A dedication ceremony marked the 75th anniversary of the Santa Clara Railroad Tower on Saturday, October 12th, 2002 as part of the City of Santa Clara Sesquicentennial Celebration. An open house and tours of the tower and depot followed the ceremony.

The railroad site including the 1860s Santa Clara Depot has been restored by the South Bay Historical Railroad Society, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The ceremony commemorates the tower's operation at this site and honors the dedicated and hardworking men and women of the Southern Pacific Railroad.

The tower was built by the Southern Pacific Railroad in 1927 and continued in operation until 1993. The tower is located at the junction of the Coast and Western Divisions and controlled signals and switches at the north end of the Newhall Yard. Historic passenger trains such as the Coast Daylight, Lark, Del Monte, Suntan Special, mail and commute trains operated through this junction. The railroad yard played a key role in the creation and operation of high priority freight trains. The tower was equipped with a 48 lever General Railway and Signal Model 2 Electric Interlocking machine. The design of this equipment prevented an unsafe route from being set by an operator.

The dedication ceremony took place at the tower, located at 1075 Railroad Avenue. The Santa Clara Planning Department and the South Bay Historical Railroad Society sponsored the event.