As you may know, mommy and I just recently visited New York City. It was my first time visiting a place that mommy, daddy and my siblings called home. I was able to meet quite a lot of my family and my mom’s friends and even a few blogger friends as well. However mommy didn’t just have me sit at home, even though there were some very cold days in New York, we were out on an almost daily basis, getting to know the city. Brooklyn may now be known for it’s Barclays Center but did you know that Brooklyn is home to some amazing museums as well. Located at the corner of Boerum Place and Schermerhorn Street in Brooklyn Heights, the New York Transit Museum is one of them. If you are ever interested in learning about how NY came to have the amazing transport system that they now have in place, then is the place you want to go to learn about it. Did you know that it is the largest museum in the US dedicated to the transport system? If you didn’t, now you do.
Before I show you a few of the photos that I was able to take (lighting wasn’t that great but we got a few), I want to share how you get to the museum, hours and the entry fees. There are buses that take you there and since we didn’t live too far away we were able to take one.
Operating Hours: Entry Fee:
Tue-Fri 10am – 4pm Adult – $7.00
Sat-Sun 11am – 5pm Child (age 2-17) – $5.00
Closed Mondays and holidays Senior Citizens (62+) – $5 (Free on Wednesdays)
How to get there by train:
2 3 4 5 – Borough Hall Station
A C F R – Jay St. /Metrotech Station
One of the uniqueness of the New York Transit Museum is the fact that this is entirely housed in an actual subway station. There is so much to see from the beginnings of the transport system to the current way it is now. So much to learn and it is entirely family friendly. In this museum you can TOUCH everything which makes it perfect for the younger ones who doesn’t understand the word “don’t touch”. If you’re traveling with a group I would recommend getting one of the tour guides who can walk you through everything. Mommy and I joined a group and learned quite a few things, but we decided to do a bit on our own as well.
We learned about the beginnings of the subway station. We learned about the wages that workers on the tunnel received when they started work on the stations. However it was the blizzard of 1888 that caused the city to decide to build the subways. Before the blizzard there were only elevated trains but there was so much snow that it put a halt to the trains and transportation entirely. The city decided that it couldn’t happen again, thus the subways began. We saw the tools they worked with and even the wages they received in those days. Wow just look at the cost of a movie or even a hotdog back then.
We also learned the reason that there are Number and Letter trains. The subway lines were actually owned by two separate companies. The number trains were owned by the Interborough Rapid Transit Company while the letter trains were owned by the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company. However the number trains were smaller and narrower while the letter trains were wider. Thus the reasons the trains to this day never run on the same tracks. If you’re a NYC transit rider, you may notice that whenever there is a change in route for example, the 4 may run on the 2/3 track but never on the A/C track. Now I know! However now there is only one company that owns the entire transit system.
It was great to see the different ads that were shown on the trains back in the day and see the change of price as well. Now the cost of a ride is $2.75 while when they first started they were only 5cents. I even saw the evolution of the turnstiles that allows you to enter your station. The ads were also much different. While there were ads of food and household materials, now you only see ads of luxury products in the trains, the reason being that advertising in the trains is very expensive. And the reason that subway riders are called strap hangers was because they actually had straps that they hung onto while they were riding in the subway cars. Even the seats were different. While back then they had seats made out of rattan, they were much harder to clean so now the seats are made of plastic and steel and are a lot easier to clean, although I personally loved the looked of the rattan seats.
Guess what? You don’t only learn about the subway system, you get to learn about transportation above ground as well. If there’s one thing that I love about New York is that they quite possibly have one of the best transportation system in the US or maybe even quite possibly the world. Mommy is very biased. Where I live the only way we get around is by our own transportation. We have no trains and while we have a bus system, don’t ever depend on it to get you where you need to go, especially at night. I was able to ride the train, the bus and even the famous yellow cab and I loved them all!
There is so much to learn at the New York Transit Museum and if you have a little one that is enthralled by trains, this is the place to take them to whenever you’re in New York City. It’s a great experience for both kids and adults alike. And don’t forget to visit the gift shop before you leave. There you can pick up your piece of the city. I was able to get mommy to buy me a replica of a subway car so that I can have my little piece of the subway back at home.
Here is how you can connect with the NY Transit Museum:
Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
Let’s discuss: What were you most surprised to learn about the New York Transit System?
