This glittery postcard, mailed with a one-cent stamp in 1906, celebrates the loop at the City Hall subway station, the first station ever built.
Opened in 1904, it was the southern terminal of the IRT East Side line and featured stunning tiled arches, skylights, and brass chandeliers.
Because the station couldn’t be expanded to fit the longer trains needed to accommodate more passengers, it was closed in 1945. Closed but not totally abandoned. The Transit Museum occasionally gives tours, and the 6 train still uses the loop to reverse direction and go northward.
Read more about it and its architectural beauty here. Or hop on board the East Side IRT at 14th Street by watching this circa-1905 film clip.
Tags: 6 train, City Hall Subway Station, IRT, New York City subway opening
March 21, 2009 at 11:48 am |
There’s something watery about it, as if you expect floods to pour in…but it’s very nice and comforting.
March 21, 2009 at 4:02 pm |
I have taken the tour. It was cool. But you can see it when ever you want. Just get on a Southbound #4 or #5 at Brooklyn Bridge.
It will make a loop through the old City Hall Station before becoming a Northbound #4 or #5. Just look out the windows to the right.