In 1852 a stage stand was built where coaches changed horses, and a store opened across the road. The village kept to its one street along the San Jose road, and an 1881 history said it had been robbed of its importance once the railroad passed it by.
When the trains came in 1864, business moved to the station town on Castro Street. The older settlement became known as Old Mountain View, and the neighborhood south of downtown carries the name today.
Sources
- History of Santa Clara County (J. P. Munro-Fraser, 1881) - Internet Archive
- Contributions to Local History: Rancho Pastoria de las Borregas (Mary J. Gates, 1895) - Internet Archive
- Mountain View History - Mountain View Public Library
- A trailblazer who relished ‘rattlesnake ragout’ - Mountain View Voice