Southampton
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Southampton Station colorized post card c. 1905 Photo/Archive: Jim Gillin |
SOUTHAMPTON: OPENED:
2/1871, RAZED: 1902 2ND DEPOT BUILT: 1902. FULL-TIME AGENCY CLOSED: ? SUNDAY AGENCY ONLY: 2005. Research: Dave Keller |
Emery map - Southampton MP88-89 7/1958 Archive: Dave Keller |
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LIRR Southampton Station designed by Bradford Lee Gilbert Valuation photo 10/25/1917 Archive: Dave Morrison Southampton Coal & Produce Co. - View N c.1955 Archive: Sheppard Webb |
Looking east at the Southampton station, c.1925, we see the freight house at the far left, with passing siding and house track and, in the right foreground, the westbound express house built integrally into the west end of the long, covered station platform. A similar construction appeared at the east end of the covered platform for eastbound express handling. Also visible is the "SN" semaphore block signals. (James V. Osborne photo) |
The LIRR crosses over North Main Street on this steel trestle just west of the Southampton station plaza. This view is looking NE in January, 1972 (Dave Keller photo and archive) |
This April, 1970 view is similar to the previous one, looking due east, but time has made some changes. The express houses have been removed from the ends of the station covered platforms and the semaphore block signals have been replaced by "SN" block limit signal. (Dave Keller photo and archive) |
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A close-up of the 1966 view of the Southampton depot building (right) shows a clearer view of the many oyster shells, the brickwork, the ornamental eave supports as well as the bus stop sign for the LIRR's "Road-n'-Rail" service. |
Here is a rear view of the
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Now we move indoors with this view of the |
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Here is one of two views of the ticket window looking from inside the ticket office in January, 1972. Visible are the many rubber destination stamps, the ticket dater-die for validating tickets and the roll-up ticket case holding one-way, round-trip, half-fare, special fare, parlor car and commutation tickets. Note the old Long Island Express sign hanging on the wall. (Dave Keller photo and archive) |
Another view of the ticket window looking in the opposite direction. The photographer appears to have caught a portion of agent Charlie Moeller. (Dave Keller photo and archive) |
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This is the block operator's desk, located inside the trackside bay window, allowing for the operator to view up and down the tracks in either direction. The flexi-phone is visible as is the call box with hand crank, both of which were still in use at the time of this photo in January, 1972! Also visible are items of railroading's past, such as the triangular telegraph sounder resonator at the left and the old hand-cranked wall phone at the far left. Telegraph line glass insulators decorate the windows and sill. (Dave Keller photo and archive) |
A westward view of the "East Ender," a Budd RDC2, with road number 3121 is coupled to a coach trailer and is laying up on the passing siding across from the |
We've got quite a mix of interesting automobiles parked at the |
It's train time at Southampton on June 20, 1955. Looking east we see the fancy architecture of the |
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This is a close-up of the previous photo, showing in better detail the block office bay window at the ticket office and it's security mesh over the glass. On one of the vertical support columns behind the man walking with the suitcase, is visible the old train order signal board brackets. The brackets were metal, one on each side of the wooden divider. Into them would be inserted a train order signal board which was yellow on the front side and black with a white vertical stripe on the back. The bracket on the near side was for eastbound trains and the bracket on the far side was for westbound trains. The signal indicated to the engineer and conductor that they were to pick up a train order from the block operator at this block office. At night or in inclement weather with poor visibility, a signal lantern with yellow globe was lit and hung from the yellow signal order board. By the early 1970s, electric train order signals were hung from the position-light block signals in lieu of this archaic procedure and flashed to catch the attention of the engineer and conductor. |
This terrific view looking west out the rear door of an eastbound Montauk-bound train on June 20, 1955 shows many interesting things. At the left are the integral benches at every other set of platform support columns. At the end of the covered platform is the also-integral westbound express house (baggage house per Robert Emery's 1958 map of the area), with ramp and high-level platform. The position-light block signals with the call letters of "SN" identifying this as |
This close-up of the previous image shows the express/baggage house and block signals a whole lot clearer. Just beyond the block signals can be seen the girders of the trestle over North Main Street, street-level view of which appears at the beginning of this page. The lower signal hanging out towards trackside is the unattended block station signal, which governed the passage of trains when a block operator was not on-duty. |
As Will Faxon, Jr.'s train departs |
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Interesting what is revealed when an image is blown up or zoomed into. This close-up of the previously-posted view shows the switch for the house track at the far right with a boxcar spotted on said track at the freight house. A switch target is visible in the lower right foreground indicating the switch for the express track. Dark green Railway Express Agency delivery trucks (forerunners of the brown UPS vehicles) are evident alongside the integral eastbound express house which sports an additional short covered platform. This track and platform allows the express car to be loaded / unloaded without blocking the main track and it can be picked up by a passing train as needed. Atop this high level platform is the gasoline pump that puzzled us in an earlier image with the Budd RDC car. This image explains the reason for the gasoline pump: to provide gas for the REA trucks. The position light block signal is visible in the distance displaying a "stop" aspect (3 horizontal lights) (Will Faxon, Jr. photo, Dave Keller archive) |
