In January 1885, the Corbin management established another first for the Long Island, when it began operation of the famous “farmers’ trains” – the first American use of the piggyback idea. Roads on the island were poor, and LIRR’s flat car service for loaded produce wagons offered farmers a means of getting their shipments to New York markets in a fraction of the over- the-road time. The first of the farmer’s trains loaded at Albertson Station on the Locust Valley Branch (now the Oyster Bay Branch) on January 10, 1885. Two wagons were loaded on each of eight flat cars, and a like number of horse cars were provided for the teams. A passenger car for teamsters was included in the trains. The train took 2 hours for the 20-mile run to Long Island City, where the wagons were ferried across the East River to New York. On a second trial run a week later, LIRR hauled the wagons free and provided a lunch en route for the farmers. The farmers’ trains quickly became a popular institution, cabbage being the principal commodity carried. A year later LIRR ordered 10 flat cars designed for carrying the wagons and 8 cars built expressly for carrying horses. A few years later trains carrying as many as 75 wagons were reported as not unusual. LIRR’s rate for the service was $4 per wagon, including wagon, horses and driver, to Long Island City and return. Loading and unloading were done by the farmers. Improved Queens County roads brought an end to the farmers’ trains in the late 1890’s. For a time LIRR used the specially designed equipment to transport the horses and carriages of wealthy summer residents to the rapidly developing “watering places” along the island’s South Shore.
Yes indeed! The LIRR did “invent” piggyback or intermodal for the farmers of the Island to bring their wares to market. It is one of the “historical” reasons a Ridewithmehenry trip to Greenport is significant. We’ve done the Route of the Potato Wagon several times for its history and its beautiful rural New England seacoast flavor. Thanks, Mike, for the pictures and story.
wanswheel - Got a date for that article and the illustrations ? [EDITED] The article mentions that the service started 3 years before the article was written.
It also mentions the train running in sections, and farmers along other branches wanting a similar service. Anybody know if any of that eve happened, and how long it lasted ?
Ron Ziel and George Foster’s STEEL RAILS TO THE SUNRISE mentions “1880s” in a caption to one of the pictures. There is no index, bus one would guess, trying to remember reading the book several times years ago, that this service was early in the LIRR history from before 1880 and as early as the 1850’s. There was another reference to LIRR’s first piggybacking but I don’t remember it except that I had read it before reading the book. I think it may have been some PR material I received from the LIRR back in the 50’s but no longer have.
The illustration was published in Harpers Weekly on Jan. 31, 1885 and the article was published in the NY Times on Dec. 20, 1891. The three years might be the trains had been discontinued and revived, or it might be the trains originating at Locust Valley (instead of Albertson). The LIRR says 1884 in the pamphlet provided, via Trains Are Fun website at link, by Otto Vondrak.
Thanks, Mike - that’s pages 6 -7 from the linked “Trains Are Fun” brochure. As you noted, it says 1884, then:
"The farmers’ trains disappeared shortly after the turn of the century as trucks began to lure away short-haul freight . . . ". So it lasted about 16 years, on minimal additional invested capital.
The are some interesting parallels to be drawn here with the current “local foods” movement:
But that’s a whole 'nother, non-trains related topic.
What is related to trains and this thread is the rest of the paragraph from the above brochure:
" . . . but the special flat cars continued in service for a number of years to carry private coaches of the wealthy to their Summer and weekend homes at Southampton and Westhampton."
Can you picture a fleet of motorhomes - or more likely, a bunch of BMWs, Mercedes, Porsches, etc. on flats heading east on LIRR flatcars on a summer Friday afternoon ? [swg]
Thanks, Mike. This was going back to that era and watching and listening to the newsreels. Back then, the men describing something were bold in what they said.
Is there an intermodal facility - to load/ unload containers and trailers from railcars, either single- or double-stacked - of any kind/ size on Long Island now ? Perhaps at Fresh Pond ? Someplace else ? Or none at all ?
The standard clearance for double-stacks is 20’ 2". The freight track on the Hell Gate route does not have overhead wire. On AC-equipped tracks on the Hell Gate bridge line Amtrak lists the maximum height for cranes as 16’ 1 1/2", which, coupled with the type of wire construction and the fact that the catenary supports do sometimes extend over the freight tracks, leads me to believe that double-stacks would still have clearance problems.
If I remember correctly, intermodal well cars are not allowed on LIRR tracks, because they would interfere with the third rail. They do operate some hazardous waste container traffic on spine cars.
NYA’s locomotives have large notches in their plows for this reason.
The esteemed senators apparently did not understand that the purpose of the intermodal center was to provide better service to their constituents and so howled about traffic congestion.
The state senators probably got a fair number of complaints about this project from their constituents before they voiced their complaints (on behalf of their constituents) to NYSDOT.
An intermodal terminal in Long Island almost seems counterproductive. LIRR/NY&A does not have any good interchange points for intermodal service beyond the metro area. I’m not sure that such a terminal would provide faster service than grounding the trailers at existing terminals elsewhere and trucking them into Long Island.
