Vincent Francis Seyfried

“ Although none of the men connected with the road possessed any railroad experience, all were successful business men, and some, like Locke, had an industrial background that enabled them to judge materials and men. When the Flushing & North Side R.R., therefore, was let out to contract in 1868, responsible contractors were hired and the finest construction materials sought. At the end of the Civil War the iron and steel industry in the United States, although greatly stimulated by the war, was still well behind the great Ruhr steel complex in Germany operated by Prussian magnates. ”

“ Train speeds on the Flushing road were the same as on most roads of that day; the company reported twenty-five miles per hour for passenger trains, thirty for express trains and eighteen for freight runs. The first recorded speed run occurred on December 29, 1869, when the president of the road was summoned to New York by telegraph to attend a railroad meeting. He commandeered a spare engine at Main Street depot and riding over the old bumpy roadbed of the New York & Flushing, reached Hunter's Point in thirteen minutes, making a speed of 35.7 miles per hour. ”

“ On September 5, 1871 the new Stinnard brake was given a spectacular public demonstration for the benefit of newspapermen. At Hunter's Point a train was made up of eight of the largest and finest passenger coaches on the road, drawn by the engine Newtown. The brake was first applied near West Flushing (Corona) on a descending grade running at a speed of nearly 30 MPH and the train stopped dead in thirty seconds within a distance of 600 feet. Again between College Point and Whitestone a second trial was made; here the passengers left the cars to observe the application of the brakes themselves. ”

“ The passenger coaches were the pride of the line. In a lyrical description of 1872 we read that "the cars are clean, large and handsome, and have many novel improvements. The seats are either velvet-cushioned or cane-bottomed. Steam heating apparatus is supplied to each car. The old hand brakes are being replaced by steam brakes, which are controlled by the engineer. The platforms of the cars are level with the depot platforms, and the method of coupling is such as to make telescoping impossible." ”

“ The trucks were wood and the wheels were wood with steel tires. Gas lighting was introduced in the spring of 1870. Several of the cars must have been unusually elegant, for they are referred to as "splendid palace cars" and "sumptuous smoking cars." All were built either at the Taunton Car Works in Taunton, Mass. or at the College Point shops of the company.
It would appear that the older passenger coaches inherited from the New York & Flushing R.R. were all disposed of as rapidly as possible during 1869–70. ”

“ On a typical Sunday, June 26, 1870, 4,500 used the cars. On this day a twelve-car train drawn by two locomotives took 1,000 German excursionists home from College Point. The following year, on June 25, 1871, again a warm Sunday, 1,600 people rode the railroad. On the Fourth of July, 1871, sixty-seven trains ran on the Flushing road, starting from each terminus every half hour throughout the day; 20,000 passengers were carried without a single accident and the road took in over $5,000 in that one day. A year later in June, 1872, ten-car trains were the custom on warm summer Sundays. ”

“ Two additional major improvements along the main line in 1870 were the construction of steel bridges at Flushing Creek and over National Avenue, Corona. The old New York & Flushing bridge over the creek, inherited by the Flushing & North Side R.R. was in wretched condition. In November 1868 the company immediately razed the unsafe structure and built long pile approaches on each side and heavy timbers for a temporary draw. In the spring of 1870 plans were prepared for a new iron bridge. ”

“ Because the new right-of-way cut off five or six heavily-used Whitestone streets, the company contracted in December 1872 for the building of wooden bridges to carry each street over the railroad cut. Then, suddenly, in the midst of all this progress, all work came to a complete halt. What had happened? Weeks passed and then the story came out. It developed that in the month of July 1872 John D. Locke had made an agreement with Conrad Poppenhusen and Elizur Hinsdale for Mr. Locke to take the bonds of the Whitestone & Westchester R.R. Co. and furnish the cash for building the road. ”

“ As a further protection the road in March 1870 placed on one of their locomotives a continuous ringing gong as an experiment, which clanged without stopping, the idea being to relieve the fireman of ringing the bell at crossings and to make it difficult for contestants suing for damages to claim that notice of an oncoming train had not been given. ”