Manhattan Beach Branch
Encyclopedia
The Manhattan Beach Branch or Manhattan Beach Division was a line of the Long Island Rail Road
, running from Fresh Pond, Queens
south to Manhattan Beach, Brooklyn
, New York City
, United States
. It opened in 1877 and 1878 as the main line of the New York and Manhattan Beach Railway. The tracks from Flatbush
south to Manhattan Beach were removed from 1938 to 1941, while most of the rest is now the freight-only Bay Ridge Branch
.
At Manhattan Beach, the line extended east to Oriental Beach, and a branch to the Sheepshead Bay Race Track
was provided north of Sheepshead Bay
. Other lines in the Manhattan Beach Division included the West Brighton Beach Division (Culver Line), Bay Ridge Branch
, and Evergreen Branch.
Planning for a line to Bay Ridge
began in 1870 by the New York and Hempstead Plains Railroad (which built the Southern Hempstead Branch
from Valley Stream to Hempstead
). By 1873, the line was to run from Bay Ridge to East New York
, where it would join the LIRR's Atlantic Avenue Division to Jamaica
. The panic of 1873
struck after much work had been done in grading the new line.
The New York, Bay Ridge and Jamaica Railroad was incorporated on November 20, 1875 to complete the work and operate the line to Jamaica, using the Brooklyn and Rockaway Beach Railroad (Canarsie Line) from New Lots
to East New York and the LIRR Atlantic Avenue Division to Jamaica. The first piece, from the Bay Ridge Ferry (to South Ferry, Manhattan) to the crossing of the Brooklyn, Bath and Coney Island Railroad (West End Line) at New Utrecht
, opened on August 23, 1876. Trains were operated over the BB&CI to Coney Island via trackage rights
from this junction. Banker Austin Corbin
incorporated the New York and Manhattan Beach Railway on October 24, 1876 to build a branch of this line to Manhattan Beach
and extend it beyond East New York to Greenpoint
and Hunter's Point. Corbin gained control of the New York, Bay Ridge and Jamaica Railroad on November 15, 1876. The NY&MB bought the eastern half of Coney Island from the town of Gravesend
and renamed it Manhattan Beach.
The NYBR&J built the line from Bay Ridge east to New Lots, while the NY&MB built from Manhattan Beach north to the NYBR&J at Manhattan Beach Junction and from New Lots north to East New York on the west side of the Canarsie Line. The new 3 foot (914 mm) narrow gauge system opened to terminals at Bay Ridge and East New York on July 18, 1877, concurrently with the Manhattan Beach Hotel and the New York and Sea Beach Railroad. (The NY&MB leased the NYBR&J.)
The Glendale and East River Railroad was incorporated on March 26, 1874 to build from Greenpoint east to Glendale, Queens
, and was also acquired by Corbin in November 1876. The line north from East New York to Jefferson Street was built by the NY&MB under the charter of the Brooklyn and Rockaway Beach Railroad (Canarsie Line), which gave its right to construct an extension to Hunter's Point to the NY&MB. The rest from Jefferson Street to Greenpoint was built by the G&ER and leased by the NY&MB. This extension beyond East New York to Greenpoint opened at the beginning of the season on May 16, 1878.
The Kings County Central Railroad was incorporated in 1877 by Electus B. Litchfield and Austin Corbin to build from downtown Brooklyn
via the east side of Prospect Park
to a connection with the NYBR&J east of Manhattan Beach, and to be leased by the NYBR&J. The line, operated by the NY&MB as its Prospect Park Division (along with the Bay Ridge and Greenpoint Divisions), was opened June 29, 1878 to Prospect Park, but was a failure and closed for good at the end of the 1878 season.
The Eastern Railroad of Long Island was organized on November 28, 1878 to build a narrow gauge line from East New York
on the NY&MB east via Woodhaven
, Clarenceville, Jamaica
, Springfield, Woodsburgh, Valley Stream, East Rockaway, Christian Hook, Freeport
, Merrick, and South Oyster Bay to Babylon
in competition with the LIRR's Southern Railroad Division. Corbin, who owned a summer house near Babylon, put up the money to build the road, which was also planned to cross the South Bay
near Amityville to Fire Island
.
