Rolling Down the Track

Have you figured out I love trains as well as old buildings?  I do, which is why my visit to the New York Transit Museum was so enjoyable.  So, as I explained in an earlier post, I hope you'll indulge my expansion of Mike's Historic Buildings to include these vintage subway cars!  Besides, the museum is located in a no-longer-used subway station, the Court Street station in Brooklyn.  Let's say that counts as an historic building!  I'll return to Florida in my next post, but today, let's keep rolling down the track.  Look, here comes an IND train now!

This 1938 R-7 car was involved in an accident in 1946.  In a 1947 rebuild, it was altered into a prototype of the next generation car, the R-10.  According to the museum's display, this was the first attempt since the opening of the IND (Independent Subway) to design a more modern car.  One of the first things you'll notice inside is the bright color pattern on the floor.

With four motors instead of the usual two, R-10 cars accelerated 60 percent faster than older cars.  They also had a more efficient braking system.  New interior amenities included fluorescent lighting, hinged metal hand-grips, and small twin bracket-mounted fans in place of ceiling-mounted paddle fans.

Seats are now covered in velon, a plastic version of the traditional rattan upholstery.

Where are we going?  As the sign points out, the subway goes everywhere, even the beach.  And, we can have the time of our lives without every leaving New York City.  Why leave town for a vacation?

The Subway Sun was a long-running series of ads communicating important announcements and information on the subway.  You'll see more examples of the Sun in the next train, a 1950 IRT R-15 car.  Just keep an eye out for the splash of color approaching the station.  It's hard to miss that red car!

The interior layout is beginning to resemble the subway cars of today.  The linoleum floor shines under the fluorescent lighting, and it's worth noting the seats are still padded, though they're covered in plastic rather than velon or rattan.  Ceiling fans are gone, replaced by fans set into the ceiling.  And how about those porthole windows in the doors?

Before we head into the 1960's, let's check out a few more announcements on The Subway Sun.

I don't know about you, but I think The Subway Sun was onto something.  Courtesy really is contagious, and good manners truly are fruits of loyal and noble minds.  So I'll try to be as courteous as possible as I ask you to change trains one more time.  Please.  Thank you.  This time, it's a 1963 IRT R33-S car, a so-called "blue bird", painted in a unique powder blue and off-white color scheme. 

Inside, these cars are beginning to look very familiar.  Many of these cars were still running when I lived in New York in the 1980's.  And why not?  They would only have been twenty years old at that time!  One difference-- in those days, the train would have been covered in graffiti!  Thankfully, that part of the subway's history is over.  Today's trains are clean...and the air conditioning even works (another change from my New York days)!  As you can see in the picture below, by 1963 padded seats had become a thing of the past.  Here are the hard plastic seats we know today.



Many of the visitors to the 1964-1965 World's Fair arrived on these "blue birds".  The "World's Fair Express" made it from Times Square to Flushing Meadows Park in Queens in 20 minutes!  Oh, by the way, if you purchase anything at the A&P before going to the fair, please don't forget your plaid stamps.

Finally, won't you please take a moment and help select Miss Subway?  I don't want to sway the votes, but I'm going with Doris Lee, because she's forced to work at a packing plant while the others get to work in offices and on airplanes, and yet her smile reveals a cheery disposition rather than bitterness.

Thanks for riding with me and the girls.  You can probably tell that I think the New York subway is one of the marvels of the world.  I love it and will take the train over a bus any day!  Naturally, I have plenty of other great things to share from Open House New York Weekend, but I think it's time to get back to my original mission of exploring historic buildings I've known and loved.  Tomorrow, back to Florida!

Next Train Out!

Here's more of my visit to the New York Transit Museum in Brooklyn.  I'm flashing forward in time to 1927.  The BRT has become the BMT (Brooklyn Manhattan Transit), one of two privately owned systems in New York.  The other is the IRT (Interborough Rapid Transit Corporation).  After 1913, the city built the lines and leased them to these two operators.  This 1927 car is a BMT D-type triplex.

The BMT was looking for ways to economically transport more people.  The triplex was one way to do this.  The three cars were articulated, with hinged connections between the cars.  Interestingly, there was some controversy just a few years ago when New York added articulated buses to its ground fleet.  Some people dislike the longer, hinged buses.  As you can see here, it's not a new idea!

The interior is familiar, with the rattan upholstered seats and bare light bulbs.  Note the "handlebars" instead of leather straps for standing riders.

Be careful when reaching for the bar!  You might catch your hand in the ceiling fan!  A safer alternative if you're standing is the handle on the back of one of the aisle seats!

