🌉 #ObjectSpotlight on this decorative ceramic from the #NYTMCollection that appears in our “The Subway Is...” exhibit. “The Subway Is...” is now on view at the #NYTransitMuseum in Downtown Brooklyn. We are open Wednesday-Sunday, 10am-4pm. Plan your visit at nytransitmuseum.org
They were known as "conductorettes," and they performed the same functions as conductors. In this #NYTMCollection photograph, they can be seen posing together.
🎭 Happy #WorldTheatreDay! This 1977 #NYCsubway poster from the #NYTMCollection shows a dozen actors from concurrent Broadway shows posing together in costume. The group is photographed on an R44 subway car for the "MTA gets you there" campaign. It's a star-studded line up. Can you name the actors?
#TodayinHistory: It’s Tunnel Day! #OnThisDay in 1900, Mayor Robert Van Wyck, silver spade in hand, broke ground on the #NYCsubway system at an excavation site in front of City Hall. This #NYTMCollection photograph captured the historic moment for #NYC.
#TodayInHistory: #OnThisDay in 1968, the R40 Slant made its debut in the #NYCsubway system, beginning on the F line. This 1966 artist's rendering from the #NYTMCollection was issued by industrial designers Raymond Loewy and Associates, and William Snaith, Inc to showcase the "new look" of the R40.
The corner of Ditmas Avenue and Gravesend Avenue in Brooklyn in 1915, showing a streetcar and row of buildings including a cafe.
#ThenAndNow: Pictured here in this 1915 image from the #NYTMCollection, is the corner of Ditmas Avenue and Gravesend Avenue in #Brooklyn. Gravesend Avenue is now known as McDonald Avenue. It was renamed in 1933 for John R. McDonald (1871-1932), chief clerk at the Brooklyn Surrogate’s Court.
This spring-loaded token case dates to circa 1960 and has three slots to hold NYC subway tokens.
From the #NYTMCollection, this spring-loaded token case dates to circa 1960 and has three slots to hold #NYCsubway tokens. By 2003, when tokens were phased out, cases such as this one would no longer be an essential for commuters. Did you ever own a token holder?
A photograph showing Inwood, Manhattan in 1906 and the Dyckman Street station.
What did Inwood, Manhattan look like before the #NYCsubway opened?
Taken in 1906, this #NYTMCollection photo shows the Dyckman Street station on the IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line (today’s 1 train) three days prior to its opening.
A female “switch tender” worker aligning routes for train car movements at Sunnyside Yard.
#WomensHistoryMonth: These #NYTMCollection photographs from 1943-44 show women who worked for the Pennsylvania Railroad.
Photo 1: A “switch tender” aligning routes for car movements at Sunnyside Yard. The physical nature and tools of her work have changed little from the railroad's early days.
#MetroCardMonday: This 1998 #NYTMCollection television ad is one of a series of #MetroCard Gold spots narrated by Mandy Patinkin. Feeling nostalgic for the MetroCard? Check out “FAREwell, MetroCard," now on view at the Museum in Downtown Brooklyn. Plan your visit via at nytransitmuseum.org.
An aerial shot of the East New York rail yard.
#TransitTrivia: This #NYTMCollection photograph shows an aerial view of the East New York Yard in May of 1983. It is one of three New York City subway yards equipped with hand-operated switches. Can you name the other two yards?
Trolleys cross the Brooklyn Bridge.
Trolleys cross the Brooklyn Bridge as men work on the tracks.
Trolleys cross the Brooklyn Bridge.
An aerial shot of the Brooklyn Bridge, showing people, cars, and trolleys crossing as well as the Lower Manhattan skyline and East River.
#TodayInHistory: #OnThisDay in 1950, the last trolley crossed the Brooklyn Bridge. A major transit artery for much of its history, the Brooklyn Bridge had also carried cable cars and an elevated railway. Trolleys were the last to go. These #NYTMcollection photos show trolleys on the Brooklyn Bridge.
These #NYTMCollection images show monorail cars from the Pelham Park and City Island Railway, and include documentation of the infamous first ride accident.
🎬 This 1989 #NYTMCollection archival video clip comes from the finale of "Progress in Motion," narrated by actor Avery Brooks. The film describes the advances made by the MTA's agencies since its 1982 and 1987 Capital Plans brought billion dollars of investment into #NYC's transportation system.
