Keeping Track of History Archives

12.16.2025 Keeping Track of History

Keeping track of history: Why Greenport won LIRR race to the East End

The Long Island Rail Road’s decision to extend service to Greenport rather than Sag Harbor came down to strategy and economics. In 1834, when the railroad went to the...

12.05.2025 Keeping Track of History

Keeping track of history: When trains ruled the North Fork

The North Fork once boasted a collection of LIRR train stations, spaced about three miles apart, for the convenience of passengers. This distance made it easy to travel between...

12.05.2025 Keeping Track of History

Keeping track of history: How Riverhead’s station fed New York

Before refrigerated trucks and interstate highways, freshly dug potatoes from Riverhead train station could reach Brooklyn dinner tables within 48 hours. That was in 1844, when the Long Island...

12.04.2025 Keeping Track of History

Keeping Track of History: Deadly crash at Calverton station

It’s hard to imagine that just off Edwards Avenue in Calverton was the site of one of the worst wrecks in the history of the LIRR. On a stormy...

10.11.2025 Keeping Track of History

Keeping Track of History: Wading River Station

Train stations are built for many reasons: economic, convenience, congestion. But the Long Island Rail Road track extension from Port Jefferson to Wading River was built for revenge. Austin...

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09.16.2025 Keeping Track of History

Keeping Track of History: Manorville Station

The Long Island Rail Road, chartered by New York in 1834, is one of the oldest railroads in the country. Taking the train is a ubiquitous part of life...

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