university in 1855. The mission was damaged by earthquakes in 1812 and 1818; the mission building on the university campus is a restoration of the third mission, built in 1822. The city suffered moderate damage in an earthquake that struck central California on Oct. 17, 1989. Pop. (1990) 93,613. city, capital of Villa Clara provincia, central Cuba. It lies at 367 feet (112 m) above sea level amid hills of coral rock. Founded in 1689 by families fleeing constant pirate threats in coastal Remedios, Santa Clara occupies the site of the ancient Indian town of Cubanacn, which, according to some authorities, Columbus mistook for the headquarters of the Mongol emperor Kublai Khan. Initially dependent upon livestock raising and associated industries, the city flourished on sugar and tobacco in the mid-20th century. The Santa Clara Steel Combine makes finished steel products and parts. The Central University of Las Villas was founded in Santa Clara in 1952. The city is situated near the geographic centre of the island, on the central highway, and is the junction point of Cuba's main railroads. Pop. (1990 est.) 194,354.