341:. Some of the trackage was relaid so as to provide the materials needed in the Levitt construction, and for a while, a small passenger shuttle was instituted by the LIRR between Garden City and Plainedge. The LIRR offered to rebuild completely the trackage so as to provide those living in the new community with rail service. However, Levitt did not want a railroad running through his new community. Gradually the shuttle was cut back and rail pulled up to just east of Mitchel Field, which itself gradually began to curtail its operations in the early fifties as the surrounding areas began their suburban development. The shuttle ceased operation in 1953.
410:
31:
1107:
1113:
325:. The Central Extension saw much freight business servicing the base and the several industries that sprang up around it. Nonetheless, in 1939 it was decided to discontinue all passenger service on the Central Extension. Much of the trackage between Mitchel Field and Bethpage was torn up and used as scrap metal in
389:
In the 1980s through late 1991, the LIRR had several customers on the line, or in the team yard, who were switched once or more a week: White Rose, at the end of the spur that ran northeast out of the yard, at
Zeckendorf Boulevard, a plastics customer at the end of the line at Endo Boulevard, at one
451:
The line currently alternates between being single and double tracked, with some electrification extending as far as the Garden City yard. A number of freight sidings and team tracks remain along the line. Most of the line's grade crossings remain unprotected and require flag protection against
349:
After the end of passenger shuttle service and the closing of
Mitchel Field in 1961, the LIRR continued to use the line in its freight service, officially giving the line its current name the Garden City–Mitchel Field Secondary. A large freight yard remained in Garden City, servicing some local
240:
Additionally, Stewart built a branch line, which deviated from the railroad's mainline at Garden City, to
Hempstead. Stewart at the time was developing Garden City as one of the first planned suburban communities. The CRRLI would play an important role in transporting materials from Stewart's
306:, the 1930s saw this portion of the line dwindle in service. In the late 1920s the Central's connection at Bethpage to the Babylon Extension was severed, ending all through service on the branch to Babylon. Therefore, the LIRR renamed the line the
421:
As the years went on the remaining freight customers along the line also disappeared as the LIRR focused its resources on passenger service and constructing the East Side Access project, linking from Long Island to New York City's
366:. Many plans were developed by the LIRR during the fifties and sixties to use the remaining portion of trackage and build a "Nassau Hub" that would service the many new retail outfits that sprung up in the area, such as the
225:. Later on, Stewart extended the line south to the Babylon shore line. This portion of the railroad would come to be referred to as the Babylon Extension. At Flushing the railroad had trackage rights with the
277:
of the LIRR. A connection was made west of Floral Park, allowing the railroad to access the LIRR mainline, which would afford the branch its connection to Long Island City and the LIRR's connecting hub
1467:
604:
302:. The rest of the Central between Garden City and Bethpage saw much use during the early part of the 20th century, but with the advent of the automobile in the 1910s, followed by the
290:
In 1900, the eastern portion of the
Central Branch between Bethpage and Babylon (the Babylon Extension) was completely rebuilt and extended northward so that it could connect to the
671:
929:
641:
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456:
passenger station, from the line's early days, still stands along with its low level concrete platforms. The station house is currently used by the Garden City Fire
Department.
584:
273:, that for most of the 20th century would service Creedmoor State Hospital with daily coal deliveries. The portion of trackage from Floral Park to Babylon became known as the
1009:
686:
625:
209:, the CRRLI was a mixed use passenger and freight railroad extending from Flushing all the way through central Long Island to Bethpage, passing through the towns of
520:
1527:
378:, which was built on part of the Mitchel Field site. However, lack of resources (at the time the bankrupt LIRR was in the process of being bought by the
1522:
1532:
545:
298:. Meanwhile, the western portion of the Central between Floral Park and Hempstead saw much passenger use and would eventually become known as the
1048:
249:
In 1876 the CRRLI, in conjuncture with other competing railroads on Long Island, was absorbed by the Long Island Rail Road and its president
996:
414:
991:
440:
Today, the LIRR uses the secondary to transport track work equipment to and from the Garden City yard. The secondary was also used by the
257:, would merge the Central into the LIRR system. The Central between Flushing and the National Rifle Range in Queens, later to become the
403:
310:. The Babylon Extension, and its connection to the Main Line, would be renamed the Central Branch, a name which remains in use today.