However, Corbin acquired a controlling interest in the Long Island Rail Road on November 29, 1880 and became president on January 1, 1881. In December 1881, the LIRR leased the NY&MB and NYBR&J as the Manhattan Beach Division, with plans to change it to standard gauge
and build connections to the Atlantic Avenue Division and Montauk Division. The lines from East New York to Manhattan Beach and Bay Ridge were re-gauged after the 1882 season, and the Long Island City and Manhattan Beach Railroad (incorporated February 24, 1883) built a connection from the new Cooper Avenue Junction north to another new junction, Fresh Pond Junction, on the Montauk. Trains began running from Flatbush Avenue to Manhattan Beach via the Atlantic Avenue Division on May 30, 1883, and from Long Island City
via the Montauk Division on June 2, 1883.
For the 1884 season (opened May 29), the double-track narrow gauge line between East New York and Greenpoint was replaced with a single standard gauge
track. 1885 was the last year that trains ran to Greenpoint, and the line between Greenpoint and the Bushwick Branch crossing was abandoned in October; they started using Bushwick instead in the 1886 season. Passenger trains stopped serving the line, later the Evergreen Branch, to Bushwick in 1894.
The New York, Bay Ridge and Jamaica Railroad, New York and Manhattan Beach Railroad, and Long Island City and Manhattan Beach Railroad merged on August 27, 1885 to form the New York, Brooklyn and Manhattan Beach Railway. This company was merged into the LIRR on June 19, 1925, and the Glendale and East River Railroad was absorbed in 1928.
The line south of Manhattan Beach Junction was upgraded to a grade-separated embankment
shared with the Brighton Beach Line during 1907-1909. A New York State prohibition on racetrack wagering
and the decline of the more upscale
resort
s on Coney Island
, combined with more direct and lower-priced competition from nearby rapid transit
and streetcar lines, led to a rapid decline in the Manhattan Beach's economic viability. Passenger service ended completely in 1924, and freight ended in the early 1930s.
Long Island Rail Road
The Long Island Rail Road or LIRR is a commuter rail system serving the length of Long Island, New York. It is the busiest commuter railroad in North America, serving about 81.5 million passengers each year. Established in 1834 and having operated continuously since then, it is the oldest US...
, running from Fresh Pond, Queens
Fresh Pond, Queens
Fresh Pond is a small neighborhood in Queens separated from Juniper Valley by the Lutheran and Mount Olivet cemeteries. Its main streets, Fresh Pond Road, Metropolitan Avenue, Eliot Avenue and 61st street, meet at the community's commercial center...
south to Manhattan Beach, Brooklyn
Manhattan Beach, Brooklyn
Manhattan Beach is a residential neighborhood in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. It is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the south and east, by Sheepshead Bay on the north, and Brighton Beach to the west. Traditionally known as an Italian and Ashkenazi Jewish neighborhood, it is also home to...
, New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It opened in 1877 and 1878 as the main line of the New York and Manhattan Beach Railway. The tracks from Flatbush
Flatbush, Brooklyn
Flatbush is a community of the Borough of Brooklyn, a part of New York City, consisting of several neighborhoods.The name Flatbush is an Anglicization of the Dutch language Vlacke bos ....
south to Manhattan Beach were removed from 1938 to 1941, while most of the rest is now the freight-only Bay Ridge Branch
Bay Ridge Branch
The Bay Ridge Branch is a rail line owned by the Long Island Rail Road and operated by the New York and Atlantic Railway in the U.S. State of New York...
.
At Manhattan Beach, the line extended east to Oriental Beach, and a branch to the Sheepshead Bay Race Track
Sheepshead Bay Race Track
Sheepshead Bay Race Track was an American Thoroughbred horse racing facility built on the site of the Coney Island Jockey Club at Sheepshead Bay, New York...
was provided north of Sheepshead Bay
Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn
Sheepshead Bay is a bay separating the mainland of Brooklyn, New York City from the eastern portion of Coney Island, the latter originally a barrier island but now effectively an extension of the mainland with peninsulas both east and west...
