City Hall Subway Station, New York

City Hall Subway Station, New York

 

The City Hall Subway Station is one of the oldest public transit systems in the world and was the original terminal of New York's subway system. It has long been the country's most comprehensive transportation system.  It was built to benefit the greatest city in the country.

The City Hall Station was the original southern terminus of the first "Manhattan Main Line" built by the Interborough Rapid Transit (IRT) Company, was designed by Valencian architect Rafael Guastavino who was known for his tile work and is unique among the original IRT stations.

It opened on the evening of October 27, 1904, along with 27 other Interborough Rapid Transit (I.R.T.) stations up to 145th Street on the west side. This ornate station was the showpiece of the New York City subway system .That station is an underground architectural marvel, with tall arched ceilings covered in antique tile and glass skylights that flood the space with natural light from above.

On it the night took on a carnival atmosphere, like New Year's Eve.  Many couples celebrated in style by putting on their best clothes, going out to dinner, and then taking their first subway ride together.  Some people spent the entire evening on the trains, going back and forth from 145th street to City Hall for hours. 

Despite its beauty, the City Hall subway station was never very busy as it was never an important station. In the final year of its use it only handled about 600 passengers a day, due to the much occupied Brooklyn Bridge station. It was located on the turning loop for local trains from uptown, and both those and the express trains could be easily taken at the very nearby Brooklyn Bridge station.

The majestic subway station underneath City Hall has been inactive for more than 70 years, closing for good on December 31, 1945.

In April 1995 it was announced that federal grant money was to be sought to restore City Hall station and open it as a branch of the Transit Museum, but it is within City Hall's protected zone, and so worries about terrorism have kept it closed. 

These days the best way to see the City Hall station in person is to stay on the downtown 6 as it loops toward the uptown platform after its final stop. 

Maunsell Forts, the United Kingdom

During the Second World War, three anti-aircraft forts were built in 1942 as an advance line of defense to protect the important shipping line from enemy ships and aircraft, And to protect the Thames Estuary or as to counter attack enemy planes that were relying on the safety of the Thames estuary and to help defend the United Kingdom in general.

These anti-aircraft tower-forts were constructed with each fort consisting of a cluster of seven stilted buildings surrounding a central command tower. They are Built on land and then transported to their watery homes, the forts were designed by Guy Maunsell, a British civil engineer and named after his name .Each 300 tonne tower was preconstructed before being towed out to sea, sunk into position and then connected to the next tower.

 Army Fort (one of these fortsJ) was badly damaged in a storm and by being struck by a ship, and was dismantled in 1959-60. In the 1960s and 70s, the remaining abandoned forts were famously taken over as pirate radio stations.

These forts are now in varying states of decay, and any attempt to enter them is ill-advised, if not illegal. They can be seen by boat or, on a clear day, from Shoeburyness East Beach.