The Race Underground: Boston, New York, and the Incredible Rivalry That Built America's First Subway (60 page)

The steel work begins along Tremont Street. (
State Transportation Library of Massachusetts
)

Workers digging the tunnel under Boylston Street take a rest. (
State Transportation Library of Massachusetts
)

More than 900 graves were discovered during Boston’s construction. (
State Transportation Library of Massachusetts
)

It was up to horses to carry out the tons of dirt from the trench. (
Historic New England
)

On March 4, 1897, a gas line explosion in Boston killed pedestrians, passengers, and horses. (
Print Department, Boston Public Librar
y)

A dead horse was ignored as workers rushed to the injured after the explosion. (
Print Department, Boston Public Library
)

The Hotel Pelham suffered the most damage in the explosion. (
State Transportation Library of Massachusetts
)

Trolleys veered around the construction in Boston, but it was still a major disruption to businesses. (
Print Department, Boston Public Library
)

The trial run of Boston’s subway in August 1897. (
Print Department, Boston Public Library
)

Motorman James Reed steers out America’s first subway car. (
State Transportation Library of Massachusetts
)

The first subway trains emerge from beneath Boston on September 1, 1897. (
State Transportation Library of Massachusetts
)

William Parsons strikes the first pickax on March 26, 1900, to launch New York’s subway construction. (
Parsons Brinckerhoff
)

Early tunnel digging in lower Manhattan in 1900. (
New York Transit Museum
)