Complex sentence: The city is named in honor of Fred T. Perris, chief engineer of the California Southern Railroad; the California Southern was built through the future town site in 1882 to build a rail connection between the present day cities of Barstow and San Diego.
Split into simpler sentences: The city is named in honor of Fred T. Perris, chief engineer of the California Southern Railroad. The California Southern was built through the future town site in 1882 to build a rail connection between the present day cities of Barstow and San Diego.