. Other lines in the Manhattan Beach Division included the West Brighton Beach Division (Culver Line), Bay Ridge Branch
Bay Ridge Branch
The Bay Ridge Branch is a rail line owned by the Long Island Rail Road and operated by the New York and Atlantic Railway in the U.S. State of New York...
, and Evergreen Branch.
History
Bay Ridge, Brooklyn
Bay Ridge is a neighborhood in the southwest corner of the New York City borough of Brooklyn, USA. It is bounded by Sunset Park on the north, Seventh Avenue and Dyker Heights on the east, The Narrows Strait, which partially houses the Belt Parkway, on the west and 86th Street and Fort Hamilton on...
began in 1870 by the New York and Hempstead Plains Railroad (which built the Southern Hempstead Branch
Southern Hempstead Branch
The Southern Hempstead Branch was a branch of the Long Island Rail Road from Valley Stream to Hempstead. It was established in 1870 and abandoned in May 1879, and is not the same route as the current West Hempstead Branch....
from Valley Stream to Hempstead
Hempstead (village), New York
Hempstead is a village located in the town of Hempstead, Nassau County, New York, United States. The population was 53,891 at the 2010 census.Hofstra University is located on the border between Hempstead and Uniondale.-Foundation:...
). By 1873, the line was to run from Bay Ridge to East New York
East New York, Brooklyn
East New York is a residential neighborhood located in the Eastern section of the borough of Brooklyn in New York City, United States. The neighborhood is part of Brooklyn Community Board 5...
, where it would join the LIRR's Atlantic Avenue Division to Jamaica
Jamaica, Queens
Jamaica is a neighborhood in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York, United States. It was settled under Dutch rule in 1656 in New Netherland as Rustdorp. Under British rule, the Village of Jamaica became the center of the "Town of Jamaica"...
. The panic of 1873
Panic of 1873
The Panic of 1873 triggered a severe international economic depression in both Europe and the United States that lasted until 1879, and even longer in some countries. The depression was known as the Great Depression until the 1930s, but is now known as the Long Depression...
struck after much work had been done in grading the new line.
The New York, Bay Ridge and Jamaica Railroad was incorporated on November 20, 1875 to complete the work and operate the line to Jamaica, using the Brooklyn and Rockaway Beach Railroad (Canarsie Line) from New Lots
New Lots, Brooklyn
New Lots is a sub-section of the East New York neighborhood in the eastern part of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. It was known as the Town of New Lots from 1852 when the area seceded from the Town of Flatbush until it was annexed in 1886 as the 26th Ward of Brooklyn. The population is...
to East New York and the LIRR Atlantic Avenue Division to Jamaica. The first piece, from the Bay Ridge Ferry (to South Ferry, Manhattan) to the crossing of the Brooklyn, Bath and Coney Island Railroad (West End Line) at New Utrecht
New Utrecht, Brooklyn
New Utrecht was the last of six towns to be founded in what is today the borough of Brooklyn in New York City. It was named after the city of Utrecht, Netherlands. In 1652 Cornelius van Werckhoven, a surveyor born in Utrecht and a principal investor in the Dutch West India Company, began purchasing...
, opened on August 23, 1876. Trains were operated over the BB&CI to Coney Island via trackage rights
Trackage rights
Trackage rights , running rights or running powers is an agreement whereby a railway company has the right to run its trains on tracks owned by another railway company....
from this junction. Banker Austin Corbin
Austin Corbin
Austin Corbin was a 19th-century American railroad executive and robber baron. He consolidated the rail lines on Long Island bringing them under the profitable umbrella of the Long Island Rail Road....
incorporated the New York and Manhattan Beach Railway on October 24, 1876 to build a branch of this line to Manhattan Beach
Manhattan Beach, Brooklyn
Manhattan Beach is a residential neighborhood in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. It is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the south and east, by Sheepshead Bay on the north, and Brighton Beach to the west. Traditionally known as an Italian and Ashkenazi Jewish neighborhood, it is also home to...
