Beneath The Streets of NYC Lay Abandoned Subway Stations

Along with London and Paris, New York City was one of the first cities to develop a metro system. Consequently today the network of stations and tunnels that make up the New York City Subway system is one of the oldest in the world.

New York City is full of mysteries. In addition to well-documented abandoned subway stations, there are also a number of secret tunnels making their way beneath the Big Apple. If one is new to NYC, one may find the massive subway system confusing. Use a guide of the subway to learn everything one needs to know about navigating NYC's busy transit system.

An Overview of NYC's Closed Subway Stations

The New York City Subway rapid transit system serves four of the five boroughs of New York City (sorry Staten Island). The New York City Subway was created in 1940 when its predecessors - the Interborough Rapid Transit Company, the Brooklyn-Manhattan Transit Corporation, and the Independent Subway System consolidated.

Since then many old stations have been permanently closed - some partly closed and others entirely closed and have been lost to memory. One can see a list of disused stations on NYC Subway.org

Redundant: Following The Creation of The NYC Subway Many Stations and Lines Were Rendered Redundant

Most of the closed stations are on elevated lines once operated by the IRT and BMT. These were no longer needed as they were no longer in competition with each other. The elevated lines often duplicated the underground lines and so the elevated ones were the first to close.

Beneath the streets of NYC is a treasure trove for urban explorers. Many of the stations have fallen to complete disuse and completely abandoned. While others are repurposed as storage facilities (many above-ground stations have been dismantled while underground stations are just rotting away). Many of the stations remain intact and just abandoned.

Even for New Yorkers who think they know their city, there may be many more surprises just waiting to be discovered. And many of the secrets are below the streets tucked out of sight and out of mind.

Some closed places like the outer platforms of the Hoyt-Schermerhorn Streets stations are occasionally used for filming purposes.

Court Streat Station Turned New York Transit Museum

The decommissioned Court Street Station is unusual in that it found a whole new use as the NYC Transit Museum. This museum displays historical artifacts for the New York City Subway, bus, and commuter rails systems of the greater NYC.

Court Street Station: Today Houses The New York Transit Museum
Opened: 1936

The museum is enhanced by being located in an actual subway station - Court Street. The Court Street station was built as a terminus for trains of the IND Fulton Street Lion. It first opened in 1936 and has one center island platform with two tracks.

Hours: 11.00 am to 4.00 pm Fridays To Sundays
Adults: $10.00 | Children: $5.00 (Aged 2 to 17)

Old City Hall

Perhaps the best-known abandoned station is Old City Hall. This was where the first-ever subway ride in the Big Apple departed in 1904. The terminal once featured elegant chandeliers, skylights, and vaulted tile ceilings. But despite its grandeur and decor, it was closed in 1945 - mostly because it was impractical for servicing larger trains. By then it had become one of the least-used stations in Manhattan.

Old City Hall: Site Of The First Subway Ride In 1904
Limited: The Old City Hall Was Unable To Handle Larger Trains
Old City Hall Tours: Offered Sporadically by The New York Transit Museum

The good news is that the Old City Hall is not totally off-limited. One can explore it by booking a tour with the New York Transit Museum. The caveat is that these tours only run sporadically throughout the year and one must be a member of the museum to reserve a tour.

Untapped New York Tour

Untapped New York lists a tour that explores the City Hall Park including elements of the decommission City Hall Stations. On this tour, one will learn about the comically short route of the mythical “Subway before the Subway,” Alfred Ely Beach’s Pneumatic Transit System.

One will see the partially abandoned Chambers Street station and discover the remnants of Union Station. Here one will learn about a hidden art installation that thousands of riders walk by every day.

Visitors will hear stories like how the very first subway was built illegally under the cover of night. The tour uses the 6 trains as the ten-car time machine.