Old City Hall Station, NYC
A terminal station built in 1904 as the showpiece of New York's first subway. Guastavino tile vaults curve one after another, brass chandeliers hang down, and glass skylights are set into the ceiling arches. But the platform's tight curve made the gap between train and platform dangerous once cars grew longer, and the station closed to passengers in 1945. Since then the tracks have continued to serve as the turnaround loop for the 6 train, so trains pass through every day, yet no one gets off. The headlights of trains that never stop light up the decorative tiles for a moment, and then it goes dark again. A station that trains have passed through for eighty years without ever arriving.
See photos and posts for this place on the LIMap map
Nearby liminal spaces
- The Oculus (WTC Transportation Hub) (0.4 km)
- TWA Flight Center (21 km)
LIMap is a map for finding and sharing liminal spaces: places emptied of people that feel eerie and nostalgic at the same time. Many of these places are private or off-limits, so please follow the notes above and view them only from where you are allowed.