A View of the Culver Viaduct from Below

Many of my posts deal with the area around the Smith-9th Street station in Red Hook.  This viaduct, that includes the Smith-9th Street station was built in the late 1920's and early 1930's for the city run Independent  (IND) subway extension to Church Avenue.  Unlike earlier elevated lines, this structure is very high and the steel is covered with a layer of concrete.  This viaduct has just recently undergone a multi dollar renewal.  This is not the only concrete viaduct for subway service.

  In this shot below, which is taken from the New York Transit Museum archive, shows Smith Street facing north.  The Smith-Street station is towards the photographer's back and you see the curve of the structure as it swings to the west and starts to decline into the tunnel.  The structure is not over Smith Street but to the west side of the street.  Smith Street had trolley service as well.  The photo was taken on November 29, 1950 by Leon and it is part of the Lundin Collection.  You are looking at Smith Street between West 9th Street and Huntington Streets.

  If you look to the right (east side of Smith Street), you can see not one, but I believe two gas tanks (holders) that are adjustable?   It is said that gas tank site has many toxins buried underneath.

Happy Birthday Smith Street - Prospect Park Line - Your are 80!

  The Smith Street - Prospect Park Line is the subject of many of my postings.  The segment opened up in the heart of the Depression eighty years ago on October 7, 1933 and joined other sections that opened earlier in the year.  Today this segment is served by "F" and "G" trains and parts are known as the "Culver Viaduct".  Andrew Culver, the 19th Century owner of the Culver Line would not have been pleased about this because his original Culver Line never ran on this route, although it may have run near it on McDonald (Gravesend Avenue) near the top of the hill.  Nevertheless, this segment is very interesting and includes the highest elevated station on the system and an unusual viaduct that just has been repaired.  This viaduct is sort of strange because I remember that there was a stub track in the middle of the viaduct between Fourth Avenue and Smith-9th Street that ended below the grade of the other four tracks.  This stub, which ended near Second Avenue (Brooklyn) was rumored to have been built to serve a United States Post Office near the Second Avenue intersection.  The mail was supposed to have been elevated down to the Post Office from the stub track?  Other interesting facts is that the Fourth Avenue station  which is out in the open is 33 feet higher than the Seventh Avenue station which is in a tunnel.  In addition, there have been provisions to  extended the express tracks to Staten Island via Fort Hamilton Parkway.  Speaking about those express tracks, though built in 1933,  express service did not arrive using those tracks until the Summer of 1968.

This picture, take by Gin Yee on 3/23/2009 (and taken from http://www.NYCSUBWAY.ORG ) shows the old layout on the "Culver Viaduct" between Smith - 9th Streets and Fourth Avenue.  This segment opened 80 years ago.  If you look closely to the left of the double red signal, you can see a single track descend slowly into a mysterious pocket that ended below grade at 2nd Avenue under the structure.  This perhaps was a spur to handle mail freight?  In the recent renovation to the structure and tracks, the crossover and tracks for this spur have been ripped out.  It the left of the picture, I believe a " G" train is moving south in order to prepare to relay at Fourth Avenue. It consists of R-46 cars.

Classic Shot of GG Train Leaving Smith-9th Street

  Many of my posts deal with the area around Red Hook, the Smith-9th Street Subway Station and the Culver Viaduct.  In this classic shot, showing the Manhattan skyline, a "GG" train of classic R1-9 subway cars are leaving the station and descending into the tunnel for their trip to Manhattan.  According to the skyline in this picture, I will date the picture as prior to 1960 because the Chase Manhattan Bank building is not yet built.  The "GG" train is now known as the "G" train.  The New York City Transit Authority dropped double letter routes many years ago (1979?).    The classic Independent Subway R1-9 cars openned the Independent Subway in the early 1930's.  These cars seemed to "be alive" with their interesting sounds of sighs, shishes and other aspirant noises from their braking and air systems.  I really miss them.

Photo Source: http://www.subchat.com  Hear the sounds of the R1-9 car below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=eP-RJqufZzI

Here is a 1959 jazz piece that goes along with the location:  A Charles Mingus Septet recorded in 1959 in New York with John Handy on Alto Sax.

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&frm=1&source=web&cd=17&cad=rja&ved=0CFcQtwIwBjgK&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DpsvjD6nfrPw&ei=yOPDULPeFcP30gHd94HwDg&usg=AFQjCNGvK1N-nwj5lXF8i14pb6NOL8HW5A&sig2=ijxuxoEXhIxYJqTdKA240w

PCC 1029 at Church and McDonald Avenues in Brooklyn

Source:  Dave Pirmann Collection.  Joe Testagrose Photo from Dave's Rail Pix

  In that wonderful video dealing with Route 4 in Riga, we see many junctions, some of which a very complicated.  In the attached photo, we see a westbound Church Avenue car making  a turn onto McDonald Avenue for a short turn at the Kensington Loop near 16th Avenue.  This almost grand junction, at McDonald and Church Avenues is shown on one of my prior track maps of the Church Avenue Line. Since the Church Avenue line was the last publicly owned trolley in New York State to operate, it is possible that this complicated junction was the last one to operate in New York State as well.  A similar junction was found at the east end of the line.  Under the junction was what was called at that time the Independent Subway Church Avenue Station that was served by "D" trains between Coney Island and 205th Street in the Bronx.  At that time, the subway section of the line was never called the Culver Line.