We now look northeasterly across the tracks from the |
Two years has passed since the previous image of the old freight house at |
Southampton Station 06/1975 View N Photo/Archive: Jim Gillin Southampton interior 1/31/2015 Photo: Edward Hand |
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Southampton ticket window - LI Railroader June 1950 Archive: Dave Morrison |
Southampton Station painting over the fireplace Photo: Dave Morrison |
Southampton Station - Oyster Shells motif -Agent Charlie Muller 1/11/18 Photo: Dave Morrison |
Southampton Station - Oyster Shells motif View E 1/11/18 Photo: Dave Morrison |
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Southampton Station fireplace 1/11/18 Photo: Dave Morrison |
Southampton Station waiting room - View E 1/11/18 Photo: Dave Morrison |
Southampton Station exterior - Oyster Shells motif 1-11-2018 Photo: Dave Morrison |
Southampton Station chimney - Oyster Shells motif 1-11-2018 Photo: Dave Morrison |
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Southampton Station View NE - 1/11/18 Photo/Archive: Dave Morrison |
A page from the L. I. Railroader in 1950 showing the same group of guys then (1908) and now (1950). Leo Hantz was the young guy at the left in the 1908 image and the older guy at the left in the 1950 image. Attached (below) is a 8/22/1926 Form 31 train order which required the engineer and conductor to sign for when picked up. Leo Hantz was the conductor on this run of train #2005. It was issued to the crew at Southampton. Engineer Diederick indicated on the train order was the motorman who operated the Bridgehampton/Sag Harbor shuttle gas car (doodlebug) in the last years of that service. Archive/Research: Dave Keller |
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Southampton - Form 19 Train Orders | ||||
Form 19s issued at Southampton in 1926 by James V. Osborne. Form 19s were caught on-the-fly by the Conductor and Engineer. Archive: Dave Keller |
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Southampton Form 19 issued by James V. Osborne 9/11/1926 |
Southampton Form 19 issued by James V. Osborne 9/13/1926 |
Southampton Form 19 issued by James V. Osborne 10/02/1926 |
Southampton Form 19 issued by James V. Osborne 12/18/1926 |
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Southampton - Form 31 Train Orders | ||||
Form
31s issued at Southampton in the
early 20th Century.
Form 31s had to be signed by all conductors and engineers addressed, as well
as the block operator on duty at the time of signing. |
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Southampton Form 31 9/16/1909 |
Southampton Form 31 8/22/1926 |
Southampton Form 31 issued by by James V. Osborne 10/08/1926 |
Southampton Form 31 issued by James V. Osborne 10/21/1926 |
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Southampton Form 31 issued by James V. Osborne12/28/1926 |
Southampton and James V. Osborne by Jules P. Krzenski Excerpt: "...During
this period of time, I spent countless interesting hours in the station
office at
Luckily, both my mother and father encouraged my railroad interest.
I guess they realized how seriously I really felt about it.
Once the bug had bitten me, that Saturday in 1946, I was totally
contaminated! I had become
completely dedicated and determined. It
was not just my future career...it was my future way of life!
I became convinced that, for me, a perfect life would consist of a
wife, Osborne started on the LIRR in 1921, having come from the NY Central, and he began photographing stations, block offices and their block signals along with other things that happened to be in his line of photography. He shot the majority of his negatives between 1921 and 1927 and then he shot a few in the early 1930's, but after that he didn’t appear to shoot any more. I’m assuming that was the time he was awarded the bid as agent at Southampton and no longer was an Extra, running all over the system. He retired in 1971 with 50 years of service! Research: Dave Keller |
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I was the first ticket clerk to be assigned to the Massapequa Park “new” trailer ticket office in August of 1965. About a week later, I was unceremoniously bumped from this nice, close to home, job and assigned to Southampton, which is a whole ‘nuther story. If I recall correctly, over a 5 year period, I worked the Monday shift at Malvern (Lynbrook), East Rockaway (Lynbrook), Mass. Park (Massapequa), and Bellaire (Queens Village, I think). Back
in 1965, if I needed a car, I borrowed my Dad’s. As I was to be in
Southampton for who-knows-how-long I couldn’t use his auto. So, I
reserved a room (by telephone) in a rooming house nearby (can you see that
today?!) and, living in Amityville, took the convenient Road-n-Rail bus to
Southampton. The agent met me the next morning; I don’t remember his
name but it was NOT Jim Osborne. I was there two hours, that first morning, and Johnny Koster calls me up and tells me I've been bumped by the same guy that just bumped me out of Massapequa Park! What is it with this guy? I don’t remember his name. :-) So …. I had to pick up keys to sell at Rosedale; the next morning at 6 am. Holy Moly! Fortunately, a (VERY) good friend drove all the way out to Southampton and picked me up. After we visited the rooming house to explain my abrupt departure, I treated him to a nice dinner on the way home. My
one big sale, while in
Southampton,
was
a Pullman ticket from NY to Chicago. And …. I mistakenly kept the
accommodations stub along with the agent’s stub so had to chase the guy
down, on foot, over my lunch hour, at his home, to return his passage
ticket. Fortunately, he was very understanding. What
a day that was! Brad Phillips |