GRAND CENTRAL TERMINAL CENTENNIAL
BELOW: The familiar form of Grand Central Terminal is taking shape in this construction view from March 26, 1912. WARREN & WETMORE COLLECTION, AVERY ARCHITECTURAL AND FINE ARTS LIBRARY, COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY BOTTOM: A staggering full schedule of train service in and out of New York City continued while the new terminal was excavated and constructed and the old station was razed and relocated. A flurry of railroad and construction activity can be seen in this June 7, 1909 view. EDWARD L. MAY MEMORIAL COLLECTION, COURTESY RICH STOVING
fate would intervene first. On January 8, 1902, a local train
from Danbury paused on Track 2 in the Park Avenue Tunnel to allow another to pass. A White Plains local, also on Track 2, missed a red signal in the smoke-obscured tunnel and plowed di- rectly into the back of the Danbury lo- cal. Fifteen people were killed outright, and several others died shortly after- ward in the hospital. Newspaper head- lines described “scenes of horror” and passengers “trapped under engine and roasted by steam,” which significantly swayed public opinion. The event ulti- mately led to the passage of legislation in 1903 banning the use of steam power within the city limits after 1908.
The birth of a Terminal
By the end of 1902, Wilgus had ap- proached the directors of the New York Central with an ambitious new plan to meet the requirements of the new legis- lation, as well as create a centerpiece for the railroad that would also gener- ate new forms of revenue. The old Grand Central would be torn down and replaced with a new terminal that would place all of the yard tracks and
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