RAILWAYS, Elevated. Elevated railways presented one of the first potent factors for the solution of the problem of adequate transporta tion for passengers between points in great cities. The street railway was an earlier fac tor, but it met the growing inconvenience of congested streets in only a partial degree, af fording but temporary relief. In New York, which city possesses the most extensive sys tem of elevated railways in the world, without taking account of the large system in Brooklyn, now a part of the greater city, two means of relieving the streets of some of the burden of passenger traffic began to be considered as long ago as 1860. Two possible solutions presented themselves, one being to carry it underground through tunnels, and the other to carry it over elevated structures. The former met with more favor at the outset, but the first underground project undertaken was speedily abandoned. Considerable ridicule was expended upon the other idea, but in spite of it an elevated rail way, with a single track, was built from Battery place through Greenwich street and Ninth ave nue to 30th street in 1866 and 1867, and opened to travel on 2 July 1867. It was operated by means of a cable for a short time, when steam locomotives were substituted as motive power. It did not gain popularity as an aid to local travel, and its lack of success caused it to pass into the hands of the sheriff in foreclosure proceedings, and it was sold for the benefit of creditors in 1871.
The West Side Elevated Railroad Company. as the corporation which built and operated this pioneer elevated line was named, was succeeded by the New York Elevated Railroad Company, organized 3 Jan. 1872, under a charter granted by the State legislature the year before. A few months later, on 17 June, the Gilbert Elevated Railroad Company, which obtained a charter earlier in that year, was organized to build a line projected by Dr. Rufus H. Gilbert, and which was planned to be a pneumatic tube rail way, suspended from lofty arches. For some reason the pneumatic tube idea was abandoned, sustaining at first a modification which, by cut ting off the upper half of the tube, made it a mere trough wherein the cars were to run, and it was decided to build a simple elevated rail way. Meanwhile there had been not only lack
pf encouragement for this sort of enterprise, the West Side experiment not having succeeded yet in overcoming popular prejudice, but there was antagonism on the part of property owners who would be affected by the construction of such railways, and there was friction also be tween the two existing companies. Litigation assisted to complicate and delay matters.
This was the condition of affairs when, in 1875 the State legislature passed what is known as tie Husted Act, which provided for a com mission to decide as to the necessity for an elevated railway system in New York City, and to determine proper routes. Under this act a commission was appointed by the mayor of the city on 1 July 1875, and after a number of hearings given to all who favored or opposed such a system the decision arrived at was a favorable one. The commissioners announced on 11 December that their work was ended, the routes which they selected being four in num ber and including respectively Ninth, Sixth, Third and Second avenues: The work of build ing the lines was assigned to the two com panies then existing, and both companies en tered at once upon active construction and into equally active litigation, while each was under the necessity of defending the constitutionality of its charter against the attack of citizens, who were determinedly opposed to both. The New York Elevated had extended its line from the South Ferry to 61st srtreet and Ninth avenue in 1876, and had opened it for travel to 59th street.
About this time the enterprise enlisted the in terest of Cyrus W. Field, who secured a con trolling interest in the company in the spring of 1877. The same vigor and determination that marked his connection with the first At lantic Telegraph Cable was displayed here, and much of the credit for the eventual success which attended the new departure in urban pas senger traffic was accorded to him.