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Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by Mark S. Feinman on Thu Jul 9 20:30:52 2015  From a related Daily News article about the dedication of the John T. Brush stairway that used to lead to the upper deck of the Polo Grounds. The stairway is circled in red. But it's not the stairway that's got my attention - it's the 155th St yard! New York celebrates legacy of Polo Grounds with rededication ceremony for iconic Brush Stairway --Mark |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by Bob Andersen on Thu Jul 9 20:40:39 2015, in response to Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by Mark S. Feinman on Thu Jul 9 20:30:52 2015. I went to many Mets games there in 1962 and 1963. I never realized that elevated trains and yards were right next to it at one time. |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by TerrapiN StatioN on Thu Jul 9 21:36:24 2015, in response to Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by Mark S. Feinman on Thu Jul 9 20:30:52 2015. Very cool. So when did the stairway close? Looking at Google Maps Street View, the stairway appears to be closed at least as far back as 2007. |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by Dave on Thu Jul 9 21:40:19 2015, in response to Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by Mark S. Feinman on Thu Jul 9 20:30:52 2015. WOW!! |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by 3-9 on Thu Jul 9 23:25:03 2015, in response to Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by TerrapiN StatioN on Thu Jul 9 21:36:24 2015. It was in horrible condition for many years - I remember the Daily News writing about it back in the 90's? |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by 3-9 on Thu Jul 9 23:27:28 2015, in response to Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by Mark S. Feinman on Thu Jul 9 20:30:52 2015. What were those 4 tracks for, that continued towards the bluffs and hold a couple of cars each? Just extra (short) storage tracks? |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by ftgreeneg on Fri Jul 10 01:13:05 2015, in response to Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by Mark S. Feinman on Thu Jul 9 20:30:52 2015. Nice pic! That yard was huge. Seeing the projects there now it's hard to imagine there was once a baseball stadium there. |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by gbs on Fri Jul 10 03:57:31 2015, in response to Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by Mark S. Feinman on Thu Jul 9 20:30:52 2015. And the entire train yard is elevated! Look at the extreme lower right of the photo to see the pillars. Does anyone know why the yard was elevated, instead of the lead tracks going down a ramp to ground level? Was the underneath area used for anything? More tracks? Storage? There are now two housing projects on the sites. Where the train yard used to be is the Rangel Houses (formerly, Colonial Park Houses), opened in 1951 and now named after Charlie Rangel's brother, who was prominent in those houses. Where the baseball stadium used to be is the Polo Grounds Houses, opened in 1968 and much taller than the Rangel Houses. Polo Grounds Houses foreground, Rangel Houses background: 
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by chud1 on Fri Jul 10 05:52:40 2015, in response to Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by Mark S. Feinman on Thu Jul 9 20:30:52 2015. 5 drooling stars out of 5 drooling stars for this picture.chud1. :)..... |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by Dyre Dan on Fri Jul 10 07:21:41 2015, in response to Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by Mark S. Feinman on Thu Jul 9 20:30:52 2015. From its shape, the Polo Grounds looks like a stadium designed for football, rather than baseball. I don't think they would ever play major league baseball in a facility like that these days.That is a big storage yard, considering that it is all on elevated structure. The track at the lower left corner of the picture, curving from the bottom to the left side, looks like the rails are spreading apart as it approaches the left edge of the picture. Is that an optical illusion, or was something wrong with that track? |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by MainR3664 on Fri Jul 10 07:24:41 2015, in response to Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by Mark S. Feinman on Thu Jul 9 20:30:52 2015. Awesome photo!! Thanks! |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by Fred G on Fri Jul 10 08:20:21 2015, in response to Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by Mark S. Feinman on Thu Jul 9 20:30:52 2015. Man that's awesome!Thanks for the post. your pal, Fred |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by TUNNELRAT on Fri Jul 10 09:00:53 2015, in response to Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by Fred G on Fri Jul 10 08:20:21 2015. there was a track leading to the ground."dead" cars were stored there. |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by Mark S. Feinman on Fri Jul 10 09:57:46 2015, in response to Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by 3-9 on Thu Jul 9 23:25:03 2015. Yes, it's been closed for a very very long time ... perhaps back to the mid 1980s. It was in terrible condition.