Flushing and North Side Railroad

Flushing and North Side Railroad
Company type	Railroad company
Industry	Rail transport
Predecessor	New York and Flushing Railroad
Founded	1868
Founder	Conrad Poppenhusen
Defunct	1874
Fate	Merged with Central Railroad of Long Island to form the Flushing, North Shore and Central Railroad
Headquarters	Long Island City, United States
Area served	Long Island, New York

Adapted from the English Wikipedia article Flushing and North Side Railroad, available under CC BY-SA 4.0Updated 26 July 2025

The Flushing and North Side Railroad was a Long Island rail company established in 1868 by Conrad Poppenhusen to succeed the earlier New York and Flushing Railroad. In 1874, it combined with the Central Railroad of Long Island to form the Flushing, North Shore and Central Railroad, which the Long Island Rail Road purchased in 1876. Today, its principal route operates as the Port Washington Branch of the LIRR.

New York and Flushing Railroad

Chartered in 1852, the New York and Flushing Railroad (NY&F) constructed most of the line from Hunters Point in Long Island City to Flushing by 1854. It was notable as the first Long Island railroad independent from the Long Island Rail Road. After Oliver Charlick took control in 1859, it reorganized under the NY&F name and created a subsidiary called the "North Shore Railroad" to extend service from Flushing to Great Neck, NY in 1866. The company aimed to expand further east toward markets such as Roslyn and Oyster Bay but was outpaced by the LIRR, which reached those areas first. The NY&F suffered from subpar service, which limited its ability to capture market share and grow.

Flushing and Woodside Railroad

Frustration with NY&F’s inadequate service led residents of Flushing and Newtown to urge the LIRR to establish a rival line. Consequently, on February 24, 1864, the Flushing and Woodside Railroad was incorporated as a competing branch serving Flushing. This route extended from Woodside toward Great Neck Junction, including a branch toward Whitestone. Following NY&F’s failure after its Great Neck Extension, LIRR acquired this railroad but left its branch incomplete. Conrad Poppenhusen, founder of the Flushing and North Side Railroad, later purchased and finished this line, which became known as the Woodside Branch under Flushing and North Side management. The branch featured Grinnell station at Junction Boulevard and 35th Avenue (opened April 24, 1874; closed October 1877). East of Grinnell station near the Flushing River, a junction allowed trains to either continue on the F&NS main line or divert onto the Whitestone Branch.

North Shore Railroad

Despite operational challenges, NY&F formed a subsidiary called the North Shore Railroad of Long Island on September 25, 1863 to extend service from Flushing to Great Neck, which opened on October 27, 1866. Under competitive pressure, NY&F sold both this line and its lease on the North Shore Railroad to LIRR in 1867. This acquisition bolstered LIRR’s strategic position by preventing the South Side Railroad from accessing Long Island City terminal facilities and blocking North Side expansion eastward toward Huntington, which would have created competition for LIRR. Subsequently, LIRR discontinued construction on the unfinished Flushing and Woodside branch.

Formation

Responding to demands from residents of Flushing as well as influential individuals from College Point and Whitestone, including businessman Conrad Poppenhusen, the Flushing and North Side Railroad was incorporated on April 3, 1868. The company obtained authorization to build a line running from Long Island City through Flushing onward to Roslyn, along with a branch to Whitestone. It acquired the incomplete Flushing and Woodside Railroad and commenced service to Flushing in 1868; by 1869, service extended to College Point and Whitestone. This expansion attracted notable traffic away from the older New York and Flushing route, leading LIRR to divest its holdings in its Flushing branch.

In that same year, an affiliated company—the Whitestone and Westchester Railroad—constructed the Whitestone Branch intended to link across the East River into Westchester County; however, this connection was never realized. The branch included freight spurs serving docks along Flushing Bay. Primary stations along this route included Bridge Street, College Point, plus two stops within Whitestone at 14th Avenue and 155th Street (known respectively as Whitestone Landing and Beechhurst Yacht Club stations). The Malba station was introduced decades later following LIRR’s acquisition.

Also in 1869, authorization from the New York State Legislature allowed Flushing and North Side to acquire New York and Flushing’s lines east of . The company constructed connecting tracks at Woodside/Winfield and at Flushing to unify its network. Meanwhile, New York and Flushing retained ownership west of Winfield, serving as South Side Railroad’s access point into Long Island City.

Passenger service between what would become future stations ceased in 1875 and was fully discontinued by 1880; this former right-of-way is now partially beneath Mount Zion Jewish Cemetery in Maspeth. The Flushing and Woodside Railroad merged into Flushing and North Side in 1871; subsequently its line was abandoned in favor of utilizing former New York and Flushing trackage.

This consolidation strategy significantly increased market presence for Queens rail service providers by expanding network coverage through acquisitions and infrastructure development, thereby strengthening competitive positioning against rivals such as LIRR.

Planned extension

To broaden services eastward from Great Neck, subsidiaries were formed by the NY&F and F&NS railroads. The F&NS put forward proposals for the North Shore and Port Washington Railroad as well as the Roslyn and Huntington Railroad; however, these initiatives were discontinued following the 1874 consolidation with the Central Railroad of Long Island. The LIRR made efforts to push the line further to Roslyn up until 1882 but faced obstacles due to difficult construction conditions in the Manhasset Valley area.

