TheNEW YORK DIVISION BULLETIN - MARCH, 2010 Bulletin New York Division, Electric Railroaders’ Association Vol. 53, No. 3 March, 2010 The Bulletin CITY BEGAN OPERATING STATEN ISLAND TROLLEY Published by the New CARS IN 1920 York Division, Electric Railroaders’ Association, Street railways were hard hit by World War I Lake, Concord, Richmond, St. George and Incorporated, PO Box and the tremendous increase in costs follow- Port Richmond to Midland Beach, and Manor 3001, New York, New ing it. In this three-part series, we are ex- Road. York 10008-3001. plaining how New York City’s street railways From January 19 to December 1, 1920, were able to maintain service during this diffi- Richmond Light & Railroad operated cars on For general inquiries, cult period. The December, 2009 issue dis- the Silver Lake Line between St. George and contact us at nydiv@ cussed the Brooklyn and Queens companies’ Clove Road. The city operated an inefficient erausa.org or by phone at (212) 986-4482 (voice problems, the next issue analyzed the Man- bus service, which could not handle the traf- mail available). The hattan and Bronx companies’ difficulties, and fic. Starting May 21, 1920, Midland operated Division’s website is this issue will reveal the problems encoun- one car on each line, except three cars on St. www.erausa.org/ tered on Staten Island. George to Port Richmond via Concord be- nydiv.html. In 1919, two companies operated trolley tween 10 AM and 5:25 PM. Editorial Staff: cars on Staten Island. Richmond Light & Rail- On November 17, 1920, 28 cars, probably Editor-in-Chief: road Company provided service, but Staten single-truck Birneys, were delivered to Staten Bernard Linder Island Midland Railway ceased operating on Island. Municipal operation by the Depart- News Editor: January 19, 1920 because of inadequate ment of Plant and Structures began on De- Randy Glucksman cember 1, 1920 over the former Midland Contributing Editor: receipts, depriving thousands of Staten Is- Jeffrey Erlitz land passengers of needed transportation. routes. With ten additional Birneys and sev- The Public Service Commission and the city eral second-hand Second Avenue Railroad Production Manager: had advance notice of the company’s prob- cars, the fleet was increased to 69 cars in David Ross lems, and the former made every effort to 1921. help the company. But the Board of Estimate Six years later, trolley service ended sud- and Apportionment refused the company’s denly because the Controller refused to pay plea for relief. Without the Board’s consent, the electric bill. In April, 1927, Staten Island PSC could not save the company. In the Edison asked the city to pay a year and a ©2010 New York summer of 1919, the company informed PSC half overdue electric bill. A month later, the Division, Electric Railroaders’ that it would cease operating if relief were not matter was brought up and received no at- Association, granted. PSC was able to persuade the com- tention. When the city received the notice to Incorporated pany to continue operating a little longer. In discontinue power, it asked for an extension December, 1919, the company finally set the of time. On July 1, one month’s notice was date for closing down. At a hearing held on given to the city. On July 30, 1927, there was In This Issue: December 29, 1919, the company revealed an all-day conference regarding the unpaid A History of F that it was operated at a loss in 1919 and $175,000 electric bill. The Controller said that and V Train several previous years. Service was discon- the operation was illegal, and he agreed to Service tinued January 19, 1920 despite a Supreme pay the final bill after trolley service was dis- Court restraining order served on the com- continued. The Commissioner of Plant and (Continued) pany’s Traffic Superintendent. Structures said that he could serve Staten ...Page 2 The following lines ceased operating: Silver (Continued on page 5) NEXT TRIP: 207TH STREET1 SHOP TOUR—MARCH 20 NEWNEW YORK YORK DIVISION DIVISION BULLETIN BULLETIN OCTOBER,- MARCH, 2010 2000 A HISTORY OF F (AND V) TRAIN SERVICE (Continued from February, 2010 Issue) by George Chiasson GENESIS OF THE F TRAIN, PART I: THE plex currently exists across from the New York Aquar- PROSPECT PARK & CONEY ISLAND RAILROAD ium. (1874-99) In its earliest incarnation, PP&CI's stations were lo- The present day Culver Line of MTA New York City cated at Greenwood Depot, Turner-City Line (Ft. Hamil- Transit had its beginnings as the Prospect Park & ton Parkway), Parkville (Avenue I), Washington Station Coney Island Railroad, one of four privately-owned ex- (Avenue K), Harris-Woodlawn (Avenue N), Kings High- cursion lines linking populous neighborhoods of Brook- way, The Brooklyn Jockey Club (Avenue T), Gravesend lyn with the "resort" community