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Brighton Beach Hotel moved inland on steam locomotives

When
1888
Where
Brighton Beach Hotel site
Episodes
1

In April 1888, the Brighton Beach Hotel in Coney Island was relocated inland to prevent destruction from ocean storms. The massive structure was lifted on hydraulic jacks and moved 495 feet using six steam locomotives. This operation, lasting nine days, was the largest building relocation of the 19th century.

Episodes

  1. April 2-11, 1888 · Brighton Beach Hotel siteRelocation of Brighton Beach Hotel

    The Brighton Beach Hotel was moved 495 feet inland using six steam locomotives to save it from ocean storms.

Background and detail

Background. The Brighton Beach Hotel, situated on the beach at the foot of Coney Island Avenue, faced severe threats from beach erosion and high tides. Following an extremely high tide in December 1887, the building risked being undermined and carried away. A novel plan was devised to elevate and move the entire structure inland to save it.

Engineering Method. The relocation involved lifting the estimated 5,000-ton hotel on 13 hydraulic jacks. Railroad tracks were laid under the building, and it was placed on 112 platform cars. Six steam locomotives pulled the structure 495 feet inland. The operation began on April 2, 1888, and continued for nine days.

Sources

  1. Brighton Beach Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-23

Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.