HICKSVILLE: 1ST DEPOT OPENED:
3/1/1837 AS TEMPORARY TERMINUS OF LIRR. BURNED: 7/15/1864 |
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Valentine Hicks, son-in-law
of abolitionist and Quaker preacher Elias Hicks, and eventual president of
the Long Island Rail Road, bought land in the village in 1834 and turned it
into a station stop on the LIRR in 1837. The station became a depot for
produce, particularly cucumbers for a Heinz Company plant. After a blight
destroyed the cucumber crops, the farmers grew potatoes. It turned into a
bustling New York City suburb in the building boom following World War II.
Info: Wiki |
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The LIRR reached Hicksville in 1837,
as a single track railroad. The railroad extended eastward,
finally reaching Greenport in 1844.
The railroad was not double-tracked to
Hicksville until the 1890s. Two items to illustrate as follows: The
Beers Atlas map of 1873 (left) shows the LIRR as single
track to Hicksville.
The second is a drawing which was copied
from the archives of the Emery Collection, at the Special Collections
Department of Stony Brook University. |
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Beers Map 1873 Archive: Dave Morrison |
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Hicksville 2nd Station c. 1905 View E Archive: Dave Keller
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Emery Map 1912
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Emery Map MP 25-26 Port Jefferson Br. 1958 |
Emery Maps: Archive: Dave Keller |
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Emery Map MP 24-25 1958 |
Emery Map MP 25-26 Main Line 1958 |
Mainline MP25-26 c.1960 Drawing/Archive: Steven Lynch Continued here |
Mainline MP25 to MP29 BETH Interlocking B Tower - Central Extension MP30 to MP35+ c.1960 Drawing/Archive: Steven Lynch |
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Nassau Feed & Coal - View SW Hicksville Express Hse., Station view E (below) 5/06/1932 Archive: Emery SUNY-Stony Brook |
Mail crane with its locked pouch in position as it awaits pickup by Montauk bound Train No.4. - View E 8/1954 Archive: Emery SUNY-Stony Brook |
Hicksville mail Pickup 8/1954 Archive: Emery SUNY-Stony Brook The RPO Clerk on the eastbound Montauk Train No.4 deftly swings out the mail catcher arm at the right second to secure the waiting mail pouch. Notes: Robert Emery
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Water plug, express house, and station 7/31/1937 Archive: Dave Keller |
Jerusalem Ave., Hicksville - View N 1939 Archive: Dave Morrison |
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Broadway crossing, Hicksville - View W from DIVIDE 2/12/1942 Archive: Richard Eikov |
Divide Tower - View W c.1947 (Smith-Morrison) |
H10s #117 taking water 7/25/1952 Archive: Dave Keller |
PRR H10s #108 taking water Hicksville 1954 Photo/archive: Art Huneke
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Mid-morning.... The Tager Auto Parts Store has signage in the windows indicating TOYS and TRAINS which, like hardware stores, etc. had them seasonally to sell for the Christmas Season. The women has winter clothing and the trees appear bare. It's winter Nov-Dec. |
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Cannonball 9/1962 south of E. Cherry St., Hicksville looking NW. The siding is for Troiano Wholesale Distributors at MP 25.25 on Main line just south of Divide. Archive: Kevin Galau |
Note: It
is L-62 (Greenport Freight) as the engine #108 was usually assigned to
this run. Info: Gene Collora
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Hicksville Hagstrom map 1939 Hicksville Hagstrom map - 1960 Pre-grade Elimination Project Hicksville Hagstrom map - 1960's Post-grade Elimination Project with E. Cherry St. severed
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RS3 #1555 westbound passenger train south of Old Country Road grade crossing 8/14/1959 Archive: Jeff Erlitz
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G.O 603 Westbury-Hicksville Interlocking Diagram 7/28/1959 Archive: Jeff Erlitz
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Broadway, Hicksville- View S 1962 Michael Naimoli |
Broadway, Hicksville - View N 1967 Photo: Michael Dolan Archive: Thomas Valentino |
Broadway, Hicksville - view N 2021 Archive: Thomas Valentino |
Hicksville Station Demolition 11/1962 Courtesy: Archive: Dave Keller |
Hicksville Station Demolition Map Courtesy:
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Hicksville Station Demolition Map Back Courtesy: |
When Hicksville was elevated, they only elevated from about 1/2 mile West of the station to a mile East of the station on both the Ronkonkoma and Port Jefferson branches. Charlotte Avenue wasn't touched during the elevation. It wasn't until after the electrification to Hicksville and Huntington that they decided to eliminate the Charlotte Avenue crossing, which was completed in 1973, due to the increased volume of trains (mainly electrics) that would still fly by not at MAS but about 60-65 MPH. Info: Matt Kobel |