and extend it beyond East New York to Greenpoint
Greenpoint, Brooklyn
Greenpoint is the northernmost neighborhood in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. It is bordered on the southwest by Williamsburg at the Bushwick inlet, on the southeast by the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway and East Williamsburg, on the north by Newtown Creek and Long Island City, Queens at the...
and Hunter's Point. Corbin gained control of the New York, Bay Ridge and Jamaica Railroad on November 15, 1876. The NY&MB bought the eastern half of Coney Island from the town of Gravesend
Gravesend, Brooklyn
Gravesend is a neighborhood in the south-central section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn, USA.The derivation of the name is unclear. Some speculate that it was named after the English seaport of Gravesend, Kent. An alternative explanation suggests that it was named by Willem Kieft for the...
and renamed it Manhattan Beach.
The NYBR&J built the line from Bay Ridge east to New Lots, while the NY&MB built from Manhattan Beach north to the NYBR&J at Manhattan Beach Junction and from New Lots north to East New York on the west side of the Canarsie Line. The new 3 foot (914 mm) narrow gauge system opened to terminals at Bay Ridge and East New York on July 18, 1877, concurrently with the Manhattan Beach Hotel and the New York and Sea Beach Railroad. (The NY&MB leased the NYBR&J.)
The Glendale and East River Railroad was incorporated on March 26, 1874 to build from Greenpoint east to Glendale, Queens
Glendale, Queens
Glendale is a neighborhood in the west-central portion of the borough of Queens in New York City. It is bounded by Cooper Avenue to the north, Woodhaven Boulevard to the east, Myrtle Avenue to the south and Fresh Pond Road to the West...
, and was also acquired by Corbin in November 1876. The line north from East New York to Jefferson Street was built by the NY&MB under the charter of the Brooklyn and Rockaway Beach Railroad (Canarsie Line), which gave its right to construct an extension to Hunter's Point to the NY&MB. The rest from Jefferson Street to Greenpoint was built by the G&ER and leased by the NY&MB. This extension beyond East New York to Greenpoint opened at the beginning of the season on May 16, 1878.
The Kings County Central Railroad was incorporated in 1877 by Electus B. Litchfield and Austin Corbin to build from downtown Brooklyn
Downtown Brooklyn
Downtown Brooklyn is the third largest central business district in New York City , and is located in the northwestern section of the borough of Brooklyn...
via the east side of Prospect Park
Prospect Park (Brooklyn)
Prospect Park is a 585-acre public park in the New York City borough of Brooklyn located between Park Slope, Prospect-Lefferts Gardens, Kensington, Windsor Terrace and Flatbush Avenue, Grand Army Plaza and the Brooklyn Botanic Garden...
to a connection with the NYBR&J east of Manhattan Beach, and to be leased by the NYBR&J. The line, operated by the NY&MB as its Prospect Park Division (along with the Bay Ridge and Greenpoint Divisions), was opened June 29, 1878 to Prospect Park, but was a failure and closed for good at the end of the 1878 season.
The Eastern Railroad of Long Island was organized on November 28, 1878 to build a narrow gauge line from East New York
East New York, Brooklyn
East New York is a residential neighborhood located in the Eastern section of the borough of Brooklyn in New York City, United States. The neighborhood is part of Brooklyn Community Board 5...
on the NY&MB east via Woodhaven
Woodhaven, Queens
Woodhaven is a middle-class neighborhood located in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York, United States.Woodhaven is bordered on the north by a public park, Forest Park, and Park Lane South. Woodhaven also borders Richmond Hill to the east, and Ozone Park to the south at Atlantic Avenue...
, Clarenceville, Jamaica
Jamaica, Queens
Jamaica is a neighborhood in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York, United States. It was settled under Dutch rule in 1656 in New Netherland as Rustdorp. Under British rule, the Village of Jamaica became the center of the "Town of Jamaica"...
