Happy Subway Day!
The NYC Subway Turns 119 on October 27th!
The Interborough Rapid Transit (IRT) subway, New York’s first underground rapid transit network, opened on October 27, 1904 with 28 stations along a 9.1-mile line. That four-track line began at City Hall, ran under Park Avenue South to Grand Central, across 42nd Street to Times Square, and up Broadway to 145th Street.
Initially, the IRT was a privately owned company. It expanded to the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens in the ensuing years, and was eventually joined by two competing companies, the Brooklyn-Manhattan Transit Corporation (BMT) and the city-owned Independent Subway (IND). In 1940, these companies were unified and today they comprise the current New York City subway system. It is the largest 24-hour operating subway in the world, with 472 stations, over 800 track miles and a fleet of over 6,000 passenger cars.
Celebrate with the New York Transit Museum!
Founded in 1976, the New York Transit Museum is dedicated to telling and preserving the stories of mass transportation – extraordinary engineering feats, workers who labored in the tunnels over 100 years ago, communities that were drastically transformed, and the ever-evolving technology, design, and ridership of a system that runs 24 hours a day, every day of the year.
From the Archives: The Original IRT Stations
City Hall Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
Brooklyn Bridge Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
Worth Street Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
Canal Street Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
Spring Street Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
Bleecker Street Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
Astor Place Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
14th Street Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
18th Street Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
23rd Street Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
28th Street Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
33rd Street Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
42nd Street–Times Square Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
50th Street Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
Columbus Circle Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
66th Street Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
72nd Street Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
79th Street Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
86th Street Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
91st Street Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
96th Street Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
103rd Street Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
110th Street Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
125th Street Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
137th Street Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
145th Street Station
New York Transit Museum Collection
Explore More in our Online Collections Database
On Subway Day in 2022, the New York Transit Museum’s new online collections database launched, allowing access to over 14,000 images, archival materials, and objects to all. It was the biggest update to the Transit Museum’s online collections database in the Museum’s history. 11,276 photographs, 2,987 archival materials (including maps, journals, subway posters and advertisements) and 165 objects are currently available to view, and more content is being added every day.
By providing online collections access, the New York Transit Museum is making a significant portion of the Museum’s collection freely available to the public, scholars, and students, advances its educational mission, and is improving its overall collections management. The site includes an easily searchable database where users can find items via keywords, station or line names, date ranges, names of historic figures in transit history, and more. Featured collections on the homepage provide easy access to subway construction photographs and popular New York Transit Museum Collections such as the Lonto / Watson Collection and Lundin Collection. The new online collections database is available to all at nytransitmuseum.org/onlinecollections.