The first train passed on January 16, 1864. S. O. Houghton laid out lots by the depot, and the plat recorded in March 1865 named Front, Dana, California, View, Oak, Franklin, Bryant, Castro, Hope and Villa Streets.
The modern station opened in 1987. It is the city’s main transit hub, linking Caltrain with the northern end of VTA’s Orange Line and local buses.