, Springfield, Woodsburgh, Valley Stream, East Rockaway, Christian Hook, Freeport
Freeport, New York
Freeport is a village in the town of Hempstead, Nassau County, New York, USA, on the South Shore of Long Island. The population was 42,860 at the 2010 census. A settlement since the 1640s, it was once an oystering community and later a resort popular with the New York City theater community...
, Merrick, and South Oyster Bay to Babylon
Babylon (village), New York
Babylon is a village in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population was 12,615 at the 2000 census.Its official name is The Incorporated Village of Babylon...
in competition with the LIRR's Southern Railroad Division. Corbin, who owned a summer house near Babylon, put up the money to build the road, which was also planned to cross the South Bay
Great South Bay
Great South Bay is a lagoon situated between Long Island and Fire Island, in the State of New York. It is approximately long. It's protected from the Atlantic Ocean by Fire Island, a barrier island, as well as the eastern end of Jones Beach Island and Captree Island.Robert Moses Causeway adjoins...
near Amityville to Fire Island
Fire Island, New York
Fire Island is one of the outer barrier islands adjacent to the south shore of Long Island, New York. It is approximately long and varies between broad. Fire Island is part of Suffolk County. It comprises a number of hamlets, census-designated places , and villages, all of which lie within the...
.
However, Corbin acquired a controlling interest in the Long Island Rail Road on November 29, 1880 and became president on January 1, 1881. In December 1881, the LIRR leased the NY&MB and NYBR&J as the Manhattan Beach Division, with plans to change it to standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
and build connections to the Atlantic Avenue Division and Montauk Division. The lines from East New York to Manhattan Beach and Bay Ridge were re-gauged after the 1882 season, and the Long Island City and Manhattan Beach Railroad (incorporated February 24, 1883) built a connection from the new Cooper Avenue Junction north to another new junction, Fresh Pond Junction, on the Montauk. Trains began running from Flatbush Avenue to Manhattan Beach via the Atlantic Avenue Division on May 30, 1883, and from Long Island City
Long Island City (LIRR station)
Long Island City is a rail terminal of the Long Island Rail Road in Long Island City, Queens. Within the City Terminal Zone and located at Borden Avenue and 2nd Street, it is the westernmost LIRR station in Queens and the end of both the Main Line and the Montauk Branch...
via the Montauk Division on June 2, 1883.
For the 1884 season (opened May 29), the double-track narrow gauge line between East New York and Greenpoint was replaced with a single standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
track. 1885 was the last year that trains ran to Greenpoint, and the line between Greenpoint and the Bushwick Branch crossing was abandoned in October; they started using Bushwick instead in the 1886 season. Passenger trains stopped serving the line, later the Evergreen Branch, to Bushwick in 1894.
The New York, Bay Ridge and Jamaica Railroad, New York and Manhattan Beach Railroad, and Long Island City and Manhattan Beach Railroad merged on August 27, 1885 to form the New York, Brooklyn and Manhattan Beach Railway. This company was merged into the LIRR on June 19, 1925, and the Glendale and East River Railroad was absorbed in 1928.
The line south of Manhattan Beach Junction was upgraded to a grade-separated embankment
Embankment (transportation)
To keep a road or railway line straight or flat, and where the comparative cost or practicality of alternate solutions is prohibitive, the land over which the road or rail line will travel is built up to form an embankment. An embankment is therefore in some sense the opposite of a cutting, and...
shared with the Brighton Beach Line during 1907-1909. A New York State prohibition on racetrack wagering
Gambling
Gambling is the wagering of money or something of material value on an event with an uncertain outcome with the primary intent of winning additional money and/or material goods...
and the decline of the more upscale
Luxury good
Luxury goods are products and services that are not considered essential and associated with affluence.The concept of luxury has been present in various forms since the beginning of civilization. Its role was just as important in ancient western and eastern empires as it is in modern societies...
resort
Resort
A resort is a place used for relaxation or recreation, attracting visitors for holidays or vacations. Resorts are places, towns or sometimes commercial establishment operated by a single company....
s on Coney Island
Coney Island
Coney Island is a peninsula and beach on the Atlantic Ocean in southern Brooklyn, New York, United States. The site was formerly an outer barrier island, but became partially connected to the mainland by landfill....
