Recent station “improvements” and modernizations recently (12/13) claimed the remaining Mott Avenue mosaic signs at the #2 train station at 149th Street (years ago, its “NY Central” mosaic signs that pointed to a now-Metro-North station a few blocks away were spackled over).
Mott Avenue, which ran between East 138th and East 161st in southern Bronx, was absorbed by the Grand Concourse in the 1920s. Its legacy hasn’t completely disappeared, though; a substation at street level is still marked “Mott Avenue.”
The avenue, and the neighborhood of Mott Haven, are named for the 19th-Century Bronx industrialist Jordan L. Mott, whose name can still be seen on iron vents and some manhole covers around town.
12/12/13
6 comments
Don’t know if Metro-North ever had a Mott Haven Station. I assume the NY Central station was the one at 138th Street, which didn’t make it into the Metro-North era.
Interesting that there was a sign for the New York Central station, as it wasn’t exactly right next to the 149 Street subway station….
The 138th Street New York Central Railroad station you’re referring to was the Mott Haven Station, but it wasn’t the unbuilt one that these mosaics point to. That one closed in 1972. So, Danny S. is right.
http://www.stationreporter.net/harlem.htm
The Mosaics for the never built station are still here though.
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:149th_Street_-_Grand_Concourse_to_never_built_NYCRR_Station.JPG
There’s also still an old NYC Interlocking Tower in Mott Haven Junction that somebody here should get pictures of.
The “N.Y. Central Lines” mosaics (there are two) at 149 St.-Grand Concourse station actually were intended to point to a station at 149 St. that was never built. So there was never a time when those mosaics were accurate. The lettering on both has been effaced to make them illegible, but the new white tiling that was recently put up deliberately leaves them visible, and in one case there is kind of a notch in the outline of the new tiling to avoid covering the mosaic up.
The New York Central Station next to the 149th & Grand Concourse Subway was postponed during the depression. However, the $55,000 tunnel to the station was built. Later used for storage & locked. Borough President Lyons in April 1934 complained to the Central that that they promised a station at that location and never delivered. At least the tunnel was reopened. Maybe one day the Bronx will get the 2nd ave Subway that was also promised in 1926
That mosaic was up for 108 years. Good work by whoever originally installed it, probably an immigrant working for the IRT.
Although the date above says 12/12/13, that mosaic has been covered over by a metal “149 St-Grand Concourse” sign in late October 2011.
http://nycsubway.org/perl/show?129620