New York ELs and New York Subways DVD

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NEW YORK ELS VOLUME I presents rare scenes of the Second and Third Avenue els taken in the late 1930s and early 1940s. Additional footage of the Polo Grounds Shuttle (remnant of the Ninth Ave. El), the Dyre Avenue line (formerly part of the New York, Westchester & Boston interurban line) in 1940, and the Staten Island Rapid Transit line is also included. You'll also view scenes of antique rolling stock being scrapped and the demolition of some of the elevated lines.

VOLUME II opens with a look at some of the rolling stock used on the Els, the program then offers an extended visit to the famous Third Avenue elevated line, which made its first runs in 1878. The Manhattan portion of the El, which began at the South Ferry Terminal and extended northward via the Bowery and Third Avenue, closed in May 1955, but the section from 149th Street to Gun Hill Road in the Bronx lasted until 1973. You'll take several rides over the line, and then view the Bronx portion in its final days. Rounding out the program are visits to Corona Yard in Queens, views of the Dyre Avenue line (formerly part of the New York, Westchester & Boston interurban line) right after its reopening in 1940 as part of the New York City transit system, and some IRT vignettes including the Polo Grounds Shuttle.

NEW YORK SUBWAYS: The Stygian Caves was a film produced by Walter Druck in 1949. A rather quaint history of the New York City subway system, it was designed to be shown to railfan audiences at some of these meetings. Included are early scenes of subway construction, a primer on subway rolling stock, and various action scenes filmed in Manhattan and The Bronx. We have updated some of the titles and added music to the presentation.

90 MINUTES * COLOR AND B/W ARCHIVE FILM * MAPS AND GRAPHICS * FACT FILES * BIG BAND MUSIC

PRODUCED BY MARC S. BALKIN