Manhattan Railway Company
| Company type | Private company |
|---|---|
| Industry | Rail transport |
| Founded | December 29, 1875 |
| Fate | Leased by Interborough Rapid Transit Company |
| Headquarters | New York City , United States |
Area served | Manhattan and the Bronx, New York City |
Key people | George Jay Gould I (president) |
| Products | Elevated rail transit services |
The Manhattan Railway Company operated elevated rail transit systems within Manhattan and the Bronx, parts of New York City, United States. It oversaw four distinct routes: the Second Avenue Line, Third Avenue Line, Sixth Avenue Line, and Ninth Avenue Line.
19th century
By the close of the 1870s, two entities controlled Manhattan’s elevated railways: the Metropolitan Elevated Railway operated the Sixth Avenue line, while the New York Elevated Railroad managed the Third and Ninth Avenue lines. The Metropolitan Elevated Railway also initiated construction of a Second Avenue route. The Manhattan Railway Company was officially established on December 29, 1875, and subsequently leased both aforementioned companies on May 20, 1879.
An inquiry by the New York State Legislature's Hepburn Committee uncovered dubious financial practices within the company, including extensive stock watering that inflated its declared capital from $2 million to $15 million. This revelation prompted legislative proposals aimed at prohibiting fictitious railroad ownership through leasing arrangements and stock manipulations.
Starting in 1881, continuous operations were maintained on the Third and Sixth Avenue Lines. The Manhattan Railway Company expanded further by leasing the Suburban Rapid Transit Company, which operated the Third Avenue Line in the Bronx, on June 4, 1891; by February 1890, all three firms had consolidated under the Manhattan Railway Company.
In 1899, a conflict emerged between Tammany Hall leader Richard Croker and Manhattan Railway Company president George Jay Gould I. Croker sought to affix compressed-air pipes to the elevated railway structures to benefit his holdings in the New York Auto-Truck Company. Upon Gould’s refusal, Croker utilized Tammany Hall’s political influence to pass municipal ordinances requiring drip pans beneath all elevated structures at street crossings and mandating trains run every five minutes, with penalties of $100 imposed for noncompliance.
20th century
The Interborough Rapid Transit Company, formed in April 1902 to operate its inaugural subway line, entered into a 999-year lease agreement for the Manhattan Railway Company’s lines on April 1, 1903—more than a year prior to the subway’s commencement.
Following over six decades of operation under various managements—primarily the IRT—the elevated lines began systematic closures:
- Service on the Sixth Avenue Line ceased in 1938.
- In 1940, operations ended on the Ninth Avenue Line south of 155th Street and on the Second Avenue Line north of 59th Street; however, the Ninth Avenue segment extending from 155th Street into the Bronx continued as the "Polo Grounds Shuttle" until its termination in 1958.
- The remaining portion of the Second Avenue Line was closed in 1942.
- The Manhattan portion of the Third Avenue Line was gradually discontinued during the early 1950s, concluding in 1955; service in the Bronx persisted until 1973.
Substation 7, constructed around 1898 to convert alternating current into direct current, still stands at 1782 Third Avenue and is recognized on the National Register of Historic Places. The contemporaneous 74th Street Powerhouse, located at York Avenue, continues to provide electrical power for Consolidated Edison.
See also
- The Hepburn Committee
- George Jay Gould
- Frank K. Hain, longtime general manager