The Atlantic Avenue Tunnel is officially the world’s oldest subway tunnel. This tunnel was built in 1844 beneath a busy street in the City of Brooklyn (Brooklyn did not become part of NYC until a half-century later). The Atlantic Avenue Tunnel is a half-mile long and accommodated two standard gauge railroad tracks. The Atlantic Avenue Tunnel was built in only seven months, using the cut-and-cover method; only hand tools and primitive equipment was utilized in its construction. It was built to provide grade separation for early Long Island Rail Road trains that lacked brakes good enough to operate on city streets. The tunnel was built to attain grade separation for the previously existing LIRR route on the surface of Atlantic Avenue. The tunnel eliminated vehicular and pedestrian traffic conflicts and delays.Bob Diamond rediscovered the long forgotten Atlantic Avenue Tunnel in 1980. The Brooklyn Historic Railway Association (BHRA) was formed in 1982 to preserve, publicize and provide public access to the historic tunnel. BHRA successfully filed and received historic designations. BHRA continues to maintain and conduct tours and events
within the Atlantic Avenue Tunnel.The tunnel is located within both the Brooklyn Heights and
Districts, and within a U.S. Historic District. The Atlantic Avenue tunnel is a landmarked and protected historic site (It has been a Federal (and State of New York) officially registered Landmark since September 7, 1989: National Register of Historic Places, NRHP Reference#: 76001225).
– Historic Images & Articles
– Photos of Recent Tunnel Tours
– Art Events in the Tunnel
– Upcoming Tunnel Tours
– Links to other Tunnel Webpages
– Movies and Video
– Paranormal, Ephemera & Additional Historical
Articles
– Pirates & Vampires In The Atlantic Avenue Tunnel?
– Recent Historical Research
-Roster Of All Early LIRR Locomotives
– Excavated Steam Locomotives Found Elsewhere
– Buried / Abandoned Trains Found Beneath NYC Streets
– LIRR – 1845 Report to Stockholders (PDF)
– The Truth Behind The Failure Of The LIRR’s Brooklyn To Boston Route, Ca. 1844-1847
– LIRR goes to Sea – Steamboat
– Historic LIRR / Tunnel Maps
– Why The World’s First Subway Was Built In Brooklyn (in 1844) (PDF)
– The Source Of The 19th Century Folklore Surrounding The Atlantic Avenue Tunnel: Brooklyn’s Notorious “Smoky Hollow” Slum
– Antebellum Brooklyn Cops
– Artifact Proves Folklore About “Bootleggers” In the Tunnel
– Early LIRR Rolling Stock 1830’s – 1861 (pdf)
– References To The Atlantic Avenue Tunnel, As Written In The Cosgrove Report (the book that inspired the Tunnel’s discovery)
-Early Writings About The Tunnel By The American Society of Civil Engineers
-The Horrors of Steam Powered Travel (from Harper’s Weekly, 1865)
– Why the LIRR Wasn’t Completed Before 1837?(PDF)
– Litchfield’s Money Trail – The Real Reason The Atlantic Avenue Tunnel Was Closed In 1861
– Portraits of Former Presidents of the LIRR (1835 -1862)
– Atlantic Avenue Tunnel Maps / Drawings / Surveys / Studies
– Why The LIRR Was Built . . . In Response To A “Micro Ice Age” That Blocked Steamboat Navigation 100 Days A Year! (PDF)
The Atlantic Avenue Tunnel Alternative Design (open cut
alternative design c.1832
– Directions
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1845 Drawing of the Entrance to the Atlantic Avenue
Tunnel
note:
this is a circa 1845 official LIRR illustration of the west end of the
Atlantic Avenue Tunnel. Note the light from the ventilator shaft inside
the tunnel. While opening for operation on 12/3/1844, the
finishing touches to the tunnel were not completed until April,
1845. This illustration was the property of William H. Baldwin,
Jr. (President of the LIRR 1896- 1905).
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| – Historic Images & Articles |
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An
1844 view of the
tunnel.
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An
early LIRR engine
from the period (4-2-0 wheel set-up). American locomotive
used In the tunnel by the LIRR. Locomotive built by Matthias
Baldwin
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The
volunteer crew that improved tunnel access in 1982
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An
engineering
diagram of the tunnel.
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“Brooklyn has the Oldest Subway in
the World”
Brooklyn Eagle Article 7/23/1911 (2.4mb)
Opens as PDF file (zoom in for detail) |
Bob Diamond Discovering The Tunnel
Entrance Ca. 1980. He Gained Entry Into The Tunnel’s Main Chamber In 1981
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Brooklyn Eagle Article 5/31/1896 (3.3mb)
Opens as PDF file (zoom in for detail)
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Opening Day of The Atlantic Ave Tunnel
Brooklyn Eagle Article 12/5/1844 (3mb)
Opens as PDF file (zoom in for detail) |
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“Old Tunnel Eludes Police Explorers”
New York Times 1936 (100k)
Opens as PDF file (zoom in for detail) |
Original Brooklyn LIRR Ticket Office 1836-
1861, Brooklyn Eagle June 28 1916. (zoom in for
detail) |
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Original
Invitation To The Opening Of The Atlantic Avenue Tunnel In 1844.
