West Side and Yonkers Patent Railway opens
- When
- 1868–1870
- Where
- Greenwich Street
- Episodes
- 2
The West Side and Yonkers Patent Railway opened in July 1868 as an experimental single-track cable-powered elevated railway on Greenwich Street in Manhattan. Built by Charles T. Harvey, it ran from Battery Place to Cortlandt Street. Public service began in 1870, marking the first elevated railway in New York City.
Episodes
- Experimental Operations Begin
Experimental operations of the cable-powered railway began on July 1, 1868, running from Battery Place to Cortlandt Street on Greenwich Street.
- Public Service Begins
Public use of the railway commenced on June 15, 1870, and continued through August of that year.
Background and detail
Background. The West Side and Yonkers Patent Railway was the predecessor to the Ninth Avenue Elevated. It was constructed on Greenwich Street in Manhattan by Charles T. Harvey. The line operated as an experimental single-track cable-powered elevated railway, running from Battery Place at the south end of Manhattan Island northward to Cortlandt Street.
Operations. Experimental operations began on July 1, 1868. The railway was not open for public use until June 15, 1870, continuing through August of that year. This initial segment established the foundation for what would become the first elevated railway in New York City.
Legacy. The line was later extended up Greenwich Street and Ninth Avenue by 1891. It eventually became known as the Ninth Avenue Elevated or Ninth Avenue El, recognized as the first elevated railway in New York City.
People involved
- Charles T. Harvey · associated with construction of the line
Sources
- IRT Ninth Avenue Line Wikipedia, revision of 2026-04-15
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.