USA > New York > Bronx County > History of Bronx borough, city of New York : compiled for the North side news > Part 56
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The architecture of the present day schools has kept pace with the advancement in other lines of the borough's progress, and the people can point with pride to the many magnificent edifices that attest to the community's reaching out for the high- est ideals.
The New York University, at University Heights, is a fitting monument to the activity of the people. Within its walls the advanced branches are taught by a faculty that stands high in the records of the educational system of the country.
Fordham College has recently taken a most decided step forward in the educational arena, and now is designated a uni- versity where the study of law has been included in its curri- culum. From this former college many men prominent in the affairs of our land have received the finishing touches to the public school education with credit to themselves and their alma mater.
But to the public schools, which have been properly and fitly termed "the bulwarks of American liberty," much watchfu! care has been exercised in order to keep them in the front rank of education. The cost of maintenance may seem some- what large to the person who studies figures, but the outlay is compensated for in the fact that the knowledge there inculcated has resulted in producing better men and women with minds well stored with useful knowledge that has proven a valuable aid in bringing the country to its present prominence among the nations of the earth.
While the City of New York has shown great liberality in its school expenditures, it has been somewhat handicapped in its disbursements owing to the urgent demands upon its resorces by other branches of the city government. This has been felt very seriously in the proper housing of the children, and new buildings have been attained only when the situation has been so acute as to make the continuance of the condition a veritable hardship.
Yet notwithstanding all these drawbacks during the past ten years the number of new schools which have been erected in the Bronx have borne the highest encomiums of the progressive. ness of the borough that has been the cynosure of the entire Union.
Whether in the primary, the grammar, the high school, or its . colleges, the Bronx will compare most favorably with the older seats of learning.
LOCAL DISTRICT NO. 23.
The borough is divided into tour local districts whose at- tendance is shown by the following ngures for the quarter ending November, 1905:
Regis- Attend-
Regis- Attend- Regis- Attend-
ter.
ance.
ter.
ance.
ter.
ance
School No.
September
October .
November
I
879
703
888
748
893
744
9
Pr.
1,442
1,340
1,47I
1,331
1,486
1,320
9
Gr
1,135
1,072
1,081
1,003
1,072
970
18
829
775
827
753
824
22
322
288
336
298
344
302
27
2,552
2,478
2,480
2,402
2,484
2,257
29
2,022
1,775
2 038
I,836
2,051
I,849
30
1,387
1,277
1,397
1,243
1,412
1.270
31
421
357
394
353
379
334
37
2,31I
1,873
2,302
2,029
2,265
2,040
13,300
11,998
13,214
11,996
13,210
11,834
LOCAL SCHOOL DISTRICT NO. 24.
Regis- Attend- Regis- Attend- Regis- Attend-
ter.
ance.
ter.
ance.
ter.
ance.
School No.
September
October
November
3
Pr.
1,357
1,265
1,381
1,266
1,398
1,260
3 Gr.
885
1,041
927
866
8.48
918
10
2,496
2,333
2.527
2,309
2.511
2.314
20
1,671
1,526
1,618
1,484
1.657
1,469
23
2,017
1,817
2,10I
1,845
2,145
1,870
25
1,476
1,420
1,459
1,297
1.509
1.315
35
1,133
1,004
1,14I
1,02I
I.I36
1,006
38
1,126
1,068
1,144
1,039
1,144
1,028
39
493
506
577
516
588
536
12,654
11,780
12,875
11,643
12,936
12,225
LOCAL SCHOOL DISTRICT NO. 25.
Regis- Attend- Regis- Attend- Regis- Attend- ter. ance. ter. ance. ance.
School No.
