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March 31, 1904 |
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March 14, 1904 |
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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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