"...a sad day for San Jose railroad historians."

SAN JOSE, CA On the evening of March 31, 1996, fire broke out in the second story of San Jose's College Park Tower. Flames completely gutted the inside of the building, destroying any hope of saving and removing the structure to a proposed site of for a San Jose railroad museum at the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds. 

Cause of the fire was not immediately known but it is suspected that transients may have been responsible, as the area is frequented by the homeless. The fire occurred on an evening that was unusually cold for the time of year. When reporter Jon Pullman Porter surveyed the damage the following morning, it was obvious the structure would not survive!
 

Despite efforts by local railroad historians, Union Pacific razed the remains of College Park Tower in either May or June of 2000. The tower is now conspicuous in its absence!