Port Washington Branch

Mileposts are adjacent to the tracks. They are there to be seen by the Engineer and crews, they are there for various reasons, in the pre global positioning system days they were used as a means to tell 204 ones location. They can also be used as a way for an Engineer to determine his speed when the speedometer is broken, he can time how long it takes him to get from one to the next.
They are still used sometimes in train orders as locations for speed restrictions.
The stone post in my picture is no were near the tracks. It was a simple cement and stone fence post located on top of a hill on the north side of the tracks. far away from the tracks.
These cement posts are still all over the RR. They were used as fence posts, and in some RR parking lots as a barrier between the parking lot and tracks.
Its not a mile post.
In this picture, taken from the pedestrian trestle east of bayside, the cement post is on the top of the hill towards the east end of the yard, on the north side. It cannot be seen because its up in the trees.
Im not sure, but the milepost might be visible in this picture on the south side of the tracks, near the switch.

Before they made the RR all high platform. most parking lots had the same stone and cement posts as a barrier for parking lots, and even between the tracks n stations, to prevent people from crossing the tracks in the stations with the low platforms. Im sure if one looks around they will find many of them along the wayside especially out east.
note in this picture the post on the left hand side.


Also note them being used as a barrier in Riverhead, before they raised the platform. In this case they were painted white. Again if one looks for them, they are still all over the RR along the right of way, in various locations.



In this picture, similar posts were used to put a fence between the tracks, and are also on the side painted while as a barrier for the platform

Doc: Thanks for clarifying the post as NOT a milepost! I have been collecting these at: http://www.trainsarefun.com/lirr/milepo ... eposts.htm


MP43 Montauk Branch East Islip Irish Lane Photo: Steve Lynch


MP42 Islip 02/24/08 Photo: Mike McDermet


MP1 Hunterspoint Ave LI City view east, north side of tracks, at east end of station platform c. 1999 Archive: Dave Keller

I love it when folks insert photos into the posts. Somehow I need to figure out how to digitize the 400+ slides I shot from the 1970's and up and start putting them in posts. Nice shots Doc and Steve! Where and when was the photo between Bayside and Riverhead taken?

Thanks LB. Here's a close-up:
MP94 Bridgehampton, BH siding 04/22/07

Back to the Branch: Here's a map archive site: http://www.linkpendium.com/genealogy/US ... eens/maps/ Just change the state/county name in the link for other locales.

Here's http://www.trainsarefun.com/lirr/images ... nd1952.gif
Henry Raudenbush’s October 1952 Map LIRR System with the Port Wash Branch. I have reviewed this map, along with Emery material and my own info of the Montauk Branch and it is very accurate.

His input: I spent a lot of time digging out the data for that map. Where I couldn't see things from trains, I walked. So I walked all around Hempstead crossing and that's when I saw those feeder rails. Then I walked the lines from there to Mineola and to West Hempstead .

I had the map printed, just in time for the fantrip with #107, and it proved to be a fast seller, so I called home and had the folks bring more copies and meet the trip at a photo stop on the Creedmoor Branch.

On the following Monday, I had a call from Paul Blauvelt, the LIRR PR department. He wanted to know if the RR could buy 20 copies, and would I be willing to be interviewed for the Railroad. I went down to Jamaica , and that's when that picture was taken.

In the summer of 1957, I worked in the Chief Engineer's office, and found a copy of my map in the file there.

On the stretch to West Hempstead , the track ran on a diagonal to the street grid. Somewhere along there, there was a place where it crossed an east- west street , then a north-south street. Between the two streets the track ran across what looked like somebody's front yard for about 30 feet. In this section, there was a 20-foot length of 3rd rail! No fences, nothing.

Things were more casual then, and what's more everybody on Long Island knew, and taught their kids, the dangers of the 3rd rail. 06/06/2010 Henry Raudenbush

Why are the tracks past Bayside concrete ties but the rest of the line is not?

I just can not imagine Bayside like that.