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New York, New York. British Empire Building, Rockefeller Center
New York, New York. British Empire Building, Rockefeller Center
A black and white photo of a tall building. America during Great Depression and World War Two. FSA / OWI Photograph.
Flatiron building manhattan new york. An aerial view of a city with a lot of tall buildings
U.S. Express Building (2787709954)
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Interborough Rapid Transit Subway (Original Line), New York, New York County, NY
Summary
Significance: The IRT was New York City's first subway.
Unprocessed Field note material exists for this structure: N508
Survey number: HAER NY-122
Building/structure dates: ca. 1904 Initial Construction
New York Subway Historic Photos
The history of New York City's transportation system. New York City is distinguished from other U.S. cities for its low personal automobile ownership and its significant use of public transportation. New York is the only city in the United States where over half of all households do not own a car (Manhattan's non-ownership is even higher, around 75%; nationally, the rate is 8%). New York City has, by far, the highest rate of public transportation use of any American city. New York City also has the longest mean travel time for commuters (39 minutes) among major U.S. cities. The Second Industrial Revolution fundamentally changed the city – the port infrastructure grew at such a rapid pace after the 1825 completion of the Erie Canal that New York became the most important connection between all of Europe and the interior of the United States. Elevated trains and subterranean transportation ('El trains' and 'subways') were introduced between 1867 and 1904. Private automobiles brought an additional change for the city by around 1930, notably the 1927 Holland Tunnel.