September
October
November
2 G. D ..
1,123
1,065
1,083
1,031
1.OS3
1.00)
2 P. D.
1.016
1.752
1,061
1.761
2.003
3,084
2,782
6
1,275
1.133
1.219
I,II3
1.241
1,00);
7
819
555
615
557
624
550
II
865
785
S64
771
863
:34
14I
385
442
.105
432
305
1.513
1.370)
1.507
1.37I
1,505
1,322
33
677
604
68;
638
685
11,816
9.573
11,58Q
10.50I
11.670
10,33
148
126
150
120
4
3.056
2,794
3.063
2.728
ter.
.
432
.
Public School No. 39, Longwood Avenue, Kelly and Beck Streets
Public School No. 41, Elliott Avenue and 209th Street.{ Williamsbridge
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-.
393
HISTORY OF BRONX BOROUGH
LOCAL SCHOOL DISTRICT NO. 26.
Regis- Attend- Regis- Attend- Regis- Attend- ter. ance. ter. ance. ter. ance.
School No.
September
October
November
5
1,143
1,072
1,123
1,040
1,110
997
8
870
700
888
773
879
12
873
777
882
700
8,8
709
13
1,203
1,08o
1,18!
1,054
1,177
1.001
14
302
257
304
253
314
240
15
298
259
307
200
303
252
16
708
628
717
032
700
635
331
302
331
288
331
248
19
206
186
201
190
211
182
21
558
499
561
489
565
493
32
1,008
1,484
1,014
1,486
1,012
1,4%
34
1,038
936
1,063
949
1,081
953
36
796
677
791
667
765
655
9,940
8,915
9.963
8,856
9.926 8,745
It seems to be almost an impossibility for the school authori- ties to keep pace with the growth of the school population in the borough, and as fast as a new edifice is completed it is promptly filled to surfeit.
The location of the public schools in the Bronx is as tol- lows :
No. 1- College Avenue and 145th Street.
No. 2 .- Third Avenue, near 170th Street, with an Annex at Fulton Avenue and 169th Street.
No. 3-157th Street and Courtlandt Avenue.
No. 4-Fulton Avenue and 173d Street.
No. 5-2430 Webster Avenue, corner of Welch Street.
No. 6-Locust Avenue, West Farms.
No. 7-Church Street and Webber's Lane, King-bridge.
No. 8-Mosholu Parkway, Bedford Park.
No. 9-735 East 138th Street.
No. 10-Eagle Avenue and 163d Street.
No. 11-Ogden Avenue, Highbridge.
No. 12-Second Street, Westchester, with Annex at Four- teenth Street and Avenue C, Westchester.
No. 13 -- Park Avenue and 216th Street, Williamsbridge.
No. 14-Eastern Boulevard, near Elliott Avenpue. Throgg's Neck.
No. 15-Westchester Turnpike, near Clason Point Road.
No. 16-Matilda Street, between 240th and 241st Streets, Wakefield, with Annex at Fifth Avenue, south of Kingsbridge Road. Eastchester.
No. 17-Fordham Avenue, City Island.
No. 18-501 Courtlandt Avenue.
No. 19 -- 233d Street and Clinton Avenue, Woodlawn.
No. 20-At Fox, Simpson and 167th Streets.
No. 21-225th Street, near White Plains Avenue. No. 22-599 East 140th Street. No. 23-165th Street and Union Avenue.
No. 2.1-Spuyten Duyvil.
No. 25-Union Avenue and 149th Street. with Annex at Burnet Place, Springhurst.
No. 26-Andrews and Burnside Avenues.
No. 27-St. Ann's Avenue, between 147th and 148th Streets.
No. 28-Tremont and Anthony Avenues, with Annex ai . 1787 Weeks Avenue, Mt. Hope.
No. 29-Trinity Avenue and 130th Street. No. 30-14Ist Street, near Brook Avenue.
No. 31-Mott and Walton Avenues, 144th and 145th Streets.
No. 32-183d Street and Beaumont Avenpuc.
No. 33 -- Jerome and Walton Avenues, north of 184th Street. No. 34-AAmethyst Avenue and Victor Street, Van Nest.
