Ronald Raymond James (born June 11, 1928) is an American politician and businessman. James, who was elected

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well as ...

San Jose, California San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popul ...

in 1967, served as the city's first

popularly elected Direct election is a system of choosing political officeholders in which the voters directly cast ballots for the persons or political party that they desire to see elected. The method by which the winner or winners of a direct election are cho ...

mayor from 1967 until 1971. He retired from office in 1971 after one term and was succeeded by then-San Jose

Vice Mayor The deputy mayor (also known as vice mayor, assistant mayor, or mayor ''pro tem'') is an elective or appointive office of the second-ranking official that is present in many, but not all, local governments. Duties and functions Many elected depu ...

Norm Mineta. In 1970, Mayor James submitted a letter addressed to a future mayor, which was placed in a

time capsule A time capsule is a historic cache of goods or information, usually intended as a deliberate method of communication with future people, and to help future archaeologists, anthropologists, or historians. The preservation of holy relics date ...

buried at San Jose's former main library on West San Carlos Street on May 14, 1970. Other artifacts included with James's letter included a copy of the San Jose

city charter A city charter or town charter (generically, municipal charter) is a legal document ('' charter'') establishing a municipality such as a city or town. The concept developed in Europe during the Middle Ages. Traditionally the granting of a charter ...

, a city council agenda from 1969, newspaper clippings, and a taped radio interview with city librarian Geraldine Nurney, which was recorded at the library's dedication in April 1970. James had been told that the time capsule would remain buried for about 100 years, so he assumed he wouldn't live to see it reopened. However, the old main library was demolished in 2011, which allowed for the capsule's recovery. The time capsule was opened in September 2013 and James's letter was reprinted in its entirety in the ''

San Jose Mercury News ''The Mercury News'' (formerly ''San Jose Mercury News'', often locally known as ''The Merc'') is a morning daily newspaper published in San Jose, California, in the San Francisco Bay Area. It is published by the Bay Area News Group, a subsidia ...

''. James remarked at the ceremony, "They told me it was going to be opened in 100 years or longer...I was pleasantly surprised that the Mercury News printed the letter

verbatim Verbatim means word for word. Verbatim may also refer to: * Verbatim (brand), a brand of storage media and flash memory * Verbatim (horse), an American racehorse * ''Verbatim'' (magazine), edited by Erin McKean * Verbatim theatre, a form o ...

so people could read it. Now, I'm just happy to still be here."

References

Living people 1928 births Mayors of San Jose, California {{California-mayor-stub