Present status of IRT Private Car Mineola??

[fordhamroad]

-probably the most impressive and dismaying subway car I have ever seen was August Belmont's IRT private car, the Mineola. I encountered it in decayed, but saved, condition up at Branford Trolley Museum. It was a dusty, beautiful, old object, stored away in a barn
-there was some talk of restoring it around the subway centennial in 2004. Anything ever happen?
-how is Mineola now? Could someone update us with the story?

Thanks

Roger

[fordhamroad]

-guess no one is working on Mineola, or has anything to communicate.
Too bad, I suppose it is still rusting away.
-According to several subway histories, Mineola was parked in a siding off the IRT line in the basement of the old Hotel Belmont, southwest corner of 42nd St. and Park Ave. Anyone know about the siding?
-some accounts state that August Belmont used to take his friends for rides on the Mineola. The private siding was accessed via a door behind the basement bar, in the cellar of the Hotel Belmont. It is alleged that Belmont and his entourage took trips from 42nd Street down the IRT to Atlantic Ave in Brooklyn, where they took an interchange onto Long Island RR tracks, rode out to the races at Belmont Park. That would have been a fun ride, but I am not sure it ever actually happened.
-Arrt's Arrchives discusses the Atlantic Avenue IRT collection from old maps. He concludes that connecting tunnels were built between the LIRR terminal and the IRT station at Atlantic Ave, but that tracks were probably never laid. There was a plan to run LIRR trains over the IRT line to lower Manhattan, which never materialized. So, probably no rides on the Mineola to Belmont Park? Or were there?

Roger

[pennsy]

Hi All,

As I remember it, the IRT station that connected to the LIRR Atlantic Ave station was called Nevins st. There was an interchange track on the Manhattan local track which connected the two lines. As was stated earlier, it was either rarely, or never, used. One of the stub ended LIRR tracks connected to this short interchange. That track could therefore take an IRT train onto LIRR tracks.

[Allan]

Hi All,

As I remember it, the IRT station that connected to the LIRR Atlantic Ave station was called Nevins st. There was an interchange track on the Manhattan local track which connected the two lines. As was stated earlier, it was either rarely, or never, used. One of the stub ended LIRR tracks connected to this short interchange. That track could therefore take an IRT train onto LIRR tracks.

Actually Nevins St was the next northbound station. The iRT station that is next to the LIRR terminal is Atlantic Av. It has never been proven that there actually was a connecting track there or that the Mineola did go out to Belmont Park by way of the LIRR. The roadbed is there but the most anyone has been able to confirm is that it was used as a siding for a garbage car (and even that not 100%).

[Allan]

-probably the most impressive and dismaying subway car I have ever seen was August Belmont's IRT private car, the Mineola. I encountered it in decayed, but saved, condition up at Branford Trolley Museum. It was a dusty, beautiful, old object, stored away in a barn
-there was some talk of restoring it around the subway centennial in 2004. Anything ever happen?
-how is Mineola now? Could someone update us with the story?

Thanks

Roger

There was talk about restoring Mineola and that is all it wound up being - talk.

The estimate to do a complete restoration was in excess of $1 million.

The MTA wasn't going to put up that kind of money and the Trolley Museum doesn't have that kind of money either. So Minoela will remain as is unless some rich benefactor somes along.

[fordhamroad]

-poor Mineola, left to continue in the dark and the dust. In Britain the national lottery raises funds which are donated to specific historic restoration projects. Along with old castles, railroad cars qualify. Too bad we don't have a similar mechanism here. With budget restraints and war costs, probably not much federal historic spending on the horizon. I really would prefer that my taxes be spent on fixing Mineola than blowing up Bagdad.
-thanks, Allan for news about Mineola's current state. To restore either the furniture-like interior, or the ancient wood exterior, would indeed be very skilled and time consuming tasks. I suppose a million dollars would be reasonable. Far too much to raise with bake sales and club dues. Some of the restoration work on steam locomotives --take the LIRR pair as an example -- is being done piecemeal, fixing one part at a time as funds become available. I suppose Mineola might be done that way, a dozen different projects, each funded by a separate donation or grant. Even restoring the exterior would be splendid. That might be possible using the in-house technological capabilities of the Museum. Would still take a lot of man-hours and money. Too bad.

-appreciate the update.

Roger