Consolidations

On June 19, 1874, all divisions of the Flushing and North Side Railroad—including the Main Line extending to Great Neck—were unified into the Flushing, North Shore and Central Railroad, which incorporated the Central Railroad of Long Island. This company was absorbed into the Long Island Rail Road two years later. Despite an unsuccessful attempt in 1882 to extend service beyond Great Neck, wealthy residents of Port Washington persuaded the LIRR to push the terminus there by 1895. This expansion necessitated building the Manhasset Viaduct over Manhasset Bay, which was finished on June 23, 1898. Following this development, the Woodside and Whitestone Branches were terminated.

Main Line

Location	Station	Distance (miles/kilometers) to Penn Station	Current Transit Links/Notes	Historical Details
58th Street & 39th Avenue, Woodside	Woodside		Subway: (Template:NYCS Flushing) Bus: Q18, Q32, Q53	Opened November 15, 1869; rebuilt in 1916 during grade crossing removal
Woodside	Template:Lirrs			Inaugurated July 1854; relocated to junction in 1876; closed in 1929
Elmhurst	Template:Lirrs			Established 1855 as Newtown; renamed Elmhurst in 1897; ceased operations in 1985
Corona	Template:Lirrs			Service commenced June 26, 1854; renamed Corona in 1872; closed in 1963
Corona	Template:Lirrs			Opened September 1854; subsequently abandoned
	Whitestone Junction			Served Whitestone Branch; situated east of present-day Template:Lirrs station
	Great Neck Junction			Junction for several branches; located on east side of Flushing River
Main Street and 41st Avenue, Flushing	Flushing-Main Street	9.5 (15.3)	Subway: (Template:NYCS Flushing) Bus: Q12, Q17, Q20, Q25, Q26, Q28, Q34, Q44, Q48, Q58 Bus (Nassau Inter-County Express): n20 series	Service started June 26, 1854
150th Street and 41st Avenue, Flushing	Template:Lirrs	10.3 (16.6)	Bus: Q15	Constructed around 1890 by LIRR
162nd Street and Northern Boulevard, Flushing	Template:Lirrs	11.1 (17.9)	Bus: Q12, Q13, Q28	Opened October 27, 1866 as East Flushing; elevated between 1912 and 1913
192nd Street and Station Road, Auburndale	Template:Lirrs	11.7 (18.8)	Bus: Q12, Q13, Q28, Q76	Built in 1901 by LIRR
213th Street and 41st Avenue, Bayside	Template:Lirrs	12.6 (20.3)	Bus: Q13, Q31
235th Street and 41st Avenue, Douglaston	Template:Lirrs	13.9 (22.4)	Bus: Q12, QM3 Bus (Nassau Inter-County Express): n20G	Initially known as Little Neck Station until June 1870
Little Neck Parkway and 39th Road, Little Neck	Template:Lirrs	14.5 (23.3)	Bus: Q12, Q36 Bus (Nassau Inter-County Express): n20G
Middle Neck Road and Station Plaza at Great Neck Road, Great Neck Plaza	Template:Lirrs	15.7 (25.3)	Bus (Nassau Inter-County Express): n20G series	Service initiated October 27, 1866; functioned as terminus until 1898
Stations beyond this point were constructed by LIRR as part of the Port Washington Branch completed on June 23, 1898

Original New York & Flushing section

Location	Station	History
Hunter's Point, Long Island City	Hunter's Point	Established in 1854. Later renamed Long Island City (LIRR station)
Long Island City	Template:Lirrs	Inaugurated in 1854. Initially part of the South Side Railroad of Long Island, later incorporated into LIRR. Ceased operations in 1998.
Interchange with South Side Railroad of Long Island (currently LIRR Montauk Branch) at Laurel Hill. Section discontinued in 1880. A small station was added between 1890 and 1900.
Maspeth	Maspeth	Operated from 1855 to 1858; service resumed on Montauk Branch in 1895 and again in 1924.
Woodside	Template:Lirrs	Served as the junction connecting LIRR and NY&F Main Lines. The track segment between Laurel Hill and Winfield was abandoned in 1880.
Extends as F&NS Main Line toward Great Neck.

Woodside Branch

Location	Station	Miles (kilometers) to Penn Station	Connections/notes	History
61st Street and Roosevelt Avenue, Woodside	Template:Lirrs	5.1 (8.2)	Subway: (Template:NYCS Flushing) Bus: Q18, Q32, Q53	Western endpoint of the Woodside Branch
Grinnell				Functioned from 1874 to 1877. Sole station on Woodside Branch located at Junction Blvd and 35th Ave.
Connection point with Central Railroad of Long Island.
Link to Flushing Bay Freight Spur.
Eastern terminus connecting with Whitestone Branch.
Complete abandonment occurred in the late 1870s.

Whitestone Branch

Location	Station	Connections/notes	History
	Whitestone Junction		Originates at Port Washington Branch near Corona Yard, east of Template:Lirrs station.
Connection with Flushing Bay Freight Spur.
Link to Woodside Branch.
Flushing	Flushing–Bridge Street		'Distinct from Template:Lirrs. Operated between 1870 and 1932.
College Point			Active from 1869 until 1932.
Malba			Only station constructed by LIRR on this route; operational from 1909 to 1932.
Whitestone	Whitestone–14th Avenue	Whitestone Line (NY&NST Trolley)	In service from 1869 through 1932.
Whitestone	Whitestone Landing (at 155th Street)		"Beechhurst Yacht Club Station." Functioned between 1886 and 1932.
The entire branch was discontinued on February 15, 1932.

MTA Long Island Rail Road
Bob Andersen's Unofficial LIRR History Website:
NYCSubway.org: Port Washington Branch
Forgotten New York:
Whitestone Branch Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Part Four, and Part Five (Arrt's Arrchives)
The Third Rail; LIRR History Part 1(Page 10)