The Christopher Street–Sheridan Square station is a local
station on the
IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line
The IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line (also known as the IRT Seventh Avenue Line or the IRT West Side Line) is a New York City Subway line. It is one of several lines that serves the A Division, stretching from South Ferry in Lower Manhatt ...
of the
New York City Subway. Located at the intersection of
Christopher Street
Christopher Street is a street in the West Village neighborhood of the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is the continuation of 9th Street west of Sixth Avenue.
It is most notable for the Stonewall Inn, which is located on Christophe ...
and
Seventh Avenue South in
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the List of co ...
, it is served by the
1 train at all times and by the
2 train during late nights.
The station was built by the
Interborough Rapid Transit Company
The Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT) was the private operator of New York City's original underground subway line that opened in 1904, as well as earlier elevated railways and additional rapid transit lines in New York City. The IRT ...
(IRT) as part of the
Dual Contracts
The Dual Contracts, also known as the Dual Subway System, were contracts for the construction and/or rehabilitation and operation of rapid transit lines in the City of New York. The contracts were signed on March 19, 1913, by the Interborough Ra ...
with
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...
, and opened on July 1, 1918. The station had its platforms extended in the 1960s, and was renovated in 1991-1994.
History
Construction and opening
The
Dual Contracts
The Dual Contracts, also known as the Dual Subway System, were contracts for the construction and/or rehabilitation and operation of rapid transit lines in the City of New York. The contracts were signed on March 19, 1913, by the Interborough Ra ...
, which were signed on March 19, 1913, were contracts for the construction and/or rehabilitation and operation of rapid transit lines in the
City of New York
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
. The contracts were "dual" in that they were signed between the City and two separate private companies (the
Interborough Rapid Transit Company
The Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT) was the private operator of New York City's original underground subway line that opened in 1904, as well as earlier elevated railways and additional rapid transit lines in New York City. The IRT ...
and the
Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company
The Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company (BRT) was a public transit holding company formed in 1896 to acquire and consolidate railway lines in Brooklyn and Queens
Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. ...
), all working together to make the construction of the Dual Contracts possible. The Dual Contracts promised the construction of several lines in Brooklyn. As part of Contract 4, the IRT agreed to build a branch of the original subway line south down Seventh Avenue, Varick Street, and West Broadway to serve the West Side of Manhattan.
The construction of this line, in conjunction with the construction of the
Lexington Avenue Line, would change the operations of the IRT system. Instead of having trains go via Broadway, turning onto 42nd Street, before finally turning onto Park Avenue, there would be two trunk lines connected by the
42nd Street Shuttle
The 42nd Street Shuttle is a New York City Subway shuttle train service that operates in Manhattan. The shuttle is sometimes referred to as the Grand Central/Times Square Shuttle, since these are the only two stations it serves. The shuttle ru ...
. The system would be changed from looking like a "Z" system on a map to an "H" system. One trunk would run via the new Lexington Avenue Line down Park Avenue, and the other trunk would run via the new Seventh Avenue Line up Broadway. In order for the line to continue down Varick Street and West Broadway, these streets needed to be widened, and two new streets were built, the Seventh Avenue Extension and the Varick Street Extension.
It was predicted that the subway extension would lead to the growth of the Lower West Side, and to neighborhoods such as
Chelsea
Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to:
Places Australia
* Chelsea, Victoria
Canada
* Chelsea, Nova Scotia
* Chelsea, Quebec
United Kingdom
* Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames
** Chelsea (UK Parliament const ...
and
Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village ( , , ) is a neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 14th Street to the north, Broadway to the east, Houston Street to the south, and the Hudson River to the west. Greenwich Village ...
.
In August 1917, the Greenwich Village Public Service Committee requested that the
New York Public Service Commission
The New York Public Service Commission is the public utilities commission of the New York state government that regulates and oversees the electric, gas, water, and telecommunication industries in New York as part of the Department of Public Servi ...
rename the station from Christopher Street to Christopher Street—Sheridan Square. The Public Service Commission voted to make the change on August 20, 1917.
Christopher Street–Sheridan Square opened as part of an extension of the line from
34th Street–Penn Station to
South Ferry on July 1, 1918.
Initially, the station was served by a shuttle running from
Times Square
Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and neighborhood in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is formed by the junction of Broadway, Seventh Avenue, and 42nd Street. Together with adjacent ...
to South Ferry.
The new "H" system was implemented on August 1, 1918, joining the two halves of the Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line and sending all West Side trains south from Times Square. An immediate result of the switch was the need to transfer using the 42nd Street Shuttle in order to retrace the original layout. The completion of the "H" system doubled the capacity of the IRT system.
Later years
The city government took over the IRT's operations on June 12, 1940.
On August 9, 1964, the
New York City Transit Authority
The New York City Transit Authority (also known as NYCTA, the TA, or simply Transit, and branded as MTA New York City Transit) is a New York state public-benefit corporations, public-benefit corporation in the U.S. state of New York (state), New ...
(NYCTA) announced the letting of a $7.6 million contract to lengthen platforms at stations on the Broadway—Seventh Avenue Line from
Rector Street to
34th Street–Penn Station, including Christopher Street, and stations from
Central Park North–110th Street to
145th Street on the Lenox Avenue Line to allow express trains to be lengthened from nine-car trains to ten-car trains, and to lengthen locals from eight-car trains to ten-car trains. With the completion of this project, the NYCTA project to lengthen IRT stations to accommodate ten-car trains would be complete.
