NYC’s subway system is turning 120 and celebrating with a huge, new exhibit

On October 27, 1904, New Yorkers dressed in their finest clothing and hosted dinner parties to celebrate the big news of the year. After four years of messy, sometimes controversial construction, a subway had opened in New York City. Officials didn’t know if people would show up for its debut, but more than 100,000 people descended beneath the ground that evening to traverse the system’s 9 miles and 28 stations. The next day, a Sunday, more than 1 million people showed up on the subway’s first full open day. 

It may not seem like a big deal to us now, but the subway was revolutionary—and it still is. A fascinating new exhibit at the New York Transit Museum in Brooklyn digs into the history and the future of our underground rail system. Titled “The Subway Is…,” the exhibition brings together artifacts, photos, multimedia installations, old advertisements, train models and more to tell the story of our city’s subway system. 

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Back in the early 1900s, the only people going underground were miners or, well, corpses. The idea of going underground on an electrified vehicle would have been mind-blowing for New Yorkers of the past, New York Transit Museum Director Concetta Bencivenga explained. 

But one thing that hasn’t changed in the last century is that New Yorkers need a way to get around the city quickly. Horse-drawn carriages were the method du jour for a while, but then a major illness killed many horses. Above-ground methods like trolleys and streetcars eventually took over, creating traffic and sometimes chaos in their midst (the Brooklyn Dodgers even got their name as a reference to trolley dodging). When a major blizzard in 1888 snowed in the city and incapacitated trains, city planners started to look for a new way to help people get around. Their conclusion: Go underground.

Initially, some business owners didn’t want the subway excavated in front of their department stores, museum curator Jodi Shapiro said. Plus, she added, there was resistance to an underground rapid transit system from leaders of the above-ground systems who didn’t want to lose business. 

On that day, October 27, 1904, everything that you know as a New Yorker was completely different. It’s changed.

“There’s always this split mindset in New York, where there’s people who are naysayers from the beginning because it’s change and change is scary. And then you have people who can see a little bit further beyond,” Shapiro says. “On that day, October 27, 1904, everything that you know as a New Yorker was completely different. It’s changed.”

In the exhibit, you can see a map of the first subway plan, which dates back to 1895. Then, take a look at an animated map showing how the system grew and changed over time. Other fascinating pieces include a rock sample, photos of the subway builders and documentation of a train tunnel going beneath rowhouses. 

From its very beginning, thanks to engineer William Barclay Parsons, New York City’s subways were imbued with meaning, both for wayfinding as well as for beauty. Tulip motifs in light fixtures, for example, were a nod to the city’s Dutch heritage. On the sidewalk level, a rounded roof above a subway staircase indicated an entrance; a square roof indicated an exit. 

The exhibit highlights what’s changed over the years—like the system’s rapid growth—as well as what’s stayed the same—like the still-necessary “don’t block the door” ads from 1938. 

Today, the subway has become ubiquitous. We take it to work, to dinner, to theater, to the club, to friends’ apartments and we likely don’t think much about the impact of this transit in our lives. But in its early days, the subway was part of a social reform movement that allowed people to increase their quality of life. Suddenly, people could move out of a crowded tenement where they shared a toilet with many neighbors to their own apartments with modern conveniences. The subway became New York City’s circulatory system, enabling the city to grow and thrive. 

Now, it’s as New York as the Empire State Building or a dollar slice. Even its sound alone conjures visions of this city.

“There are very few places on the planet where you can hear just the sound and know exactly where you are. If you hear a snippet of the subway, you know that’s New York,” Bencivenga tells Time Out New York. “This show is really about the complete interconnectedness and the ability to swap out one for the other—the subway and New York City.” 

If you hear a snippet of the subway, you know that’s New York.

From the Interborough Rapid Transit Company’s first 28 stations across nine miles to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s 472 stations across 665 miles, the subway is shorthand for New York City. From the moment that first train rumbled beneath the city’s streets on October 27, 1904, it ushered in a new era for New York City and shaped the city we know today. 

Experience the subway’s history

In addition to seeing “The Subway Is…” exhibition at the New York Transit Museum (tickets cost $10/adult and $5 for kids/seniors), also check out the museum’s special programming. To complement the exhibit, they’re hosting Nostalgia Rides on vintage Lo-V subway cars from 1917, retracing the original route of New York’s first subway line. Get tickets here for $60/adult and $40/child.