New York Museum of Transportation facts for kids
The former Newark City Subway streetcar used by New Jersey Transit on the museum property in January 2015.
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| Established | 1973 |
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| Location | Rush, New York |
| Type | Railroad museum |
The New York Museum of Transportation (NYMT) is a non-profit museum where you can explore the history of transportation. It was founded in 1975 and is located at 6393 East River Road in Rush, New York, a suburb of Rochester.
A special two-mile private rail line, built by volunteers, connects the NYMT with the Rochester & Genesee Valley Railroad Museum. This railway lets both museums offer exciting train rides using their collections of old railroad vehicles. The NYMT is special because it operates the only electric trolley ride in New York State! Don't mix it up with the Trolley Museum of New York in Kingston.
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History of the Transportation Museum
The last streetcars in Rochester stopped running in 1941. The Rochester Subway kept going until 1956. Some old streetcars were saved, but they often didn't have a permanent home. For example, Rochester Transit Corporation donated car 1246 to a museum in 1941, but it was later sold for scrap.
How the Museum Began
The idea for the New York Museum of Transportation came from the Magee Transportation Museum in Pennsylvania. This private museum was started by Harry Magee, who loved old vehicles. He created a home for antique cars and trolleys in the mid-1960s.
Sadly, in 1972, a big flood from Hurricane Agnes badly damaged the museum's tracks and trolleys. Harry Magee passed away that October, and his collection was sold in 1973.
Bringing Trolleys Back to New York
Henry Hamlin was developing a new community called Riverton in West Henrietta, New York. He planned a light rail line to connect Riverton with downtown Rochester. He thought a small trolley museum would be a great addition.
Harry Magee had hoped that the Rochester streetcars in his collection would one day return to New York. Hamlin visited the Magee museum to see what could be saved.
The first car acquired was former Elmira, Wavery and Corning Railway car 107. They also got parts to build overhead wires for electric trolleys. New York State Railways Rochester and Eastern Rapid Railway car 157 was also acquired.
Hamlin leased an old dairy barn in West Henrietta to store the cars. Car 157 was moved into the barn on October 5, 1973, and car 107 followed a month later. Other historic cars, like a sand car and a horse car, were also brought to the barn. In 1975, the New York Museum of Transportation officially became an organization.
Building the Railroad
By 1975, the city of Rochester was planning to abandon part of the old Rochester Subway tracks. Volunteers from the NYMT were allowed to salvage track materials. They used these materials to build a rail line around their museum campus.
More historic vehicles were added to the collection. A gift shop, exhibit hall, and gallery were built inside the old dairy barn.
In 1975, the museum also acquired a street snow sweeper, C-130, from Philadelphia. Volunteers worked to change its wheels to fit standard tracks. This car has been on display since the 1980s.
Construction of the museum's demonstration railroad began in 1976. By 1979, it was almost three-quarters of a mile long. In 1980, the NYMT started offering rides on "track cars." These are small gas-powered vehicles once used by railway workers.
Around the same time, the nearby Rochester and Genesee Valley Railroad Museum also began building its own railroad. In 1993, the tracks of both museums were connected in a special ceremony. This allowed track car rides to go from one end to the other.
Trolley Era at the Museum
In 1996, the museum acquired the body of former Northern Texas Traction Company car no. 409. It had been used as a restaurant! It was moved into the dairy barn in 1997. It still has the tables from its restaurant days and is a popular spot for birthday parties.
The museum also got two working steel interurban trolley cars, 161 and 168, in 1996. These cars were built in the 1920s for the Philadelphia and Western Railroad. They don't have a direct connection to Rochester, but they allow the museum to offer regular trolley rides to visitors.
Bringing Electric Trolley Rides to Life
Even with working trolleys, the NYMT needed a place to run them. Throughout the late 1990s, volunteers from both the NYMT and the Rochester & Genesee Valley Railroad Museum worked together. They set up poles and strung overhead wires for the trolleys.
In 2001, the first quarter-mile of electric track was finished. The NYMT then offered the first public trolley rides in the Rochester area since 1956! After successful test runs, volunteers extended the electric line almost a full mile to a new "Midway station" in 2006.
Members of the Rochester & Genesee Valley Railroad Museum designed a special power station. This allows regular trolley operation using electricity from National Grid. Now, visitors can enjoy regular trolley rides. They can then transfer to track cars or diesel trains to continue to the Rochester & Genesee Valley Railroad Museum.
In 2014, the NYMT acquired former NJ Transit car no. 7. This car ran in the Newark City Subway from 1954 until 2001. It's an important example of modern trolley technology from the 1930s and 1940s. It is currently being evaluated for future restoration.
A big future goal for both museums is to fully restore Rochester Subway car 60. They hope to make it fully operational and run it on the line. A fundraising campaign for car 60 began in June 2014.
Museum Operation
The museum is open every Sunday all year round, from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Trolley rides are offered from May through October only. You can ride either car 161 or 168. All trolleys operate from the NYMT to Midway station.
Roster of Equipment
Here are some of the cool vehicles you can find at the museum:
- Rochester Transit Corporation 0243: This car was built in 1891. It was rebuilt in 1918 as a sand car. It's currently on display, being restored.
- Batavia Traction Company 33: Built in 1911. It was sold to Batavia Traction Co. in 1924. Acquired by NYMT in 1980 and is on display.
- New York State Railways Rochester Lines 437: Built in 1904. It was acquired by NYMT in 1997 and is currently stored.
- New York State Railways Rochester Lines 1402: Built in 1904. Donated to NYMT in 2004 and is stored.
- Elmira, Corning and Waverly Railway 107: Built in 1911. It was acquired by NYMT in 1973 and is on display.
- New York State Railways Rochester and Eastern Rapid Railway 157: Built in 1914. Acquired by NYMT in 1973 and is on display.
- Philadelphia and Western Railroad 161: Built in 1924. Acquired by NYMT in 1996. It has been in regular Sunday operation since 2008.
- Philadelphia and Western Railroad 168: Built in 1929. Acquired by NYMT in 1996 and is kept as a back-up car.
- Northern Texas Traction Company 409: Built in 1919. It was used as a restaurant before being donated to NYMT in 1996. It's now on display.
- Hornell Traction Company 34: Built in 1905 as a snow plow. Acquired by NYMT in 1998 and is stored.
- Philadelphia Transportation Company C-130: Built in 1923 as a snow sweeper. Acquired by NYMT in 1974. It is operational and on display.
- Rochester Transit Corporation L-2: This is a gasoline locomotive. It was used on the Rochester Subway until 1957. Donated to NYMT in 1977 and is stored.
- Genesee and Wyoming Railroad 8: A wooden caboose built in 1914. Donated to NYMT in 1977 and has been restored. It is currently stored.
