A VISITOR FROM 1904 would hardly recognize today's 59 Street/Columbus Circle station, given all the changes that have taken place since then; high among them is the connection to the IND subway in the 1930's that ripped out a good part of the original walls. This station was one of the first to be completed, so its walls, as those of 28 Street station, were used for experiments in wall treatment by Heins and LaFarge. The ceiling of this station above track level features another experiment; it was lined with white (now a dirty brown) tile, to make the station seem brighter. The hallmark elements of this station are the ceramic ships along the walls, recalling the station's namesake, shown in the top two photographs. The bottom photograph shows a name panel unlike any other in the subway. Unfortunately, none remain visible; if any still do exist, they are surely well hidden. An interesting question is why this station featured two different style name panels -- this latter one and the more conventional one shown in the top photograph. |
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