FUN WITH MAPS – ISSUE 2023-56 DAILY FEATURE:

By Steve Kovacs (Introduction by Chuck Gibson)

LOVELAND, OH (March 24, 2023) – In today’s edition of Fun with Maps from Steve Kovacs, we celebrate a major transportation groundbreaking.   

Underground

The largest and the fourth largest cities in the US, as of 1897, were to be connected by an “underground rapid city railroad.”  Groundbreaking for the construction took place on March 24, 1900.

We are of course talking about connecting underground Manhattan and Brooklyn via what is called today, the New York City Subway.  On a separate note, Brooklyn became part of New York City in 1898. 

The New York City subway is one of the oldest in the world.  The oldest subway is in London, followed by Istanbul, Chicago (yes, part of the “L” is underground), Glasgow, Budapest, Paris, Berlin, then New York.

Average weekday subway ridership in New York City is about 5.7 million, covering 474 stations.

Manhattan and Brooklyn are featured in this map by Mitchell, issued in 1876.

Steve Kovacs and his wife Theresa reside in Loveland, Ohio where they raised their two children. He is a passionate collector of antique maps.

Visit his antique map boutique world-on-paper online. Watch for his daily feature Steve Kovacs: Fun with Maps here on Loveland Beacon.