NNG: Jay Street Connecting RR (Brooklyn, NY)

On almost the first day of nice spring weather we've had this year (there was snow flying as recently as last week!), I was able to get away from my computer for a few hours on Thursday to explore some interesting railroad remains on the waterfront in Brooklyn, NY, specifically an obscure terminal switching/carfloat operation known as the Jay Street Connecting Railroad. It's neither well known nor well remembered by railfans and rail historians, but what is left behind is some astonishingly complex street trackage, all laid in girder rail set in century-old stone block pavement. One look at the number of turnouts and sidings tells you this was not built for trolleys! However, what was once a gritty waterfront warehouse district is now the ultra-fashionable new Brooklyn of chic boutiques and hipster coffee shops, where the streets are full of late-model cars and people walking their little dogs, so the contrast is pretty interesting. (Thankfully, this is all in a designated Historic District, so the track is supposed to remain in place forever.)








A derailment waiting to happen!



Here's a photo of one of their peculiar early diesels in action:

Photo from members.trainweb.com/bedt/indloco/jst.html, which is pretty much the only source on the company I've been able to find.

-Philip Marshall