FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM JULY 27, 2017 • BUZZ • THE QUEENS COURIER 41
buzz
Explore the journey of the fi rst train line in
Queens at the New York Transit Museum for free
Photos courtesy of New York Transit Museum
BY ANGELA MATUA
amatua@qns.com / @AngelaMatua
A new exhibit at the New York Transit
Museum will explore Queens’ fi rst subway
line and how it transformed the borough
socially and economically.
“7 Train: Minutes to Midtown” will open
on Aug. 3, and museumgoers will be able
to view photographs and objects from the
line’s beginnings in 1915 and beyond.
Th e 7 line is diff erent from other early
lines in that it was built to attract more
residents to the underpopulated borough.
Other subways, like the IRT Ninth Avenue
line, were constructed in densely populated
areas in lower Manhattan. Th e fi rst 7 train
ran on June 22, 1915.
Queens’ population exploded as a result
of the new line, which provided a short
commute to Manhattan. Between 1910 and
1930, the borough’s population jumped 300
percent from 284,000 to 1,079,000.
Th e exhibit features images of the line
from as far back as 1916 and as recent as
2016 by photographer John Sanderson. Th e
museum will also display a New York and
Long Island City ferry ticket from the late
1800s, station wayfi nding signs dating from
between 1928 and 1949.
In addition, the exhibit will include a
Queensboro Bridge Railway token from
1945 and archival transit maps will highlight
the expansion of the subway and elevated
lines in Queens.
“We are incredibly proud to share this
story of Queens and how it was transformed
from bucolic farmland to the world’s cafeteria
in the span of a century,” said museum
director Concetta Bencivenga. “At its
inception, the New York City subway was
a means to decongest lower Manhattan and
draw the population of the city northward.
Th e story of Queens, and by extension the
7 train, was and continues to be, one of
vision; whether a hundred years ago with
the Steinway Tunnel, or right now with
Hudson Yards, the 7 train established communities,
a neighborhood, and an entire
borough, by providing people with access
to transportation.”
In recent years the line has caused headaches
for many Queens residents, especially
with the explosive growth of Long Island
City. Residents aren’t the only people frustrated
with the service and overcrowding.
In 1999, then Atlanta Braves pitcher John
Rocker ranted about the subway and how
much he disliked the city and Mets fans.
Mets fans on the other hand have adopted
the subway’s name and created Th e 7 Line
Army, a fan club and clothing company.
Additionally, a 2000 documentary called
“Th e #7 Train: An Immigrant Journey”
highlights the diversity of 7 train riders.
“7 Train: Minutes to Midtown” will run
until Oct. 29 at New York Transit Museum
Gallery Annex & Store at Grand Central
Terminal. Th e gallery will be open Monday
through Friday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and
weekends from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.