In 1864, the San Francisco-to-San Jose railroad was being
constructed, and a right-of-way through San Carlos was granted by
landowner Nathaniel Brittan. (Brittan Park and Brittan Avenue are
named after him) It was stipulated that a station agent and
telegraph office would be maintained at all times. In 1888, Leland
Stanford, a friend of Brittan, arranged to have his university’s
stonemasons build the depot. Almaden sandstone blocks, the same
material used for many buildings at Stanford University, were used
in the construction of the Richardson Romanesque Revival-style
building -- rare for a train station.
In the past the station has served as church, post office, and
library, and is currently the Depot Cafe. The building was
designated a city landmark in 1976, and in 1984 it was added to the
National Register of Historic Places, No.84001191. For sure I am
‘dating’ myself BIG time when I mention that I can well remember
the Southern Pacific ticket office and the telegraph being there
when I was a kid. I loved watching the steam engines. Trains just
are not quite the same these days. Directly across El Camino Real
from the station is the Drake Building which was built by Fred
Drake in 1929. Drake is considered the father of San Carlos. This
is the only remaining building in town built by Mr. Drake. (My
dentists office is located on what was once his property and home)
I remember him well as he was seen around town all the time back in
those days.
As a side note, I was just under four years old when my mom took
me downtown one Sunday morning to that building. Although I was
that young I can remember how upset everyone was when we went into
the drug store which was in the Drake Building at the time. They
were upset because they were listening to the first news reports on
the radio that Pearl Harbor had just been attacked. It must have
been quite a scene for me to remember it so well considering how
young I was.
Some recent posts ask if at one time someone else had a cache
here. The answer is yes, and it was the exact same type of cache in
the same location. My memory fails me though as to who the owner of
that cache was.
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