brewster

August 7, 2016

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 in New York City’s history, dairy cows were kept and milked in the city proper near distilleries. Often sick cows were kept in cramped conditions, and fed the byproducts of whiskey making – resulting in a blue tinted “milk” that was lacking in cream content and dangerous to drink. Unscrupulous businessmen used additives – including water, sugar, molasses, egg, and even plaster of paris – to...

3

December 28, 2012

Best of 2012, a year-end review

2012 has been an interesting year here at I Ride the Harlem Line… we finished up touring the stations on the New Haven, Port Jervis, Pascack Valley, and Hudson lines, as well as visited some places far outside Metro-North’s territory. As if that wasn’t enough, we also began our Grand Central 100 for 100 Project, posting one image every day for 100 days, all to celebrate Grand Central Terminal’s centennial. As is customary around the end of the year, let’s take a look back at what was most popular on the site this year, based on the number of reads…...

10

July 27, 2012

Brewster station – my first 3D model

Brewster station model in Tinkercad Perhaps you remember back in April I posted about how I was attempting to learn a little bit of 3D by modeling Brewster station. I did finally finish the model, and got it 3D printed using Shapeways a few weeks ago. The folks at Tinkercad (a simple web-based 3D app where I made the model) asked me to do a guest post for their blog, which was posted today. If you’re interested in reading the whole thing, you can check it out here. On the other hand, if you’re not really interested in reading, some...

6

April 16, 2012

I swear I am not ignoring you…

I swear I am not ignoring you, I’m just trying to learn 3D. Not bad for a first attempt, eh? The badass part is going to be when I get this thing all finished and 3D printed. Now here is a silly question… does anyone have any decent photos of the door at Brewster back in the day? It is some glass thing now, but I am assuming it wasn’t always. And since I am kinda going for the historical look on this one, I need some help!

3

February 17, 2012

Sending Postcards from the Harlem Line (Part 7)

Admit it, readers – somewhere in the back of your head you were wondering when I’d get around to showing you more railroad-themed postcards. My postcard collecting addiction has been well documented, and roughly every other month I do a new post full of my newly acquired cards. Today’s lineup includes Amenia, one of the abandoned Upper Harlem stations, and Towners, another abandoned station. There are also a few cards of station buildings still around today, like Katonah, Bedford Hills, and Scarsdale. Again, I must sincerely thank Steve Swirsky for his wonderful contributions to our extensive collection of postcards. The...

2

January 8, 2012

Weekly News Roundup, 1/8

A quick news roundup for the week… Idiots park running SUV on railroad tracks A stupid couple started off the new year right by leaving their SUV on the railroad tracks just west of Fairfield station. As expected, alcohol played a part in the driver’s complete lack of judgement. Branchville’s Whistle Stop Bakery The Connecticut Post had a nice little interview with Lolly Turner, the woman that converted the old, “beat-up” and “falling apart” Branchville station into a successful bakery. “We’ve taken a piece of history and turned it into a viable business. I think it’s a wonderful thing we’ve...