#BlackHistoryMonth: The annual Miss Transit contest sought out the “most beautiful, intelligent and talented girl in Harlem.” These #NYTMCollection photos show some of the contestants and winners over the years.
👀 What a view! These #NYTMCollection photographs show R33WF subway cars being delivered via barge to #NYC in anticipation of the 1964-65 World’s Fair. Behind the barges, the Manhattan skyline and Williamsburg Bridge can be seen.
former Sea Gate trolley line traveling down Surf Avenue in Coney Island in 1912.
🎡 Missing summer? Here are some photos from our archives showing the former Sea Gate trolley line traveling down Surf Avenue in Coney Island in 1912, 1940 and 1944. In all three #NYTMCollection photos, the entrance to historic Luna Park is visible just behind the trolley.
1927 photograph of Bleeker Street just west of Sixth Avenue. This included a dentist’s office, a hat shop, and a cabaret club called the White Poodle. Also visible are pedestrians, an automobile, and an unpaved road.
#ThenAndNow: This 1927 #NYTMCollection photograph shows a view of Bleecker Street just west of Sixth Avenue in Greenwich Village.
The photo was taken by Granville W. Pullis in preparation for the construction of IND Eighth Avenue Line, and shows the street’s many businesses of the time.
These #NYTMCollection photographs were taken at Worth Street station in 1947. Do you remember Worth Street station?
👔 These #NYTMCollection photographs, taken in the late 1950s and early 1960s, document the businesses and vending machines on the mezzanine level of the 42 Street–Port Authority Bus Terminal station on the IND Eighth Avenue Line (today’s A/C/E trains).
For over 100 years, the Harmon Shop has been an essential part of daily railroad operations. These #NYTMCollection posters from 1987, 1988, and 1989 welcomed passengers to the Metro-North facility’s annual open house, which included a tour and a special “fall foliage train” ride on the Hudson River.
Led by Chief James H. Williams, the Red Caps, a group of mostly Harlem-based, college-bound Black men, formed an essential workforce at Grand Central Terminal in the early 20th-century. These #NYTMCollection objects include Red Cap badges and baggage tickets.
#BlackHistoryMonth: When the doors to Grand Central Terminal opened to the public in 1913, passengers were greeted by dozens of African American baggage porters, each donning a uniform complete with a red cap. These #NYTMCollection photos show some of the Red Caps at Grand Central Terminal.
#MetroCardMonday: This 2014 #NYTMCollection #MetroCard was issued to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge. When it opened, the majestic Verrazzano featured the longest suspension span in the world at 4,260-feet.
❤️ Happy #ValentinesDay from the #nytransitmuseum! Here's part 2 of our 2026 transit valentines.
Images: #NYTMCollection, and via @MTA.info: Marc A Herman, Patrick Cashin.
❤️ Need a #valentine for your transit lover? We got you. If you don't find the right match here, we'll be sharing even more Valentines tomorrow! Stay tuned for part 2.
Images: #NYTMCollection, and via @mta: Marc A Herman, Patrick Cashin.
#ValentinesDay
This 1972 #NYTMCollection photograph shows an aerial view of Roosevelt Island (known then as Welfare Island) looking south with #Manhattan at right and Queens at left. No Roosevelt Island Tramway is visible as it did not open until 1976.
#TokenTuesday: This 1933 #NYTMCollection token was used to transfer between buses within the service area of the East Side Omnibus Corporation. The token is punched out with the initials “E” and “S,” indicating “East Side.”
Vintage Metro Man is shown in this #NYTMCollection poster and these photographs.
Eventually his territory included Metro-North’s entire service area and his talks covered a broad range of safety issues.
Metro Man is still on staff at Metro-North, but is now portrayed by a human in a robot suit. Vintage Metro Man is shown in this #NYTMCollection poster and these photographs.
🚌 #SurfaceSunday: This 1997 @MTA.info #NYTMCollection training video was used to teach bus operators about #MetroCard transfers. MetroCard eliminated the need for paper transfers between buses and added the capability of free transfers between buses and subways. Do you remember paper transfers?
