The Whitestone Branch was a branch of the

Long Island Rail Road The Long Island Rail Road , or LIRR, is a Rail transport, railroad in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, stretching from Manhattan to the eastern tip of Suffolk County, New York, Suffolk County on Long Islan ...

, running north and east along the left bank of the

Flushing River The Flushing River, also known as Flushing Creek, is a waterway that flows northward through the borough of Queens in New York City, New York, U.S. It runs mostly within Flushing Meadows–Corona Park, emptying into the Flushing Bay and the E ...

from the

Port Washington Branch The Port Washington Branch is an electrified, mostly double-tracked rail line and service owned and operated by the Long Island Rail Road in the U.S. state of New York. It branches north from the Main Line at the former Winfield Junction stat ...

near the modern Willets Point/ Flushing sections of

Queens Queens is the largest by area of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. It crossed the river on one of the three bridges that were later torn down for the

Van Wyck Expressway A van is a type of road vehicle used for transporting goods or people. There is some variation in the scope of the word across the different English-speaking countries. The smallest vans, microvans, are used for transporting either goods or p ...

, then ran north along Flushing Bay and east along the East River to Whitestone.

History

Originally conceived as a branch of the Flushing and North Side Railroad that was intended to lead into

Westchester County, New York Westchester County is a County (United States), county located in the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, bordering the Long Island Sound and the Byram River to its east and the Hudson River on its west. The c ...

(a connection that never materialized) in 1869, it was consolidated into the Long Island Rail Road in 1876 when its owners, the Poppenhusen family, took over the bankrupt LIRR. It later became part of a subsidiary called the Long Island City and Flushing Railroad. On October 12, 1912, the branch was electrified. In the 1920s, the branch began to lose patronage and the LIRR sought to rid itself of the line, despite calls for improvements in service. There was a proposal for the city-owned

Independent Subway System The Independent Subway System (IND; formerly the ISS) was a rapid transit rail system in New York City that is now part of the New York City Subway. It was first constructed as the IND Eighth Avenue Line, Eighth Avenue Line in Manhattan in 1932. ...

to buy the line and incorporate it into the

New York City Subway The New York City Subway is a rapid transit system in New York City serving the New York City boroughs, boroughs of Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx. It is owned by the government of New York City and leased to the New York City Tr ...

system. The deal was not successful, most likely due to the numerous

grade crossing A level crossing is an intersection where a railway line crosses a road, path, or (in rare situations) airport runway, at the same level, as opposed to the railway line or the road etc. crossing over or under using an overpass or tunnel. The t ...

s that would have been extremely costly to remove. The

Interstate Commerce Commission The Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) was a regulatory agency in the United States created by the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887. The agency's original purpose was to regulate railroads (and later Trucking industry in the United States, truc ...

allowed the LIRR to abandon the line in 1932. Most of the branch was removed, except a small section of the line leading to the

Corona Yard The New York City Transit Authority operates 24 rail yards for the New York City Subway system and one for the Staten Island Railway. There are 10 active A Division yards and 11 active B Division yards, two of which are shared between divisions ...

which remained well into the 1970s when the LIRR closed the Corona Yard and turned it over to the

New York City Transit Authority The New York City Transit Authority (also known as NYCTA, the TA, or simply Transit, and branded as MTA New York City Transit) is a New York state public-benefit corporations, public-benefit corporation in the U.S. state of New York (state), New ...

for subway use. Today, only a small section of track remains just east of Mets–Willets Point station, branching off from the Port Washington Branch east of the station. The Flushing–Main Street station of the

was so named to distinguish it from the Whitestone's Flushing–Bridge Street station. Despite the closing of the Bridge Street station, the LIRR continues to use the name "Main Street" for the Port Washington Branch station to this day. A spur of the line near the Flushing River was abandoned when it went underwater in 1983. Private homes have been built over the section of the line in Whitestone Landing.

Flushing Bay Freight Spur

The Flushing Bay Freight Spur was a freight-only spur that lead to a freight dock on Flushing Bay just west of the

delta. It began at the Whitestone Branch just north of the junction with the Port Washington Branch, then crossed a junction with a spur of the Woodside Branch leading to Great Neck Junction and the Central Branch, and a second junction with Woodside Branch that lead to the Whitestone Branch, and crossing a short bridge before finally terminating at the freight dock. No trace of the spur is known .

Stations

The entire line was abandoned on February 15, 1932.

References

External links

* (Unofficial LIRR History Website)
Like a Rolling Whitestone
(ForgottenNY.com)

an

Tracing Out The LIRR Whitestone Branch (LI & NY Places that are no more)
{{Long Island Rail Road Long Island Rail Road branches Transportation in Queens, New York Railway lines opened in 1869 Railway lines closed in 1932 1869 establishments in New York (state)