Biohazard and Crime Scene Remediation in Gilroy, CA

Gilroy is a city in southern Santa Clara County that was incorporated in 1870, growing from a village first incorporated as the Town of Gilroy in 1868.

Gilroy is named for John Gilroy, born John Cameron in Scotland, who came ashore at Monterey in 1814 from the ship Isaac Todd and is considered California's first English-speaking settler.

John Gilroy married Maria Clara Ortega of the Rancho San Ysidro family, settled on that rancho, and died in 1869, a year before the city that bears his name was incorporated.

Gilroy had a population of 59,520 at the 2020 census, with about 17,459 households averaging a notably large 3.34 people each.

Gilroy is nicknamed the 'Garlic Capital of the World' for its dominance of American garlic production and processing.

Commercial garlic growing around Gilroy began after Japanese farmers arrived in 1918, and by 1940 local grower Kiyoshi Hirasaki was the largest garlic grower in the United States.

The Gilroy Garlic Festival, founded in 1979 and long held at Christmas Hill Park, drew more than 130,000 visitors a year at its peak and returned more than $9.7 million to local nonprofits and the community.

Before garlic, Gilroy cycled through other crop crowns - it was earlier known as the 'Prune Capital of California' and the 'Hay and Grain Capital' - and the railroad arrived in 1869.

Christmas Hill Park, about 51 acres along Uvas Creek, is Gilroy's signature park and longtime festival ground.

Gilroy Gardens Family Theme Park, on Hecker Pass along State Route 152, is famous for its Circus Trees - living trees grafted into fantastical shapes by Axel Erlandson in the early 1900s.