New York Almanack

History, Natural History & the Arts

New York Central RR

Chaos On An Adirondack Train: The Case Against Pullman Porter Smith

by Leave a Comment

Pullman Porter Helping Woman circa 1880sWhen the night train to Montreal set out from Utica on April 29, 1931, James E. Smith had already been toiling over the needs and wants of his passengers for many hours.  At 29 years old, Smith had been a Pullman porter for about three years.  He had done a stint in Pennsylvania and now was employed on the New York Central Railroad.

The experience of the Pullman porter was both uncommon yet ordinary.  The Pullman Palace Car company hired black men almost exclusively as porters. This practice began under the direction of the founder of the company, George Pullman, after the Civil War. On board a luxurious and comfortable Pullman Car, Pullman porters were expected to be the ideal servants to their well off white passengers. [Read more…] about Chaos On An Adirondack Train: The Case Against Pullman Porter Smith

Public Meetings Over Historic Railroad Line Planned

by 1 Comment

NYCRR Adk Div MapThe New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) announced today that they will hold four public meetings in September about the management of the Remsen-Lake Placid Travel Corridor, a 119-mile nineteenth-century rail line in the western Adirondacks.

A bitter debate has raged in the Adirondacks over the past several years after rail-trail advocates began pushing to have the historic railroad tracks torn-up.  In 2011, an organization calling themselves Adirondack Recreational Trail Advocates began calling for the outser of the tourist railroad operation and for conversion of the rail bed to a multi-use trail. More than 10,000 people have signed-on to a petition calling for the removal of the tracks.  The trail advocates’ call for a reassessment of the corridor’s management plan has resulted in this round of public hearings.  [Read more…] about Public Meetings Over Historic Railroad Line Planned

A Small Error Leads To A Terrible Adirondack Railroad Accident

by Leave a Comment

1912 Map of McKeeverOn May 9, 1903, a seemingly minor error led to a terrible Adirondack railroad accident near Old Forge. About seven miles south on Route 28 was Nelson Lake siding (a side rail, or pullover) on the Mohawk & Malone Railroad (an Adirondack branch of the New York Central Railroad). A little farther down the line from Nelson Lake was the village of McKeever.

That fateful day started like any other. From Malone, New York, about 90 miles northeast of Nelson Lake, train No. 650 (six cars) was heading south on its route that eventually led to Utica. At around 8:00 that morning and some 340 miles south of Malone, train No. 651 of the Adirondack & Montreal Express departed New York City. At 1:05 pm, it passed Utica, beginning the scenic run north towards the mountains. [Read more…] about A Small Error Leads To A Terrible Adirondack Railroad Accident

Lecture to Focus on Albany’s Railroad History

by Leave a Comment

Although Albany remains a vital railroad junction, New York’s capital city was once a major hub of the railway industry. Can it become one again? On Sunday, October 24, at 2:00 p.m., the Albany Institute of History & Art welcomes Harvard University Professor John Stilgoe, who will give a lecture entitled, Albany’s Railroads: A Once and Future Hub.

Professor Stilgoe recalls the bustling railroad lines that once converged on Albany, examines how curtailment of passenger and freight service has affected our region, and imagines a visionary railway revitalization that transcends the now-dominant interstate highway network. He holds joint appointments to the Harvard faculties of Design and Arts and Sciences. He is the winner of the Francis Parkman, George Hilton, and Bradford Williams medals, the AIA award for collaborative research, and the Charles C. Eldredge prize for art history research.

This lecture is free and open to the public, and is made possible by a grant from the New York Council for the Humanities. Admission to the lecture does not include museum admission.

Books: Historic Photos of The Hudson Line

by Leave a Comment

Henry John Steiner’s new book, Historic Photos of The Hudson Line showcases more than 200 striking black-and-white images that take you on a journey up the Hudson River between the years 1850 and 1970 when the New York Central and Hudson River Railroad came to dominate transportation along this important American travel corridor. In the process the colonial-era river towns and landings were transformed in commercial, manufacturing, and political centers in their own rights.

Stiener, a local author and the municipal historian of Sleepy Hollow, captures the events from parades to politics, celebrations to sporting events, steamboats to airplanes – the people and places that contributed to the growth of this historic region. He uses fact-filled captions and chapter introductions to highlight the large format photographs culled from the Library of Congress, the New York Public Library, and the New York State Archives.

The book is published by Turner Publishing.

Note: Books noticed on this site have been provided by the publishers. Purchases made through this Amazon link help support this site.