Dave, all I can say is, no wonder I got lost! I got lost just reading your entry! America's was a great place and so was Polk's. Have you seen "The Godfather?" The scene where Solllozo picks up Tom Hagen after Vito was shot was filmed in front of Polk's. Regarding America's, my father said that back in the 40s when he went there, there were only catalogs on the counters. You picked out what you wanted and what ever it was would be lowered in a bucket from next floor up. I remember the place being on the second floor of the building, but the old man said at the time it was in the basement.
Speaking of basements, I assume you know of the "Red Caboose" on 45th st? He's got stuff in the cases that were there so long they were growing dust fur. And the price goes up every year even though the item deteriorates after 40 years. ! I truly believe the owner, Alan Spitz is mentally unbalanced. I was there once trying to buy something and good luck getting his attention while he juggles the phone, yells at his employees and does very slow confusing counter sales. It took about 20 minutes for him to answer tthe question of how much is this loco in the case, because nothing had a price on it. One of his workers said to the other 'If I kill him, would I get a medal?" I said, "I'd give you one." I haven't been back since.
I need to make a correction. The Broadway BMT line had and probably still does have a local stop at 28th Street between Herald Square, and if this stop stil exists the R train stops there, and did even prior to 1967. So prior to 1967, you would have used the R two stops south to 23rd Street. But the 6th Avenue line lacks such a stop and you would have ridden the F one stop south to 23rd--after 2967.
Several mentions of hobby repute here: Polk's Hobby...counters were 3foot high mocking passenger cars; and Broadway Antiques of mostly railroad stuff in a building high overlooking the Penn Station yards west of 9th Ave! As a kid A.C. Gilbert's Hall of Science presented a little boys wonderland including a huge American Flyer layout. And Lionel Cowen made a big presentation of his O gauge empire with a monsterous layout somewere around the Times Sq. area.
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America's Hobby Center! Wow, I'd forgotten all about the place! I went there several times as a teenager. What a place that was. It was like my usual hobby shop, Hiway Hobby House in Ramsey NJ on steroids. Mind you, I don't think anyone knew what steroids were in 1970.
If you ended up riding over the Manhattan Bridge and then on an elevated, you must have boarded at Herald Square on 6th Avenue-Avenu of the Americas. One the lowest level station platform, you boarded a B train southbound, which skipped 23rd Stret, the first local stop south of Herald Square - 34th Street, running non-stop from HS-34 to West 4th. The of c ourse you never did see a 23rd Street station until you were riding over New Utrecht Avenue on an elevated structure. I gather you got off and returned before the terminal station at Coney Island. The route is handled by the D train today, as the B and D swapped roles in Brooklyn, but both skip 23rd St and both run over the Manhattan Bridge.
If the date was before 1967 and the Chrystie Stret Connection, then the train you boarded would ahve been the T Broadway-West End Express, boarding on the middle level southbound platorm, with the same scenareo (skipping 23rd Street) with 14th St. and Canal Street instead West 4th, still the Manhattan Bridge and New Utriecht Avenue's elevated structure,.
The top level platforms are PATH, formerly Nudson Tubers, H&M. Separate fare zone for New Jersey bound trains.
In either case, ifyou had asked for directions on the platform, you would have been directed to a local train on the local track and would have rode only one stop south.
I was a kid, trying to get from Penn Station to 22nd st to get to America's Hobby Center when I ended up gong over the Manhattan Bridge and rode through Brooklyn for a while on the El. It was a long time ago, I think around 1969. That was the day me and some friends saw the Flying Scotsman at Penn. A man with the train there said it was deck cargo on a Cunard freighter and they almost lost it overboard during a storm.
54light15 The New York city subway system is the only one I've ever gotten lost on and I've been on plenty and I'm a Native Noo Yawker as well being from the Sowt Shaw of Lawn Gyland.
The New York city subway system is the only one I've ever gotten lost on and I've been on plenty and I'm a Native Noo Yawker as well being from the Sowt Shaw of Lawn Gyland.
Bahstin is easy to get around. but Neu Yawk is easy to take a misstep and end up someplace else, which might be a good thing anyway...gotta know what stop you gotta get off, and watch me and get off at the one before I do.
How did you get lost? Tell us of your adventure. Sounds interesting!
I"ve only been to Manhattan a couiple times, but between those trips and reading information like this I"m amazed at the number and complexity of the subway lines there.
And the reason the no switches (might be useful for emergencies or equipment transfers) is that the grades necessary for the over and under crossings start right at the ends of the platforms. The whole staiton is underneath the 7th Avenue IRT on Broadway and the BMT Broadway line on 7th Avenuce and each track in the station also has junctions with both tracks on Eighth Avenue and tracks leading to or from or on Sixth Avenue. Quite a feat of engineering.
Designed that way so the approach tracks could cross over/under, rather than through a puzzle palace of double slips. Elegant solution, in my admittedly biased opinion.
Chuck (Native Noo Yawka)
I was asked about the subway station at 7th Avenue and 53rd Street in Manhattan. Note that it has two levels, each with one island platform. The upper level is for trains from Queens to 8th Avenue ("E") and from upper Manhattan and the Bronx to 6th Avenue (Ave, of Americas, "D" and "B".) The lower level is for trains from 8th Avenue to Queens and from 6th Avenue to upper Manhattan and the Bronx. On both levels the E is on the northside track and the B and D on the southside track. There are no crossovers or switches at either end of this station. There are entrances/exists at both 53rd and 7th and 53rd and B'way without any underground pedestrian connection to any other subway station.
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