No. 35-163d Street, between Grant and Morris Avenues. No. 36-Avenue C, between Eighth and Ninth Streets, Union- port.
No. 37 -- 145th and 146th Streets, cast of Willis Avenue. No. 38-157th Street and Third Avenue.
No. 39-Longwood Avenue, Kelly and Beck Streets.
No. 40-Prospect Avenue, Jennings Street and Ritter Place. No. 41-Elliott Avenue and 209th Street, Williamisbridge. . No. 42-Washington and Wendover Avenues.
MORRIS HIGH SCHOOL.
The Morris High School at Boston Road, 166th Street and Jackson Avenue, presents the finishing touches to the education imparted in the above schools.
Evening high schools, for the education of those who are by necessity compelled to labor during the daytime at their various avocations, have been established at the Morris High School and at Public School No. 3, 157th Street, so that illiteracy is kept at a very low rate.
The parochial schools have proven a valuable aid in the cause of education, and afforded material aid in relieving the congestion in the public schools. St. Jerome's R. C. Church at 138th Street and Alexander Avenue, the Catholic Protectory at Westchester, the Church of the Immaculate Conception at 150th Street and Melrose Avenue, the Ursuline Academy at Bedford Park, St. Valentine's at Williamsbridge, and others throughout . the borough have been of material assistance in laying the foun- dation for useful knowledge.
To the advanced scholars who are destined to enter upon a business career, the Bronx is not deficient in offering advan- tages equal to those of Manhattan, for here are located some well known business colleges which instruct the attendants in stenography, typewriting, business methods, etc., that have met with deserved success. Among the better known we might mention the Walworth Business College, Bird's Commercial School and the Franklin Commercial School have also proved their public utility. as is attested by the responsible positions held by their graduates in public and business life.
As before stated the problem of keeping pace with the school population of the Bronx is one that has given the Board of Edu. cation much concern, yet they have bravely met the situation and at the time of this writing have taken the initiatory steps to acquire sites for additional school accommodations. The increase in school population, however, is a perplexing one, as the Bronx has steadily and persistently smashed all previous school statistics by the 'unparalleled growth during the past decade. which itself soon will be eclipsed owing to the vast development that is now going on in the hitherto sparsely settled sections. where the rural character is fast giving way to the onrushing tide of population from Manhattan and the other boroughs, and warrants the assertion' that before many decades the territory north of the Harlem River which has been described in the cirlier chapters of this history, will present a picture of a city with a population of one million inhabitants.
:
Public School No. 2, Third Ave. near 170th Street
C.A.
Public School No. 33, Jerome and Walton Avenues
Public School, St Anns Ave. 147th & 148th Sts Opposite St Mary's Fark
Public School No. 27, St. Ann's Avenue, Opposite St. Mary's Park
Public School No. 6, Locust Avenue, West Farms
CHAPTER XLVI
TRANSPORTATION FACILITIES IN THE BRONX
The Portchester Railroad -- Union Railway Company-New York City Interborough Railway-College Point Ferry
The New York & Portchester Railroad was organized in the spring of 1901. Under the Laws of the State of New York. the company was required to obtain the certificate of public convenience and necessity commonly known as the charter from the Railroad Commission of this State before it could proceed any further after its organization. The object in requiring the certifi- cate of public convenience and necessity to be first obtained by any new railroad from the Railroad Commission is to prevent the indiscriminate promotion and construction of railways in the State of New York, and thereby protect not only existing meritorious railways, but the investing public as well. For this
W, C. GOTSHALL
reason the Railroad Commission, in the case of all applications for a charter, announce public hearings, at which the public con- venience and necessity of the railroad are required to be shown. All interests in favor of the railroad are heard at these hearings, and, in addition, all interests opposed to its construc- tion are also heard. In addition to the determination of the public convenience and necessity of a proposed railroad, the applicant is required to demonstrate to the Railroad Commission that the pro- posed enterprise will be a commercial success ; in other words, the applicant is required to prove the amount of money which will be necessary to construct and place the road in operation, and is also required to prove the gross and net earnings of the proposed enterprise. All of these proofs are given in open