--Mark |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by Mark S. Feinman on Fri Jul 10 10:00:42 2015, in response to Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by Dyre Dan on Fri Jul 10 07:21:41 2015. They're likely spreading apart because the 155th St station of the 9th Ave EL would be to the left just out of the picture.--Mark |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by Andy on Fri Jul 10 12:11:28 2015, in response to Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by gbs on Fri Jul 10 03:57:31 2015. The 9th Ave. El closed in June 1940, rendering the yard useless. So the land was available for building the apartments, but no doubt WW II delayed the construction.As many of us know, a remnant of the el still ran as far south as 155th St. till 1958. It was a shuttle between 155th and 167th St. on the Jerome IRT, following the route of the old through 9th Ave. El trains. It crossed the Harlem River into The Bronx and hooked up with the Jerome Ave. IRT at 162nd St. Remnants of the old stubs are still there, and would go through center field in the new Yankee Stadium if the trains were still around. The shuttle ended in 1958 after the NY Giants departed for San Francisco, and the NY Central RR ended its Putnam Division service at the Sedgwick Ave. Station. Also if you look at the 1936 photo there are no lights on the Polo Grounds roof. Those were installed in 1940. |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by ChicagoMotorman on Fri Jul 10 14:22:07 2015, in response to Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by Mark S. Feinman on Thu Jul 9 20:30:52 2015. Wow that is so cool. Another thing I need to see when I get back there. |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by 3-9 on Fri Jul 10 18:31:31 2015, in response to Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by Mark S. Feinman on Thu Jul 9 20:30:52 2015. Looking at the top of the photo, parking and traffic must have been...interesting... |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by 600vdc on Fri Jul 10 19:14:45 2015, in response to Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by Mark S. Feinman on Thu Jul 9 20:30:52 2015. My family were all die-hard Yankee fans, so for the most part I only ever saw the Polo Grounds when driving past it as we headed to Yankee Stadium. But, I had one uncle who was devastated when the Dodgers moved to LA. His rekindled fling with baseball came when the Mets started playing. He took me to the Polo Grounds once to see the new team in town play. It was my only time in the ballpark. |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by Bill West on Fri Jul 10 19:41:00 2015, in response to Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by 3-9 on Fri Jul 10 18:31:31 2015. An earlier picture at Wikipedia/Polo Grounds (gallery. Harlem River Speedway) suggests that the traffic at the left is just momentary drop off, likely a lot of taxis. The back in parking at the right actually looks like an efficient approach on game days.Bill |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by Elkeeper on Fri Jul 10 21:11:48 2015, in response to Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by Andy on Fri Jul 10 12:11:28 2015. The 159th St yard was the replacement for the old never-electrified 145th St el yard, which was closed in 1906. The 159th St yard operated from 1906 until sometime after the June 11th, 1940 closing of the 9th Ave el. Usable equipment and most of the el cars were removed from the yard and the el itself, before the 9th Ave el was razed, starting on Oct 8th, 1940.The land was NOT available for building because the yard sat, neglected, until Oct, 1942. It was then that Robert Moses, also in charge of the city scrap drive, started to strip the remaining rails and had cranes ready to remove the stranded el cars from the yard. Unfortunately, work was halted by the federal Office of Defense Transportation, in Feb, 1943. The feds insisted that every car had to be inspected, despite age and/or condition to see if they could be used in the war effort. Frustrated, Moses abandoned the project in favor of planning the razing of Park Row and Sands St. So, the 159th St yard again sat, neglected, until the city cleared the land for public housing in late 1947 or early 1948. |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by Elkeeper on Fri Jul 10 22:35:14 2015, in response to Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by 3-9 on Thu Jul 9 23:27:28 2015. The tracks you mention above 159th St