241:
brickwork's in
Bethpage to his construction sites in Garden City, and later on allow Garden City residents to commute into Manhattan.
1424:
307:
935:
441:
1517:
1462:
1150:
557:
274:
379:
269:. The portion of rail between Creedmoor and Floral Park was eventually downgraded to a secondary freight track, known as the
265:, was deemed redundant and abandoned after the railroads' merger in 1879, although its tracks remained in place until about
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402:, and off-line customers who received boxcars, flatcars, and gondolas of various types of goods in the team yard by
1404:
226:
448:, which is near the east end of the secondary. Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey closed on Sunday, May 21, 2017.
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of the LIRR, thus creating a connection between the Main Line and the railroad's other main trunk line the
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762:
Long Island Rail Road
Company—Discontinuance Of Service Exemption—In Garden City, Long Island, NY
338:
233:
terminal where passengers could then connect to the East River ferries that would take them into
201:
The trackage of the Garden City–Mitchell Field
Secondary, originated in the 1870s as part of the
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423:
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362:. A few passenger trains continued to use the line into the late 1960s to service the old
8:
1170:
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386:), as well as community opposition from residents in Garden City shelved those plans.
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train, which used to use the Garden City Yard to store boxcars when it visited the
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in May 1997. Currently, the NY&A has no freight customers on the line.
326:
222:
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The Long Island Rail Road: The
Flushing, North Side, and Central Railroad
846:
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The Long Island Rail Road formally transferred freight operations to the
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The Garden City–Mitchel Field
Secondary in Garden City, looking east
785:
780:
778:"Ticketless LIRR Station Finally To Come Into Own as Firehouse".
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359:
847:"Central Branch of the Long Island Rail Road (The Stewart Line)"
541:
351:
759:
1010:
Template:Attached KML/Garden City–Mitchel Field Secondary
344:
760:Surface Transportation Board (September 6, 2002).
417:on the Garden-City Mitchel Field Secondary in 2017
286:Gradual passenger service abandonment (1900–1953)
1509:
806:. Bridgehampton: Sunrise Special. p. 132.
1042:
801:
415:Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus
313:The only bright spot for the line came when
1528:Transportation in Suffolk County, New York
1049:
1035:
923:
921:
919:
917:
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804:Victorian Railroad Stations of Long Island
1523:Transportation in Nassau County, New York
1425:New York, Woodhaven and Rockaway Railroad
1056:
1013:
442:Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey Circus
329:. A reprieve came in the late 1940s when
1533:1870s establishments in New York (state)
927:
784:. April 11, 1951. p. 7 – via
715:
488:Hempstead Crossing had connections from
486:
408:
253:. Poppenhausen, and his later successor
185:is a lightly used freight branch of the
910:
529:Built for the original headquarters of
244:
1510:
802:Zeil, Ron; Wettereau, Richard (1988).
564:station in 1949. Closed May 15, 1953.
536:opened June 1949, closed May 15, 1953
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841:
345:As a freight secondary (1953–present)
1420:New York and Manhattan Beach Railway
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183:Garden City–Mitchell Field Secondary
24:Garden City–Mitchell Field Secondary
1019:Central Railroad of Long Island ROW
317:, an air force base, opened during
13:
1410:South Side Railroad of Long Island
14:
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446:Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
1405:Flushing and North Side Railroad
1111:
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227:Flushing and North Side Railroad
29:
1415:Central Railroad of Long Island
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203:Central Railroad of Long Island
1518:Long Island Rail Road branches
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1:
1400:Brooklyn and Jamaica Railroad
1267:New York and Atlantic Railway
928:Seyfried, Vincent F. (1963).