public hearings, and are subjected to the attacks of any interests opposing the proposed railroad. In the case of the New York & Portchester Railroad, the president of the railroad, Mr. W. C. Gotshall, proved that the total cost of the road from 132d street in this borough to the Connecticut State line at Portchester, in- cluding a branch line from Bronx Park to Clason's Point, would be about $16,000,000. He also proved that the annual gross earn- ings of the railroad would be about $1,500,000, and the net earnings about $700.000. All these figures were given by him in the utmost detail, even including the number and cost of railroad spikes. At the close of the hearing, the opponents, consisting of the New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad, the New York Central Railroad and the Union Railroad admitted the correctness of the figures. The public demand for the rail- road had been overwhelmingly demonstrated. The result of the hearings was that the Railroad Commission, in March, 1902. granted the Portchester Railroad its charter. The New Haven road subsequently, on purely legal grounds, contested the decision of the Railroad Commission by carrying the case through all the courts of this State to the court of last resort, that is, the Cot :: of Appeals, with the result that the New Haven road was finally defeated in the Court of Appeals on the 23d of June, 1903.
In addition to its charter the New York & Portchester Railroad Company has, as required by law, secured from the Common Councils of Mount Vernon and New Rochelle the formal assent of those bodies to cross all the streets in the cities of Mount Vernon and New Rochelle which will be crossed 3 the line of its road. It has also secured from the Supreme Court. sitting at White Plains, Westchester County, the right to cr .... about sixty additional streets in Westchester County which is line will cross, and, consequently, has all its required rights an ! franchises through the towns of Pelham, Larchmont. Mama ?- oneck, Harrison, Rye. Portchester and the cities of Mo: Vernon and New Rochelle. The last remaining link in the required chain consists in securing from the Board of Esti- mate and Apportionment of New York City the formal assent of that board to cross such streets of the Bronx as will be crossed by its road. The action of the Brand. of Aldermen heretofore in this matter is a most anomna's:s commentary on, first, the damage which such a body can ind'c: upon a community at times, and, second, upon the fact that a lot of Aldermen representing districts on the Island of Manhattan and in Brooklyn should have it in their power to delay improve- ments in the Borough of the Bronx, or any other boroughs in which they do not reside, and in which they have really no interest. This fact was brought forcibly to the attention . : the public of this borough, and largely through the (forts of # publie-spirited citizens a bow was enacted giving the franskle granting power to the Board of Estimate and AApportionment.
.
.
.
..
396
HISTORY OF BRONX BOROUGH
The New York & Portchester Railroad is designed as a high speed railroad, the tracks of which will be laid upon a private right of way which will be the property of the railroad company, and which the railroad company will purchase. All public streets, avenues and highways along the line of the road will be crossed either over or under the grades of such highways. and in such manner as not to interfere with the use of the highways or streets by the public. After the formal assent of the Board of Estimate and Apportionment is obtained, the final fixing and determination of the crossings of the streets is a
Hall, on Manhattan Island, New York City, a distance of thirty- five miles, 'in about one hour. Considered from the point of view of time occupied, this places the Broux and Westchester County, and the adjoining territory nearer to City Hall, New York, than 145th Street of Manhattan Island is to-day. A con. sideration of these facts will at once bring to mind the utmost importance to the entire public of the Borough of the Bronx and Westchester County of this enterprise. The road as now de- signed is pronounced by the leading railway men and experts everywhere as the highest class of design and construction which
One of the P.oposed Bridges of the Portchester Railroad
inatter with which the Railroad Commission of this State alone have to do.