In 1932, the first line of the IND (Independent Subway System) opened.  Unlike the BMT and IRT, the IND was city owned and operated.   The IND was intended to relieve congestion on Manhattan's west side and allow some of the elevated lines to be torn down.   Here's an IND R-4 "City Car" from 1932, designed to transport larger numbers of passengers in relative comfort.

On the inside, the cars are wider, brighter, and more "open" than some of the earlier models.  Note that the light bulbs are now covered and the leather straps are replaced with metal hinged "straps".  Ceiling fans remain.

The IND would like to remind you of a few simple rules: please keep hands off the doors, and passengers are forbidden to ride outside the doors!  What do you think this is, one of those fancy articulated cars?

In 1940, the city bought the BMT and IRT lines (both were in trouble economically).  The New York Transit Authority took over all transit in 1953.  The Metropolitan Transportation Authority took over in 1968.  When I lived in New York in the 1980's, the city had run the three subway lines for decades, but people still referred to the IRT, BMT and IND, and signs in many stations did likewise.  Today, there are two subway divisions:  The IRT is the A division, with numbered trains (except for the Times Square-Grand Central Shuttle), and the BMT and IND lines make up the B division, with trains designated by letters.

Tomorrow, we flash forward to more vintage subway cars and some terrific period advertising on board!

NYC Transit Museum

We just got back from a three-day weekend in Florida, and I have lots of new pictures.  I'll get to those soon, but, first, I have more great things to share from the recent Open House New York Weekend.  I'll ask that you stretch the definition for "historic buildings" for today's post, since these "buildings" roll!  I'm talking about historic trains on display at the New York Transit Museum in Brooklyn.  I took the Lex line from Grand Central to the Borough Hall station in Brooklyn, but several subway lines will take you within a few blocks of the museum.  As always, I have to stop for a moment and admire the beautiful tile work in the old stations.

And then it's on to the museum, which is just a few minutes' walk away.  It's located in a 1936 IND station at Court Street that is no longer in use for trains but makes a terrific museum space...and has plenty of room on the tracks for beautiful vintage cars from the New York subway's more than 100 year history.

The museum opened an hour early for Open House Weekend and I had a reservation.  When I arrived, the guides looked puzzled for a moment, then asked if I knew this was an event for children.  Uh, no, I didn't.  Does that mean I can't come in?  No, it didn't.  In fact, oddly enough, I was the only person for the early opening!  I think the guides were disappointed at the poor showing, which I certainly understand...but this turned out to be my lucky break.  I literally had the place to myself for more than an hour and got a personalized tour as the terrific guides did a run-through in anticipation of crowds later in the day.  The place is packed with interesting exhibits, but let's get to the trains! 

  
This 1907 Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company wooden train was among the first to run on electrified elevated tracks.  Passengers entered on either end of this BRT car (the BRT was later to become the Brooklyn Manhattan Transit Corporation, or BMT).  Amazingly, after thirty years in service these cars were rebuilt; side doors were added and they were put to work on the Flushing Line (now number 7) for service to the 1939 World's Fair!  Let's go inside.

The configuration inside the car will be familiar for decades as other trains followed similar layouts.  The seating is fairly comfortable...the seats are padded, but not soft.  They're covered in a sturdy rattan upholstery which is a bit stiff.

 
Lighting is provided by bare bulbs.  This wasn't unusual for the time.  Light bulbs were often displayed in this manner; electricity was still a novelty.  Remember, steam trains preceded this one.

And in case you ever wondered where the term "strap-hangers" came from:

Note the vintage advertisements.  They've done a good job pulling together a collection of such ads and placing them in "age-appropriate" cars.  As mentioned earlier, passenger entry and exit was through either end, so the space between cars is deep.  A conductor opened and closed the gates to allow people on and off.

Here's a car just a year older (built in 1908) that was also rebuilt in 1938 for service to the 1939 World's Fair.  This is a BRT 1612C car as it appeared after the rebuild.  The side doors have been added and the car is painted the World's Fair official colors of orange and blue (go Gators!).

This car was not motorized.  It was a trailer, and was paired with two motorized cars.  The interior is relatively unchanged; the seat configuration is the same as the BRT 1907 model, bare light bulbs provide illumination, and leather straps are there for standing riders.  Small fans have been added to provide some comfort in the summer-time heat.

Not bad for 103 years old, is it?  And, as I said earlier, I had the place to myself for more than an hour.  At 11am, when it opened to the public, an onslaught of moms and dads and kids came pouring in.  Needless to say, the atmosphere changed quickly, but, I have to admit, it was a change for the better.  A place like this should be full of people, and the kids were having a great time!  Still, I got plenty of pictures before the crowds arrived.  So, more trains tomorrow.  All aboard!