, combined with more direct and lower-priced competition from nearby rapid transit
Rapid transit
A rapid transit, underground, subway, elevated railway, metro or metropolitan railway system is an electric passenger railway in an urban area with a high capacity and frequency, and grade separation from other traffic. Rapid transit systems are typically located either in underground tunnels or on...
and streetcar lines, led to a rapid decline in the Manhattan Beach's economic viability. Passenger service ended completely in 1924, and freight ended in the early 1930s.
21st Century
In 2011, the New York, Brooklyn and Manhattan Beach Railway was the topic of a New York Times article reporting a legal action by the homeowners adjacent to a long-abandoned right-of-way in Sheepshead Bay to acquire undisputed title to it.List of stations
| Miles from LIC Long Island City (LIRR station) Long Island City is a rail terminal of the Long Island Rail Road in Long Island City, Queens. Within the City Terminal Zone and located at Borden Avenue and 2nd Street, it is the westernmost LIRR station in Queens and the end of both the Main Line and the Montauk Branch... |
Name | Opened | Closed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5.06 | Myrtle Avenue | 1893 | May 14, 1924 |
| 5.50 | Cypress Avenue originally Dummy Crossing, then Ridgewood Ridgewood (LIRR station) The following Long Island Rail Road stations were called Ridgewood:*Ridgewood the original name for Wantagh along the Babylon Branch from 1867 to 1891.... |
June 2, 1883 | May 14, 1924 |
| Cooper Avenue | June 2, 1883 | 1894 | |
| Central Avenue | June 2, 1883 | 1884 | |
| 6.53 | Bushwick Avenue | 1884 | 1915 |
| Fulton Street | 1914 | May 14, 1924 | |
| 7.00 | East New York East New York (LIRR station) East New York is a station on the Long Island Rail Road's Atlantic Branch in East New York, Brooklyn, where that branch passes through the historic Jamaica Pass. It is located at ground level, in the median of Atlantic Avenue, and underneath the elevated main lanes of Atlantic Avenue, with one side... earlier Manhattan Crossing |
July 18, 1877 | May 14, 1924 |
| New Lots Road | July 18, 1877 | 1897 | |
| 9.22 | Rugby earlier Ford's Corners |
1888 | May 14, 1924 |
| 10.18 | Kouwenhoven | July 18, 1877 | May 14, 1924 |
| 11.45 | Vanderveer Park earlier Flatlands |
1878 | May 14, 1924 |
| Kings County Central Junction | June 29, 1878 | late 1878 | |
| 12.04 | Ocean Avenue | July 18, 1877 | May 14, 1924 |
| 12.87 | South Greenfield | July 18, 1877 | May 14, 1924 |
| 13.51 | King's Highway | 1883 | May 14, 1924 |
| 14.46 | Neck Road | 1893 | May 14, 1924 |
| 14.77 | Race Track | ||
| 15.10 | Sheepshead Bay | July 18, 1877 | May 14, 1924 |
| 16.10 | Manhattan Beach | July 18, 1877 | May 14, 1924 |
Line from Greenpoint(a.k.a.; Evergreen Branch)
| Miles | Name | Opened | Closed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Greenpoint | May 16, 1878 | September 28, 1885 | |
| Fifth Avenue | 1878 | 1879 | |
| Humboldt Street | May 16, 1878 | September 28, 1885 | |
| Grand Street | May 16, 1878 | September 28, 1885 | |
| South Side Railroad Crossing | May 16, 1878 June 1886 |
May 25, 1881 1890 |
|
| Ridgewood Ridgewood (LIRR station) The following Long Island Rail Road stations were called Ridgewood:*Ridgewood the original name for Wantagh along the Babylon Branch from 1867 to 1891.... earlier DeKalb Avenue |
July 14, 1878 | 1894 | |
| Myrtle Avenue | May 16, 1878 | May 1882 | |
| Cooper Avenue | June 2, 1883 | 1894 |