731:
605:Meadowbrook-Roosevelt Raceway
435:New York and Atlantic Railway
370:, as well as the newly built
321:in the expansive area of the
112:New York and Atlantic Railway
1022:LIRR Unofficial History Site
452:traffic by train crews. The
18:Long Island Rail Road branch
7:
954:Garden City Fire Department
398:'s incinerator next to the
10:
1549:
636:opened 1873, closed 1939.
620:opened 1939, closed 1961.
562:General Bronze Corporation
556:Built around 1928 for the
479:Current Connections/notes
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1305:
1275:
1259:
1250:
1120:
1103:
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560:Warehouse. Combined with
400:Meadowbrook State Parkway
394:, the waste ash from the
337:in the Plainedge area of
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1014:KML is not from Wikidata
392:Nassau Community College
376:Nassau Community College
263:Creedmoor State Hospital
207:Alexander Turney Stewart
189:. It is a spur off the
1221:Port Washington Branch
595:Mitchel Air Force Base
424:Grand Central Terminal
418:
1490:MTA Arts & Design
1276:Freight-only branches
1241:West Hempstead Branch
1211:Port Jefferson Branch
1058:Long Island Rail Road
599:closed May 15, 1953.
494:West Hempstead Branch
428:Grand Central Madison
412:
384:Pennsylvania Railroad
259:Creedmoor Rifle Range
187:Long Island Rail Road
102:Long Island Rail Road
58:Long Island Rail Road
1475:Morris Park Facility
893:"The Stewart Line 2"
390:of the entrances to
368:Roosevelt Field Mall
245:Merger with the LIRR
1372:West Brighton Beach
1171:Far Rockaway Branch
1144:Belmont Park Branch
593:Wooden shelter for
350:industries such as
251:Conrad Poppenhausen
1451:Cobble Hill Tunnel
1367:Southern Hempstead
1322:Cedarhurst Cut-off
1161:City Terminal Zone
960:on August 30, 2011
938:on April 19, 2015.
419:
205:(CRRLI). Built by
1505:
1504:
1480:Hillside Facility
1301:
1300:
1231:Ronkonkoma Branch
1201:Oyster Bay Branch
1191:Long Beach Branch
729:
728:
615:Roosevelt Raceway
498:Oyster Bay Branch
467:Station/location
396:Town of Hempstead
364:Roosevelt Raceway
308:Central Extension
179:
178:
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1441:East Side Access
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1181:Hempstead Branch
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956:. Archived from
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490:Hempstead Branch
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304:Great Depression
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271:Creedmoor Branch
231:Long Island City
229:to access their
191:Hempstead Branch
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333:began building
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280:Jamaica station
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1065:Main routes
950:"Station 3"
626:Meadowbrook
319:World War I
267:World War I
215:Garden City
211:Floral Park
145:Track gauge
108:Operator(s)
1512:Categories
1496:Cannonball
1382:Whitestone
1377:White Line
1362:Sag Harbor
1342:Manorville
1253:operations
732:References
261:and later
1393:railroads
1352:Northport
1332:Evergreen
1327:Creedmoor
1283:Bay Ridge
1076:Main Line
902:April 26,
856:April 26,
719:Main Line
473:Miles to
382:from the
335:Levittown
292:Main Line
235:Manhattan
219:Plainedge
131:Technical
1463:Stations
1391:Acquired
1317:Bethpage
1309:branches
1288:Bushwick
1260:Operator
1123:services
992:KML file
812:19319353
786:ProQuest
482:History
164: in
85:Stations
41:Overview
1446:History
1307:Defunct
1251:Freight
781:Newsday
558:A&P
542:A&P
531:Newsday
521:Newsday
360:Newsday
352:A&P
197:History
159:⁄
118:History
93:Service
64:Termini
49:Freight
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123:Opened
98:System
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1434:Other
126:1870s
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1001:help
997:edit
966:2011
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858:2024
808:OCLC
721:and
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413:The
181:The
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139:1–2
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