Series 9: Photographs and Slides of the Third Avenue Railway System (TARS), 1894 - 1952
Scope and Contents
The Harvey Mordetsky Collection comprises approximately 5,000 photographs of street railway and trolley lines operative in the New York metropolitan area, including Long Island and Staten Island, as well as other areas of the United States, and select foreign locations. Approximately 1,700 35-mm color slides showing trolley lines in Canada, Europe, and the United States is an additional feature of the collection. Footage of these same services is additionally captured in a series of moving image artifacts. Non-photographic materials include 282 BMT and NYCT trolley and bus transfers, trolley and transit periodicals, and personal effects/memorabilia belonging to Mordetsky.
Dates
- 1894 - 1952
Creator
- Mordetsky, Harvey (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
The collection is open for research.
Extent
0.9 Linear Feet
Language of Materials
English
Series Outline
Series 9: Photographs and Slides of the Third Avenue Railway System (TARS)
- 9.1: TARS Lines in Manhattan and the Bronx
- 9.2: TARS Trolleys by Car Number
- 9.3: TARS Lines in Westchester County
- 9.4: Slides of TARS Trolleys in NYC and Westchester
Series Description
Series 9 contains 377 prints and 80 slides depicting various street-railroad lines of the TARS system from 1890s to the 1950s. Many have handwritten captions. TARS’s first car was a cable car operating on Amsterdam Avenue in 1885; it later converted its 125th Street and Third Avenue lines to cable operation, ultimately electrifying trackage beginning in 1899. Interestingly, the Company faced pressure to avoid overhead trolley wires, so lines in Manhattan were powered by third rail buried in an underground conduit just beneath the street. In many cases, the channel previously used for the propulsion cable was repurposed for the third rail. Some cars were also equipped with trolley poles for operation in the Bronx.
Like most companies of the era, TARS has a complicated history of acquisitions, mergers, and its share of financial problems. It began as the Third Avenue Railroad Company, and expanded in 1898 by acquiring the Dry Dock, East Broadway and Battery Railroad, along with several other smaller railroads. Rapid expansion, however, quickly cause financial difficulties, and much like its competitors, the company was hampered by the city-mandated five-cent fare. In 1900, TARS was acquired by MSRy, but that entity failed in 1908, and in 1910, Third Avenue Railroad Company re-emerged in as The Third Avenue Railway, acquiring almost all new equipment (over 800 streetcars) and assuming the properties and operations of the former Third Avenue Railroad by 1912.
In addition to its major Manhattan north-south lines (along Third Avenue, Tenth, and Avenues) in Manhattan, TARS ran crosstown service across 28th/29th Streets, 42nd Street, 59th Street, 110th Street, and 125 Street. It also operated Kingsbridge Line with service between Manhattan and the Bronx, and extensive trolley service throughout the Bronx along most major avenues and cross-streets. In Westchester County, TARS provided service in Yonkers, White Plains, and in Mount Vernon.
This series has been arranged into 4 subseries.
Repository Details
Part of the Archives and Reading Room Repository