Rules of the road: the Harlem Line in 1878
In my previous story about the Jerome Park Branch, I mentioned that the next few articles would focus on the changes in the Bronx in the late 1800s. Not only is the time period...
SmartCat Sundays: The New York & Harlem’s Street Railway
When first conceived, the New York & Harlem Railroad was intended to do just what its name implied – connect lower Manhattan to Harlem. The original charter was granted by the New York State...
SmartCat Sundays: Milk on the Harlem Division
Milk has long been a staple of the American diet, and since the New York and Harlem Railroad was founded up until the 1950s, it was also a staple commodity carried by rail. Early...
Smartcat Sundays: All Aboard for the Westchester County Fair
These days if you want to get to a county fair on Metro-North you head up to Dutchess County, are conveniently met by a bus at Poughkeepsie station, and are whisked away to the...
SmartCat Sundays: Restoring a Grand Central to Chatham Roll Banner
Not everything you’ll find in my collection is printed on paper… Admittedly, I have a little thing for roll banners (I own three for the Harlem Division). Long before computers and other technology, these...
Smartcat Sundays: An Executive’s Train Ticket
Another one of the many things I enjoy collecting are interesting train tickets. Old commutation passes, complete with photo identification of the user, are one of my favorites – however today’s artifact is a...