were originally used for storage. Although the 6th and 9th Ave els terminated at 155th St, trains and locomotives were stored at the old 145th St el yard. The old yard was inadequate, covering only the area from 144th St-146th St, between 7th and 8th Aves. So, some trains were stored on the 159th St tracks. On Feb 24th, 1906, the old never-electrified yard was closed in favor of the still unfinished 155th St yard. (The repair/inspection areas were still being built). When this photo was shot in 1936, the off-hours storage was filled to capacity. So, the older tracks were put to use yet again. |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by 3-9 on Sat Jul 11 07:22:53 2015, in response to Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by Elkeeper on Fri Jul 10 22:35:14 2015. OK, thanks! |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by Elkeeper on Sat Jul 11 12:41:03 2015, in response to Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by 3-9 on Sat Jul 11 07:22:53 2015. You are welcome! |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by Elkeeper on Sat Jul 11 12:46:26 2015, in response to Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by TUNNELRAT on Fri Jul 10 09:00:53 2015. It started out as a supply track from the lower waterfront level to the elevated yard. It was never third railed.. |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by TUNNELRAT on Sat Jul 11 19:50:27 2015, in response to Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by Elkeeper on Sat Jul 11 12:46:26 2015. so they had a Forney on hand to move the EL cars to the lower level for scrape? |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by Elkeeper on Sun Jul 12 13:45:28 2015, in response to Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by TUNNELRAT on Sat Jul 11 19:50:27 2015. They may have used a IRT gas or diesel workcar to move them. I have never seen a photo of any Forneys in the 159th St yard in the 1930's. Speaking of which, there were 4 Forneys left, when the IRT sold off 2 in 1930. The other 2 apparently may have been used for yard moves there until they were stored under tarps at the old 133rd St yard. I don't know when they were taken out of service. Unfortunately, were located- and scrapped for the war effort- by the Federal Office of Defense Transportation on Feb 9th, 1943. This was right around the same time the feds caught Robert Moses attempting to scrap the remaining old el cars stranded in the 159th St el yard. I wrote about that earlier here. |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by Q4 on Mon Jul 13 15:06:49 2015, in response to Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by Andy on Fri Jul 10 12:11:28 2015. Thanks for the article, picture and history guys. |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by Q4 on Mon Jul 13 15:17:40 2015, in response to Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by 600vdc on Fri Jul 10 19:14:45 2015. I know they terminated service on the Polo Ground Spur in 1958, but when did they tear down the the elevator structure? The Wikipedia page mentioned in a prior post on this thread has a picture of the Polo Grounds allegedly from 1961 which shows the El structure still intact.One other question, it was mentioned the yard was torn down after service on the 9th Ave. El ceased. Where did they store the cars for the Polo Ground shuttle? |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by GIS Man on Fri Jul 17 13:40:56 2015, in response to Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by Q4 on Mon Jul 13 15:17:40 2015. Presumably Concourse Yard, as the shuttle connected to the (4) at 167th St.Bob |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by randyo on Fri Jul 17 14:41:35 2015, in response to Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by GIS Man on Fri Jul 17 13:40:56 2015. Not Concourse Yd as the connection from Jerome to CCYd had not yet been built. Mosholu Yd would be the place to store the shuttle cars. |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by Bob Andersen on Fri Jul 17 14:49:06 2015, in response to Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by Q4 on Mon Jul 13 15:17:40 2015. If it was still up in 1961, it seems they would have kept it around for '62 and'63 when the Mets played at the Polo Grounds. |
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Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture |
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Posted by Dyre Dan on Sat Jul 18 05:01:27 2015, in response to Re: Polo Grounds & Yard Picture, posted by Bob Andersen on Fri Jul 17 14:49:06 2015. Why keep it around if it was non-functional? If the Bronx portion and the bridge were gone by then, and I think they were, it likely would have been considered preferable not to leave a useless structure on the Manhattan end while the Mets were playing there. |
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