The road is designed as a four-track road from its southern terminus at the Harlem River to Portchester, which is known as the main line. A two-track branch is to be run to Clason's Point connecting with the main line at Bronx Park. Throughout. the road will be equipped with the most modern block signal sys- tem, so designed and installed that even in the event of a motor- man or operator becoming incapacitated, for any reason, the train will be automatically brought to a stop upon reaching a danger signal. The road will be operated electrically, and will use some modification of the third rail, like that now installed by the Rapid. Transit Subway, and now installed on the Manhattan Elevated lines.
The tracks of the railroad will connect with the tracks of the Rapid Transit Subway at 177th Street and Boston Post Road and at Westchester Avenue and Southern Boulevard. The
has ever appeared, and is recognized as the pioneer in high-speed and heavy electric traction design and development.
The train tinits will consist of two, three, or more cars, as the service may require. Each car will be equipped with four inotors, having a total capacity of about 1,000 horse power, which, is equal to the power of the engine which now draws the Empire State Express.
Two kinds of stations will be used, one known as express stations, and the other known as local stations. The local stations will be about half a mile apart, and the express stations will be about a mile and a half apart. The schedule speed of the express trains will be about forty miles an hour, and that of the local trains will be about twenty-six miles an hour The maximum speed of the express trains will be about sixty miles an hour, while that of the local trains will be about forty miles an hour.
Where the railroad crosses a public street or highway, by
Style of Cars to be Used on Portchester Railroad
nesigas for the connection at 177th Street have been approved by the Rapid Transit. Commission, and the necessary terminal real estate for such connection has been purchased by the Portchester Railroad, and the necessary steel has also been ordered pur- chased and erected. The Portchester Railroad will also connect with the existing Manhattan Railroad, or with the proposed east side branch of the Subway at some point south of 177th Street and near 132d Street. By this railroad, a passenger will be enabled to travel from Portchester, New York, to the City
passing over such street. the highway crossing will be made by erecting an arch composed of concrete and steel. These arches will be highly ornamental. No steel will be visible. The steel is simply inserted to stiffen the arsh and the construction. The arch, when erected and finished. will have the appearance of a vast stone monolith, out of which has been cut a passage for the vehicular and other traffic.
Where the street or highway is crossed by the tracks passing beneath the railroad, the crossing will be made by erecting steel
397
HISTORY OF BRONX BOROUGH
columns and connecting them by steel arches and embedding all of the steel columns and arches in a fine cement mortar. The object of this is to ever prevent the disintegration of any of the steel part of the structure.
When the construction of this railroad is completed, it will be a structure which will stand practically forever, as it is nothing but a mass of earth and rock. The laying of the tracks on earth embankments and the use of the concrete crossings will make the road absolutely noiseless.
It is apparent from this brief history of this railroad, that it will undoubtedly be the making of the eastern part of the Borough of the Bronx. It is also now more than ever apparent while this enterprise is called "the enterprise of the people." and why the public are so determined that this railroad shall not be delayed or anything placed in the way of its immediate construction.
This sketch would not be complete without a brief state- ment of some of the financiers who have guaranteed its con- struction and operation, under the terms of the franchise offered to the New York & Portchester Railroad by the Board of Estimate and Apportionment, and approved by said Board of Estimate on December 15, 1905. This group consists of Messrs Charles D. Barney & Company, of 25 Broad Street, New York City, and 122 South Fourth Street, Philadelphia. Charles D. Barney & Company have been recognized as one of the leading American financial institutions of this country for thirty-five years, and have financed eight or nine large railway enterprises, in addition to other power transmission projects; Edwin Gould. president of the Bowling Green Trust Company and vice-presi- dent of the St. Louis, Iron Mountain & Southern, and the Missouri Pacific Railroads, and director in all the Gould railway systems. A. H. & D. H. Morris, of Morris Park, and New Orleans, etc .; W. C. Gotshall, the president and chief engineer of the Portchester Railroad, and its originator and developer, and about whom the entire enterprise centres.
