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Mapping Local and Commuter Rail Transit in NYC: Before the Subway

This guide covers how to research for maps related to subways and railroads in New York City within the Lionel Pincus and Princess Firyal's Map Division.

About

This section organizes how to search for maps related to commuting in New York City before the introduction of the subway. In the drop-down menu, you will find different ways of searching for local transit, based on if the transportation was elevated or at street level. Please click on the transportation type, to learn:

  • Queens: Flushing - [The first trolley that ran from College Point to Flushing.] NYPL Digital Collections Image ID IMAGE ID 726576Fdefinitions and important dates related to these forms of transportation
  • tips on how to search the catalog for cartographic materials that depict these different types of transportation
  • a selection of cartographic materials that show these forms of local transportation
  • a list of supplementary resources at NYPL's Research Libraries

Types of transportation that are represented in this section include:

  • Elevated Railways
  • Omnibuses
  • Streetcars 
  • Trolleys

Image Source: Queens: Flushing - [The first trolley that ran from College Point to Flushing.] NYPL Digital Collections Image ID IMAGE ID 726576F

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