In 1981, the
Metropolitan Transportation Authority
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is a public benefit corporation responsible for public transportation in the New York City metropolitan area of the U.S. state of New York. The MTA is the largest public transit authority in t ...
listed the station among the 69 most deteriorated stations in the subway system.
The station was renovated by in-house forces in 1994.
Station layout
This underground station has two
side platform
A side platform (also known as a marginal platform or a single-face platform) is a railway platform, platform positioned to the side of one or more railway tracks or guideways at a railway station, tram stop, or bus rapid transit, transitway. ...
s and four tracks. The two center express tracks are used by the
2 and
3 trains during daytime hours.
Both platforms have the standard
IRT
IRT may refer to:
Science and technology
* Imagery rehearsal therapy, a treatment for nightmare disorders
* Immunoreactive trypsinogen, newborn screening test for cystic fibrosis
* Infrared thermography
* Infrared Telescope (IRT), carried on S ...
trim line and mosaic name tablets reading "CHRISTOPHER ST. SHERIDAN SQ." on two lines. The columns are painted dark green with every other one having the standard black station name plate with white lettering. There are also signs directing to
New York University
New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin.
In 1832, ...
.
The station features a site specific artwork, entitled ''Greenwich Village Murals'', created in 1994 by Lower East Side artist,
Lee Brozgol and the students of Public School 41. It features twelve mosaic frame panels on the platform walls depicting the history of
Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village ( , , ) is a neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 14th Street to the north, Broadway to the east, Houston Street to the south, and the Hudson River to the west. Greenwich Village ...
. The names of some of these panels include "Bohemians", "Rebels", "Founders", and "Providers".
Exits
Each platform has one
fare control
In rail transport, the paid area is a dedicated "inner" zone in a railway station or metro station, accessible via turnstiles or other barriers, to get into which, visitors or passengers require a valid ticket, checked smartcard or a pass. A s ...
area at the center containing a
turnstile
A turnstile (also called a turnpike, gateline, baffle gate, automated gate, turn gate in some regions) is a form of gate which allows one person to pass at a time. A turnstile can be configured to enforce one-way human traffic. In addition, a ...
bank and token booth. There is no free transfer between directions. The South Ferry-bound fare control has four street stairs to the diagonal intersection of Christopher Street and Seventh Avenue: two to the northwestern corner and two to the southwestern one. The Bronx-bound fare control has a single staircase to the island formed by Seventh Avenue, West Fourth Street, and Grove Street.
Nearby points of interest
The
Stonewall National Monument
Stonewall National Monument is a U.S. national monument in the West Village neighborhood of Greenwich Village in Lower Manhattan, New York City. The designated area includes the Stonewall Inn, the Christopher Park, and nearby streets includin ...
, encompassing
Christopher Park and the
Stonewall Inn
The Stonewall Inn, often shortened to Stonewall, is a gay bar and recreational tavern in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Lower Manhattan, New York City, and the site of the Stonewall riots of 1969, which is widely considered to be the sin ...
, is across West Fourth Street from the Bronx-bound entrance.
The
Hess triangle, a small triangular-shaped plaque in the sidewalk with one side and two sides, is located outside the South Ferry-bound entrances at the southwest corner of Christopher Street and Seventh Avenue South.
In popular culture
In ''
Bright Lights, Big City'' (1988),
Michael J. Fox
Michael Andrew Fox (born June 9, 1961), known professionally as Michael J. Fox, is a Canadian-American retired actor. Beginning his career in the 1970s, he rose to prominence portraying Alex P. Keaton on the NBC sitcom ''Family Ties'' (1 ...
is seen jumping the turnstiles and then boarding a train at the station while running away from his brother.
In
season 2, episode 5 of ''
Friends'' (1995), filmed during the renovations of the station, the south entrance of the station is depicted as being closed.
The station can briefly be seen in the backdrop of the music video for
David Bowie
David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...
's "
I'm Afraid of Americans
"I'm Afraid of Americans" is a song by English musician David Bowie, released as a single from his album '' Earthling'' on 14 October 1997 through Virgin Records. The song was co-written by Bowie and Brian Eno and originally recorded during th ...
" (1997).
The 1999 comedy movie ''
Big Daddy
Big Daddy may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Characters
* Big Daddy (''BioShock''), a heavily armored adversary in the ''BioShock'' video game series
* Big Daddy (Transformers), a character from ''Transformers''
* A character in the Tennesse ...
'' includes a scene of
Adam Sandler, his character's foster son, and friends outside this station.
The
Steely Dan song ''Pixeleen'' from the
Everything Must Go album, released in 2003, alludes to the subway station.
References
Further reading
*
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Christopher Street-Sheridan Square (IRT Broadway-Seventh Avenue Line)
Greenwich Village
IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line stations
New York City Subway stations in Manhattan
Railway stations in the United States opened in 1918
1918 establishments in New York City
Christopher Street
Seventh Avenue (Manhattan)
New York City Subway stations located underground