The LV tug passes by in the foreground, with an ERIE tug and the N.J. riverfront piers and infrastructure seen behind.
Comments:
It is hard to believe that nothing seen in this photo exists today. Look just to the left (south) of the car float slips, and you will be able to make out the abandoned platforms (each with two kiosk entrances to the H&M tubes) of the former Erie terminal, which saw its last ferries in 1958. By that date, all Erie trains, with the exception of the northern branch and Susquehanna trains, had been rerouted to Hoboken, prior to the Erie-Lackawanna merger of 1960
After the terminal closed, its main concourse and waiting room were demolished, along with the ferry sheds. With the exception of the platform left for the northern branch and Susquehanna trains, the other platforms were abandoned and their H&M kiosk entrances closed off. By 1960, when the terminal was only a memory, the northern branch trains had been shifted up to the DL&W terminal at Hoboken, and the Susquehanna trains were terminating their runs at Susquehanna Transfer, adjacent to the Lincoln Tunnel helix in Weehawken, where commuters made connections to buses which carried them through the Lincoln Tunnel to the Port Authority Terminal in Manhattan.
You can also spot the familiar Erie water tower, just behind Pier 8; it was a landmark for decades, and survived well into the 1980's. In 1967, the CNJ was still operating its own float service; by the early 70's, however, the railroad shut down its marine operations and sold off what remained of its tug fleet. The LV then handled the CNJ's remaining float operations. With the advent of Conrail, even this was abandoned.
Today, where the once-vast Erie yards and other facilities once stood, the huge, sprawling Newport development, including a large mall, office buildings and condos, now occupies the area. It is virtually impossible to find any trace of railroad usage here in 2014.
After the terminal closed, its main concourse and waiting room were demolished, along with the ferry sheds. With the exception of the platform left for the northern branch and Susquehanna trains, the other platforms were abandoned and their H&M kiosk entrances closed off. By 1960, when the terminal was only a memory, the northern branch trains had been shifted up to the DL&W terminal at Hoboken, and the Susquehanna trains were terminating their runs at Susquehanna Transfer, adjacent to the Lincoln Tunnel helix in Weehawken, where commuters made connections to buses which carried them through the Lincoln Tunnel to the Port Authority Terminal in Manhattan.
You can also spot the familiar Erie water tower, just behind Pier 8; it was a landmark for decades, and survived well into the 1980's. In 1967, the CNJ was still operating its own float service; by the early 70's, however, the railroad shut down its marine operations and sold off what remained of its tug fleet. The LV then handled the CNJ's remaining float operations. With the advent of Conrail, even this was abandoned.
Today, where the once-vast Erie yards and other facilities once stood, the huge, sprawling Newport development, including a large mall, office buildings and condos, now occupies the area. It is virtually impossible to find any trace of railroad usage here in 2014.