An all-residential neighborhood, College Terrace stretches 12 by two blocks. It lies between South California Avenue and Stanford Avenue, from Amherst Street to El Camino Real. College Avenue runs down the center of the neighborhood. College Terrace is directly adjacent to Escondido Village, a campus residence on the southern edge of Stanford University. The neighborhood features its own branch of the Palo Alto Public Library system built in 1936 in the Spanish Colonial Revival style as a WPA project. Four parks were part of the original plan for the College Terrace neighborhood and all still exist:
Donaldina M. Cameron Park, located on Wellesley Street between Stanford Avenue and College Avenue. It was originally called Berkeley Park and renamed in 1968 for Donaldina Cameron a long time resident of College Terrace who died in 1968.
Mayfield Park, located on Wellesley Street between College Avenue and South California Avenue, next to the College Terrace Library. It was originally called Hollywood Park before being renamed in 1968.
William C. Werry Park, located on Dartmouth Street between Stanford Avenue and College Avenue. Originally called Eton Park and was renamed for a former Palo Alto Postmaster in 1968.
Frederick W. Weisshaar Park, also on Dartmouth Street between College Avenue and South California Avenue. Originally called Hampton Park it was renamed in 1968 for an earlier owner of the College Terrace land. He was also a Mayfield school district trustee and Mayfield’s first treasurer.
College Terrace as a community started in 1887 when Peter Spacher and Frederick Weisshaar, who had previously refused to sell the property to Leland Stanford who owned the land on three sides of the property, sold it to Alexander Gordon. He subdivided the land and laid out and named the streets and parks. Gordon had originally called the neighborhood "Palo Alto" but changed the name to "College Terrace" at the request of Leland Stanford. In 1891 College Terrace was annexed by the neighboring long established community of Mayfield, and, in 1925 Mayfield, in turn, was annexed by Palo Alto.
Crimes
The neighborhood also notoriously gave its name to the College Terrace Rapist, who forced at least 11 women living in the neighborhood to have sexat knifepoint between 1971 and 1979. The College Terrace Rapist eventually admitted to at least 100 rapes both in College Terrace and elsewhere in California.
