1-Scape No. 20 - Winter Trees, Fire Escapes and a Downtown 1 Train

1-Scape No. 20 - Winter Trees, Fire Escapes and a Downtown 1 Train

In the mid-day sunlight of a mid-December afternoon, a Downtown 1 Train of R62A railcars approaches Dyckman Street Station, past winter-bare trees and the windows and fire escapes of apartment buildings, all appearing a bit "closer" in telephoto-compressed perspective, here in the Inwood section of upper Manhattan.

The Subway moment hints at a photographer - and Subway-geek's - long-standing fascination with - and admiration for - the way those early 20th century engineers carved out a very long stretch of New York City Subway, in this case the west side IRT, to conform to the often dramatic changes in elevation that typify the northern reaches of Manhattan.

The train has been running along a curving elevated structure above neighborhood streets but, in keeping with the topography of northern Manhattan, after departing the station, on a straight portion of this above-street architecture, it will enter the rockface of Fort George Hill (*) via the Fort Washington Tunnel, to continue actually quite deep under the streets of the significantly higher ground of Washington Heights, serving some of the deepest stations in the system.

Again following the topography of upper Manhattan, as the train continues its long journey downtown, it will once again
emerge in the winter sunlight as it crosses high above the Manhattan Valley (**) in the western reaches of Harlem before finally descending underground a few blocks south of the 125th St Station, remaining subterranean all the way down the west side of Manhattan to South Ferry ... although some sunbeams will once again find its shiny flanks at a few stations like 110th Street-Cathedral Parkway in Morningside Heights, where skylights partially illuminate the tracks.

©2025 Steve Ember
(*)