History

March 19, 2023

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 full of intriguing stories, for the Harlem these years served as a transitionary period from the early history of the line into a history we’re a little bit more familiar with. From a modern lens, it is a bit hard to fathom a time when the Harlem had more trains operated by horse power than locomotives, or that the trains of what is now the Hudson...

2

February 27, 2023

Dark horse: The forgotten branch of the Harlem that everyone loved to hate.

The last three decades of the 1800s were an interesting time for railroads running through the Bronx. With the Hudson River Railroad making moves to finally enter the east side of Manhattan, along with the rerouting of the Spuyten Duyvil and Port Morris to make it happen, things were beginning to align more closely with what we’re familiar with today. Also almost completely within this timeframe, a little rail line called the Jerome Park Railway was born and died. Although privately owned, much of the service was contracted out to the New York and Harlem Railroad, thus making it a...

1

February 4, 2023

The “Death Note” of Chauncey Depew

When someone brings up the topic of illuminated manuscripts, I tend to mentally picture an old monk sequestered in a monastery creating elaborate illustrations and fancy letters in a hand printed version of the bible. Yet in reality, the term “illuminated” simply refers to the incorporation of gold or silver leaf, or pigments, into the images and lettering. Plenty of different types of documents can be considered “illuminated”—and in the more modern era these are often ceremonial or formal documents, like diplomas. In New York City, the firm of Ames & Rollinson was noted for their work in the field....

2

October 28, 2022

Riding the Harlem Division Football Special (to see the worst team ever)

As the Vietnam War raged and John Lennon ruffled feathers declaring the Beatles “more popular than Jesus,” the Giants were losing, bigly. 1966 may have been the year that Star Trek hit the airwaves and Camaros first rolled the streets, but it was also the year the Redskins absolutely crushed the Giants 72-41, setting the (still-standing) record for the highest scoring game in National Football League history[1]. Objectively, the 1966 Giants were quite awful. Playing their home games at the old Yankee Stadium, they proceeded to lose every single match except for one. They managed to tie their first game...

1

June 22, 2022

Wednesday Wandering: Denver Union Station

An amalgamation of several different aesthetic eras, Denver Union Station stands as an intriguing monument to railroading history. When gazing upon the building, it almost feels as if you could close your eyes and let yourself be transported to an array of different points in time. Focus on the rusticated red rhyolite exterior of the wings and you’ll fly to the 1880s when the majestic Romanesque revival depot was initially constructed. The granite beaux-arts stonework will whisk you to the 1910s when countless stations nationwide were being constructed in similar style, including this section of the station rebuilt. The neon...

5

February 28, 2022

Grand Central Stargazing: Secret Signatures on the Ceiling

In its century-plus of existence, over a billion travelers have traversed the hallowed halls of Grand Central Terminal. But how many of that intrepid number, as they gazed up at the magnificence of the constellations overhead, knew that the ceiling held a secret? I’m not talking about how the constellations are “backward”—doesn’t everybody know that? Nor am I referring to the fact that the ceiling today is not the original fresco from when the Terminal opened its doors. No, I’m talking about the secret signatures that span the mural, encircling stars and hiding inside the appendages of the towering beasts...