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Controlling the junction of the Main Line and the Port Jefferson branch since opening day of May 27, 1909, the original structure known as "DIVIDE" tower is soon to be a memory. With the telegraphic call letters of "HX" when opened, it was renamed "HN" on 11/23/28 when the Pennsylvania Railroad, the parent company of the LIRR, decided that no block offices were to have the letter "X" in their calls. In April, 1939, the tower was renamed "DIVIDE" and has remained so-named ever since. This 1962 view looking SE shows the tower from the Port Jefferson branch side. The Main Line side is beyond the tower and you can catch a glimpse of the old-style PRR keystone whistle post along the Main Line tracks to the far right of this image. At the rear of the tower is some rubble, indicating that the grade crossing elimination that will change the face of the town has already begun. In the left background can be seen the old two story section house and section chief's office and parked on its west side is an old LIRR maintenance truck. The new "DIVIDE" tower will be built directly in front of this old tower and when the elevated tracks are functional and the new tower placed into service, the old wooden landmark will be demolished into yet another pile of historic rubble. (Dave Keller archive and data) |
LI Railroader V8N18 08/29/1963 page 4 Divide Tower Archive: Al Castelli
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Divide Tower 1967 Photo: Dave Keller
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LIRR map 1966 Page 54 |
Hicksville - Divide Tower view W 2/20/1978 |
LIRR #201 C420 at Hicksville Friday 10:03am Eastbound 12/27/1963 "Dashing Dan" yet to be applied. Photo: Art Single Elimination Project in background. As C420 units 200-207 were built 12/1963-02/1964 this photo of LIRR #201 is just after delivery |
Alco C420 #219 c.1964+ Photo: Steve Hoskins |
LIRR MP15ac #153 2/9/1986 in Hicksville Yard. Looking north to West John St, #153 is on the eastern most track and the freight cars are on the center track of the three tracks. Info and Photo: Al Castelli |
LIRR C420 #222, MP15ac #159 7/5/1985 in Hicksville Yard. Looking south, the two diesels are on the eastern most track with West John St behind the photographer and the other 2 tracks and freight house to the right. Info and Photo: Al Castelli |
Hicksville Station 11/18/1972 (Smith-Morrison) |
Hicksville RS-1 #463 freight View E 12/29/1969 Photo: George Forero |
Hicksville RS-1 #463 View NE 12/29/1969 Photo: George Forero |
C51 View E 4/1970 Photo: Jim Parker |
The overpass just east of the Hicksville Station and Divide Tower over Bay Ave./E. Barclay St. at the beginning of the Port Jefferson Branch. The third rail is brand new at this location prior to the completion of the Mineola-Huntington Electrification completed October 13, 1970 with service commencing on October 19, 1970. Info: Mike McEnaney Huntington is presently the terminus of electrification on the Port Jefferson Branch. The project was extended from Mineola and completed October 13, 1970 with service commencing on October 19, and since then the station has become an intermediate transfer point for off-peak riders between electric trains to and from Penn Station and diesel scoot trains to Port Jefferson. Info: Dave Morrison
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LIRR C420 #223 1/18/1986 in Hicksville Yard. Looking north, the Alco is leading MP15ac #153 and their string of freight cars with hack C-50 bringing up the rear. Behind the photographer is the mainline. Info and Photo: Al Castelli |
LIRR C420 #222 and hack C-50 10/12/1985 at Hicksville Yard. The freight house is at the left and MP15ac #157 is coupled behind the Alco. In the background is one of the LIRR's jet powered snow melters #TC990. Info and Photo: Al Castelli |
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Hicksville temporary station 07/19/1964 Photo/Archive: Dave Keller |
NYA RR W. John Street Yard 10/28/2010 Photo: Al Castelli |
Valentine Hicks, 2nd President LIRR "Welcome to Hicksville" |
Hicksville - Penn Station Eagle 7/29/2020 Photo/Archive: Dave Morrison |
Hicksville - Penn Station Eagle close-up 7/29/2020 Photo/Archive: Dave Morrison |
Hicksville Station welcome sign 7/29/2020 Photo/Archive: Dave Morrison |
Hicksville Station mural 7/29/2020 View W left wall Photo/Archive: Dave Morrison |
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Hicksville's LIRR John Bull Steam Engine History |
Hicksville new digital train signs 6/25/2021 Photo/Archive: Tim Darnell |
Hicksville aerial - Newsday 3/07/2022 |