South of Albany the NYC's ancestry lay in two principal lines, the New York & Harlem (NY&H) and Hudson River Railroad (HRRR).
These small systems offered a through route from the state capital to Buffalo roughly following the Erie Canal.Īccording to Mike Schafer and Brian Solomon's book, " New York Central Railroad," they worked together in providing scheduled service between both cities.Īs early as 1847 discussions commenced of a possible merger but the powerful canal lobby thwarted their idea.įinally, led by Albany businessman Erastus Corning, who headed the Utica & Schenectady, the group received the blessing of the state legislature and formed the New York Central Railroad on May 17, 1853.Ĭorning was president of the NYC until after the Civil War and helped establish its eventual entry into Chicago. New York Central's earliest predecessor was the Mohawk & Hudson incorporated on Apand opened for service in August of 1831 between Albany and Schenectady. Only the equally prosperous Pennsylvania Railroad rivaled NYC's dominance in the East.Įach featured a main line radiating in different directions out of New York although they served many of the same markets, leading to a heated rivalry that lasted decades until the disastrous Penn Central merger of early 1968. In addition, its main line from New York to Buffalo, known as the Water Level Route, was the envy of the industry featuring an unprecedented four tracks while many of its other through routes were equipped with at least two tracks. Its predecessors provided the first rail service into Manhattan Island and once offered three main lines radiating northward near or out of the city.Īt its peak the NYC boasted more than 11,000 route miles connecting Buffalo, Detroit, Chicago, Cincinnati, Louisville, and St. No other railroad blanketed the greater New York City region like the mighty New York Central. However, in the wake of Penn Station's demise an outraged public thwarted these efforts and the building was eventually completely restored in the mid-1990s, reopening to the public in 1998. However, the current terminal was not completed until just prior to World War I.Īs the traveling public abandoned trains for other modes of transportation in the post-World War II era the magnificent structure was in danger of being demolished. The history of rail service into downtown Manhattan can be traced well back into the 19th century. Its development sprang up from a need to meet the rising demand of rail service during a time when no other mode of transportation could provide such fast and efficient service.Īs Brian Solomon notes in his book, " Railway Depots, Stations & Terminals," GCT was built with the future in mind, designed to handle much more traffic than that which existed at the time it opened. While the terminal was a masterpiece of architecture and engineering, described as a gift to New York and a monument to the New York Central, it also had a very functional purpose. It was built during the Golden Age of rail travel and exemplified the power and scope railroads wielded at that time. New York Central's breathtaking Grand Central Terminal (GCT) is a New York City landmark and world famous station.
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