Switching Yard A for the LI City Area:  The Degnon Construction Co. constructed warehouses along 47th Ave and created Degnon Terminal c.1919, with rail access to each.  Additionally, other terminals in the area were built at this time (Kearny, Meurer, Harold Ave, Arch Street, etc.).  As this would cause too much congestion in the North Shore Yard (Yard A), freights for east end destinations were sent to Jamaica to be re-classified.

Yard A classified trains for numerous switch jobs in the Long Island City area and freight bound for east of Jamaica.  Additional freight was made up in Yard A and transferred to Fresh Pond for New Haven interchange and local switching jobs in that area.  This all began with barge freight unloaded from float bridges in Long Island City which received cars from many railroads in the area.  In other words New York Harbor, in itself, was like a huge classification yard.   Info: J. J. Earl
 

Meurer Steel Barrel Co., letterhead  3/24/1925

Meurer Steel Barrel dates from likely the 1905-1910 era.  It had facilities in Brooklyn and Newark, NJ with General Offices in New York City. The Meurer's track appears on a 1916 valuation map and was already an established track at that time. Richard Makse

Irving Subway Grating Co., Inc. ad - LI City
Archive: ENR Construction Reports 7/25/1946
Archive: George Lightfoot III
 

32. Metropolitan Refining Co.
36. Smolka Co. Plumbing Supply - ex-Eugene J. Brandt
37. Central Smelting Co., factory
38. ?? Drug Co., warehouse
39. Irving Subway Grating Co., warehouse
40. Peerless Solvents, TCC Storage Yard
41. Supreme Oil Co. (salad oils)
42. Greenpoint Fire Brick Co.
43. American Lumber Co.
44. Supreme Textile Printers
45. Penn Crest Oil & Grease Co.
46. Saxon Paper Corp.
47. Bernard's Electric Appliance Co.
  F ex-Steinway Lines

 

3RD STREET was the prior name of 51st Avenue.  The so-called 3rd Street siding was a trailing point switch off #2 track at Hunterspoint Avenue and only extended a short distance east.  Prior to its construction down 51st Avenue (I would guess 1908), it was a simple industrial track serving the Cameron Piano factory (later the Blanchard building that has had a big painted vertical billboard on it forever).  I don't think anybody called it 3rd St when it only served the piano factory.  When it was built down 51st Avenue, it was formalized as the 3rd Street siding since everybody in LI City called streets by their old names.  Meurer's was the most westerly consignee and had two sidetracks, so I guess the name stuck since 55 gallon drums were a large new industry at the time.

In an an unknown year, the track was extended to the footbridge, (the actual footbridge in 1946; I mention it here as a landmark west of  Hunterspoint Avenue (HPA), and in 1939 to F Tower creating a direct route from Wheelspur via LI City to Loop 1, one of several ways the LIRR interchanged with the PRR in the past.  The car wash was added in 1940.  I don't recall when the wash was closed, but it was certainly active through the 1960's for LIRR trains only. 
Research: Richard F. Makse

Meurer's Siding labeled as the previous 3rd St. siding.  Renumbering to 51st Ave. occurred early in the 20th Century.
Office of Chief Engineer, PRR map insert 5/20/1946

  2 Crossing watchman controlled gates at "A"
11 Track in building
20 In 1927 until 1958
23 STOP sign for Locos - New 1955
     as present end of 3rd Rail for HAROLD
24 Control House for Car Washing machine
25 General Corrugated Paper Co.
26 High platform stairs with shed
27 Stairs
28 Car Washing machine
29 Purolator Water Coolers
30 Garay Handbag Corp., ex-ADS Building in 1924
31 Public Footbridge - New 1946
32 Metropolitan Refining Corp.
  F ex-Steinway Lines

LIRR 1966 MAP - MEURER'S SIDING INDUSTRIES & TRACK CAPACITIES

LIRR 1978 MAP - MEURER'S SIDING INDUSTRIES & TRACK CAPACITIES

Meurer's Siding being worked by ALCO S2 #455 having finished his work and is bringing the cars back to Yard A.  It's August 12, 1976 so the old ALCO is not long for this world, at least on Long Island. Taken from Hunterspoint Ave station.  Photo/Archive: Jeff Erlitz