of Coney Island. In the (Neck Road), Van Sicklen (Neptune Avenue), and The time immediately surrounding the Civil War the then- Culver Depot. The station at Turner-City Line (Ft. Hamil- independent city of Brooklyn experienced a massive ton Parkway) was an early casualty in 1876, but sum- growth phase, in which it started to be transformed from mer traffic was good enough to increase service after a mostly suburban, semi-agrarian setting to an urban the first year, and in time for the 1878 season the line landscape. As Lower Manhattan provided much of the was double-tracked from Parkville to Coney Island area's economic energy even at that time, Brooklyn's Creek (south of Van Sicklen). It was then extended via greatest area of early development was largely contigu- single track from Culver Depot to Norton's Point ous to both it and the burgeoning downtown area of (approximately Surf & Mermaid Avenues) on June 9, Brooklyn. In turn the central business district was linked 1879, from which a connecting ferry boat operation to to nearby residential neighborhoods by a developing the Rockaway Peninsula was instituted on June 17, system of surface transit (i.e. horsecar) lines, with 1881. Things were going so well at this point that major a steam railway (the Long Island RR) aimed at points enlargement and renovation was performed on the further away. Brooklyn's large ocean front was an early Culver Depot and adjoining hotel in time for the 1883 summer refuge for city dwellers, and a few entrepre- summer season. neurs sought to exploit this opportunity by establishing a By 1885, the appeal of PP&CI had caught on suffi- resort experience that included transportation, accom- ciently to draw the attention of the Long Island Rail Road, and a joint seasonal venture begun which con- modation and recreation. Through this effort, a group of rd steam excursion lines was gradually built that focused nected LIRR's 63 Street Ferry Terminal in Bay Ridge on Coney Island, as did another serving Canarsie and with the Gravesend Race Track (of the Brooklyn Jockey the Rockaway Peninsula. Club) before continuing on to the Culver Depot at Originally incorporated on October 9, 1874, the Pros- Coney Island. To accomplish this the two lines were pect Park & Coney Island Railroad more popularly car- physically tied together at "Parkville Junction" (roughly McDonald Avenue at 47th Street) and a portion of ried the name of its financier and founder, Andrew R. rd Culver, to thus gain its name as Culver('s) Line. As PP&CI's service rerouted to the 63 Street Ferry termi- opened on June 19, 1875, in plenty of time to garner nal via what is now the Bay Ridge Branch of LIRR. As early summer traffic, PP&CI was laid out as a single- well, LIRR began to acquire a financial interest in track railroad from a terminal at the Greenwood station PP&CI, which enhanced its fiscal performance all the (next to the present Greenwood Cemetery on one edge more. of Prospect Park) to the Gravesend station (located By the late 1880s PP&CI was preparing to shift its fo- at the present Neck Road), with passing sidings located cus away from seasonal excursion traffic to full-time at the Harris-Woodlawn and Gravesend stations. The urban transportation corridor, but even so it did com- line followed what is now 20th Street eastward a short plete a replacement terminal at its Greenwood Depot in distance before turning south onto Gravesend (now 1888 after the original was burned on November 14, 1887. On June 7, 1890 PP&CI rerouted most of its McDonald) Avenue, a largely unoccupied survey with rd little density along what would become a teeming boule- trains from both Greenwood Depot and the 63 Street Ferry LIRR terminal to a new Union Depot. This was vard of southern Brooklyn. In time the cur- th rent streetscape of McDonald Avenue enveloped located at 36 Street & Fifth Avenue, and served jointly the railroad corridor, which ran along the surface over with another Coney Island excursion road, the Brooklyn, its first 45 years of existence. Eight days after its initial Bath & West End Railway. It was also adjacent to the opening, PP&CI was extended via single track to the Brooklyn Elevated Railway's Fifth Avenue “El,” which Coney Island oceanfront terminal known as "Culver's provided a swift, year-round connection to Downtown th Depot." This was located at approximately W. 5 Street (Continued on page 3) and Surf Avenue, about where a large apartment com- 2 NEW YORK DIVISION BULLETIN - MARCH, 2010 A History of F (and V) Train Service commenced its final year of joint operation to Manhattan Beach, with service offered from the 39th Street Ferry (Continued from page 2) and, more importantly, from the Park Row elevated ter- Brooklyn (and Lower Manhattan via the Brooklyn minal in Manhattan as well.