Presented To The Editor Of The Brooklyn Evening Star. Note: The
Tunnel Was Not Fully Completed Until Mid 1845 |
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Writing On The LIRR’s Locomotive “Boston” Ca. 1845 And The LIRR’s
Brooklyn To Boston Route. The Locomotive “Boston” Was One Of The Early
LIRR’s Speedsters- Designed To Hold a Speed Of 40MPH, and Sprint Up To
60 MPH. From The Book “The Quickest Route The History of the Norwich
and Worcester RR” By Elmer Farnham, 1973 |
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Twin of the LIRR’s
Hicksville and John A. King (ex Taglione), the British “Planet” Type Locomotive.
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Early Rogers Built
Locomotive Similar To The LIRR’s Engine “Brooks” |
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Norris 4-2-0 Engine,
Similar To The LIRR’s Little And Ruggles Locomotives
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Rogers built engine
similar to the LIRR’s “Phoenix” |
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What some of the LIRR Trains that ran through the Atlantic Avenue Tunnel in the 1840s looked like |
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This circa 1842 woodcut was copied from a daguerreotype of a train on the Western RR of Massachusetts.We checked the Western RR’s contemporary Director’s reports, and the equipment they used was of the same type and manufacturers as that used by the LIRR during the same time period. In particular, a “Planet” type 2-2-0 engine built by Locks and Canals, and eight wheel passenger cars apparently built by Davenport & Bridges are depicted in the drawing.
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It is documented that the LIRR had two “Planet” type was the “Hicksville” built by Locks and Canals in 1836, the second was the John A. King, built by the Poughkeepsie in 1838. It is also documented that the LIRR purchased eight wheel passenger cars from both Davenport & Bridges, and Eaton & Gilbert. |
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– Historic Images & Articles: LIRR goes to Sea – LIRR Steamboats
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“Earliest View of the LIRR’s Greenport Terminus and Intermodal
Transfer, circa 1844- 1847”
Note the Ariel steam locomotive, Davenport & Bridges 4 axle
passenger car, the LIRR’s steamboat “Cleopatra” and the Peconic
House
hotel.
Walt Whitman’s comments on a
local LIRR train ride from Brooklyn to Greenport, ca 1846.
(See pgs 118- 121) (external link) |
The LIRR went to sea from August, 1844 though February, 1847. As part of its route between Brooklyn and Boston, the LIRR owned and operated a small fleet of steamboats, the Cleopatra, the Worcester and the New Haven. These steamboats made the waterborne connection between the eastern terminus of the LIRR at Greenport, Long Island, and the Connecticut rail terminals of the Norwich &Worcester RR at Allyn’s Point, and the New York, Providence & Boston at Stonington.
In late 1845, the LIRR commissioned the construction of a fourth
steamboat, the Atlantic. The Atlantic was the fastest, largest and most
luxurious steamboat ever built in the
U.S. This steamboat was intended for the LIRR’s planned “through route”
rail connection to Boston, via
the Fall River RR (MA). However, it was sold to the N&W prior to
its completion, as the LIRR’s Fall River RR link didn’t occur as
planned.Below, are drawings of the Cleopatra, the New Haven, the Worcester and
the Atlantic. The Atlantic was completed in May 1846 for the
Norwich & Worcester RR, and subsequently used to compete against
the LIRR. |
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| the Atlantic |
the Worcester |
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| the New Haven |
the Cleopatra |
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Sources for the steamboat pictures:
the New Haven- The Connecticut Magazine, 1906, Vol 10, pg 702
the Cleopatra- The Connecticut Magazine, 1906, Vol 10, pg 307the Worcester -The
Connecticut Magazine, Vol 10, 1906 pg 697
the Atlantic- History of American Steam Navigation, By John H. Morrison, 1903, pg 329 |
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Tunnel Tour Photos:
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One of the BHRA’s
tours of the tunnel. |
Atlantic Avenue Tunnel –
Manhole and Traffic Cones
(Photo By Jerry Walsh) |
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High Resolution Photos – Aug.
2007 Tunnel Tour (Photos By Justin N. Lane) |
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Photos from
September 2007 Tunnel Tour (Photos by John Leita) |
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Photos from May 2008 Tunnel Tour (photos by Laura Lietta)
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| Photos from Summer 2008 Tunnel Tour (photos by Diana Sabreen) |
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Photos from Fall 2010 (photo by J
Blakeslee) |
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| – Links to Other Atlantic Avenue Tunnel Websites |
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| Curious Expeditions – A great page on the Atlantic Avenue Tunnel, tunnel tours, related history, etc.Atlantic Avenue Tunnel – A great page on the Atlantic Avenue Tunnel and what Walt Whitman wrote about it.The Atlantic Avenue Tunnel – More Pictures and Info on the Atlantic Avenue tunnel can be found here.
The Lost tunnel of Brooklyn – Article on the Atlantic Avenue Tunnel from Mechanical Engineering Magazine
Atlantic Avenue Tunnel Art Events Info
Atlantic Avenue Tunnel Tours Info – Information on upcoming events Atlantic Avenue Tunnel
tours and Trolley Events in Red Hook will be posted on the events page |
The Atlantic Avenue Tunnel