These men have also announced themselves as bidders for the proposed Third Avenue Subway, and have stated to the Rapid Transit Commission that they will provide the funds for the construction of the Third Avenue Subway, and that they will connect that Subway with the Portchester Railroad at 138th Street and Southern Boulevard, and charge five cents for a con- tinuous ride from the Battery to the northern City line, a dis- tance of about sixteen iniles. This will open up for development over 14,000 acres of now inaccessible farm land. located east of the Bronx River, and will be a godsend to the east side tene- ment districts by giving them an immediate and cheap outlet to Manhattan Island as well as affording them the blessings of healthful homes for the workmen and their wives and children.
These Portchester Railroad financial interests already own large tracts of land along the line of the proposed railroad, part of which will be used for development purposes.
NEW YORK CITY INTERBOROUGH RAILWAY CO.
OFFICERS :
ARTHUR TURNBULL President
ANDREW FREEDMAN .Vice President
D. W. MeWILLIAMS Secretary and Treasurer
DIRECTORS :
ANDREW FREEDMAN WALTER G. OAKMAN JORDAN 1. ROLLINS
W. J. FRANSIOLI 1. MORA DAVIDSON ARTHUR TURNBULL
ALFRED SKITT CORNELIUS VANDERBILT ROBERT C. WOOD
The New York City Interborough Railway Company was 4
ยท incorporated in 1902 to meet the demands and necessities of additional street railway transportation in the Borough of Broux.
The development of the Bronx has been along the line of and adjacent to the Elevated Railroad and Subway Systems.
In June, 1801, the Suburban Elevated was acquired by the Manhattan Elevated Railroad Company. A single fare was established, May 26, 1894, and through train service inaugu- rated September 24, 1896.
The result of these improvements in traveling facilities was immediately shown in the large amount of building that took place on and adjacent to Third Avenue and the immediate neigh- borhood, which has become the most thickly settled section of the Bronx. That the same result will ensue from the comple- tion of the Subway lines is shown by the development that has already taken place along the viaduct extension of the Subway off Westchester Avenue and the Southern Boulevard.
Around the Prospect Avenue Station of this branch of the Rapid Transit System, upward of seventy apartment house> have been constructed, which should accommodate at least 5.000 people. A large number of flats have also been constructed around the Jackson Avenue Station, and speculation and build- ing is being pushed forward rapidly adjacent to the other sta- tions of this line. So extensive and so rapid has been the de- velopment of this section that there is now a distinctive Subway zone of flat-houses extending almost solidly from Third Avenue northeasterly along Westchester Avenue to Simpson Street, 2 distance of more than twenty-five blocks. This zone extends on both sides of Westchester Avenue, and building is also going on rapidly along the Southern Boulevard. Beyond Simpson' Street, especially to the West, the whole Borough lying between the Subway and the existing Elevated line on Third Avenue, is being rapidly built up with flats. Very few stores or business buildings, comparatively speaking, have been or are being erect- ed in this new section. Almost all of these buildings are resi- dential structures, and the people will of necessity go to and from their employment in the Borough of Manhattan each day.
Large sections of the Bronx will be deprived of rapid transit facilities unless street railway connections are afforded.
The Rapid Transit system extends up 149th Street, West- chester Avenue and the Southern Boulevard, to ISoth Street and Boston Road on the easterly side of the Bronx, and along Wash- ington Heights to Kingsbridge on the westerly side of Man- hattan. There is a long distance between these lines across the Bronx, which are also in turn separated by the Harlem River, and unless street railway connections are afforded for reaching the stations of this system, this intervening territory will be whoi- ly shut off from rapid transit facilitics. The entire west side of the Bronx north of 149th Street to the city line will be cut off and the middle section of the Borough, through which the Grand Boulevard and Concourse is at present being constructed, and where a large amount of territory by the opening of new streets is being developed, will be likewise isolated unless these additional street railway facilities are furnished. When this territory has been rendered accessible and built up, the people who settle there will also desire to go to and from their business in the Borough of Manhattan each day.
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