Northport Traction Company

Northport Traction Company was a street railway and trolley service established in 1902 to serve Northport and East Northport in the Town of Huntington, New York. It was created by the Long Island Rail Road after the loss of passenger service to the original Northport station in the village and the resulting need for a local connection between the newer rail station area and downtown Northport. The company operated only one route during its entire existence and did not develop into a broader regional traction system. The company’s route began at the Northport East Station area, in what is now East Northport, and followed Larkfield Road before turning onto Laurel Road and Laurel Avenue. It passed near the site of the former Northport station and then reached Main Street through a right-of-way between buildings on Laurel Avenue. From Main Street, the line continued west toward Cherry Avenue, now known as Woodbine Avenue, before turning south briefly and entering a car barn near Northport Harbor. The harbor terminus stood near the area now associated with Northport Memorial Park and Cow Harbor Park. The trolley emerged from a broader local transportation history shaped by changes to Long Island Rail Road alignments. The Hicksville and Syosset Railroad, an LIRR subsidiary, had extended service to Northport in 1868. In 1873, the Smithtown and Port Jefferson Railroad opened a route from the vicinity of Northport toward Port Jefferson, including a station in East Northport that became the more important passenger access point. The original Northport station was abandoned on October 17, 1899, and the older branch subsequently functioned primarily as a freight line. The Northport Traction Company was established three years later as a response to the resulting transportation gap. The service followed the pattern of many American trolley systems. It offered a fixed-route electric urban and suburban connection at a time when rail travel was central to local mobility, linking a railroad station with the village and harbor. Its geographic scope remained deliberately limited: unlike the Huntington Railroad to the west, it neither expanded beyond Northport and East Northport nor left a documented proposal to do so. Passenger use declined after World War I as wartime economic pressures and the growing availability of automobiles weakened trolley ridership. The Long Island Rail Road was also preparing to reduce its involvement in trolley operations. Northport Traction Company’s line was abandoned in 1924, ending roughly twenty-two years of service. Although the company no longer operates, portions of its former alignment remain identifiable along local streets. Part of the route is used by the HART H40 bus route, and surviving streetscape features, including sections of Main Street with buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places, preserve elements of the former corridor.

Northport Traction Company developed from the changing railroad geography of northern Suffolk County. In 1868, the Hicksville and Syosset Railroad, operating as a subsidiary of the Long Island Rail Road, extended its line to Northport. The station was located in the village, at a site near present-day Laurel Avenue. The arrival of the railroad gave Northport direct passenger access, but the arrangement was later undermined by the opening of a competing route in 1873. The Smithtown and Port Jefferson Railroad opened a line from a point south of Northport to Port Jefferson and established a station called New Northport Station in East Northport. This station became associated with the Northport Branch, while the original downtown station lost its passenger importance. The older Northport station was abandoned on October 17, 1899, and the former branch was used primarily for freight for much of the twentieth century. The shift left the village without the passenger connection that had previously linked it directly to the railroad network. Seeking the local benefits that trolley systems provided in other Long Island communities, and responding to the loss of downtown rail passenger service, the Long Island Rail Road established Northport Traction Company on April 17, 1902. The company’s trolley route connected the Northport East Station area with Northport Harbor. It ran along Larkfield Road, turned toward Laurel Road and Laurel Avenue, crossed what is now New York State Route 25A, and passed close to the site of the former Northport station. Near Main Street, the line used a narrow right-of-way between buildings before emerging onto Main Street. The trolley then traveled along Main Street toward Cherry Avenue, now Woodbine Avenue. After a short turn south on Cherry Avenue, it entered a car barn near Northport Harbor. The harbor terminus was located near the area now associated with Northport Memorial Park and Cow Harbor Park. This was the company’s only line throughout its history. Unlike the Huntington Railroad, the Northport system remained a compact local operation and did not expand beyond Northport or East Northport. Available historical accounts do not record a proposal for a wider extension. The company operated during the peak period of American electric street railways, when trolleys served as practical links among railroad stations, village centers, residential areas, and waterfront destinations. Its service was local rather than interurban, and its route reflected the specific transportation needs created by Northport’s railroad realignment. The line provided an alternative connection between the newer station area and the commercial and harbor districts of Northport. After World War I, conditions for trolley operators deteriorated. The cost pressures associated with the war and the increasing use of automobiles reduced demand for many local street railway services. The Long Island Rail Road was preparing to withdraw from trolley operations, and Northport Traction Company’s route was abandoned in 1924. The company therefore ceased operations after approximately two decades of service. The former trolley corridor has not disappeared entirely. Portions of the route remain visible in the local street pattern, particularly along Main Street. Part of the former alignment is used by the HART H40 bus route, providing a modern road-based successor along some of the corridor. Buildings along Main Street that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places also contribute to the surviving historical setting through which the trolley once operated.

• 1924

  Trolley service abandoned

  [1]Northport Traction Companyen.wikipedia.org

  The company’s sole trolley line was abandoned as ridership declined, automobile use increased, and the Long Island Rail Road reduced its involvement in trolley operations.

• 1902

  Northport Traction Company established

  [1]Northport Traction Companyen.wikipedia.org

  The Long Island Rail Road established the company on April 17, 1902, to provide a trolley connection between Northport East Station and Northport Harbor.

• 1899

  Original Northport station abandoned

  [1]Northport Traction Companyen.wikipedia.org

  The old Northport Station was abandoned on October 17, 1899, after passenger service had shifted toward the East Northport station area.

• 1873

  New Northport Station opens in East Northport

  [1]Northport Traction Companyen.wikipedia.org

  The Smithtown and Port Jefferson Railroad opened a route toward Port Jefferson with a station in East Northport, changing the role of the original Northport rail connection.

• 1868

  Rail service reaches Northport

  [1]Northport Traction Companyen.wikipedia.org

  The Hicksville and Syosset Railroad, a Long Island Rail Road subsidiary, extended its line to Northport, placing a passenger station in the village.

A local electric street railway designed to restore and extend passenger connectivity between the East Northport rail station area, the village of Northport, and Northport Harbor.

• Local electric street railway · 1902

  Northport–Northport Harbor trolley line

  The company’s sole operating line connected the Northport East Station area in East Northport with Northport village and Northport Harbor. The route used Larkfield Road, Laurel Road, Laurel Avenue, Main Street, and Cherry Avenue, with a harbor-side car barn and terminus. It served as a local passenger link rather than a regional interurban system and remained the company’s only route until abandonment in 1924.

• 1924

  Abandon the Northport trolley lineStrategy

  Background

  After World War I, trolley use declined amid economic pressures and the growing adoption of automobiles. The Long Island Rail Road was also preparing to withdraw from trolley operations.

  Action taken

  Northport Traction Company discontinued its only route in 1924.

  Aftermath

  The company became defunct. Portions of the former route remain reflected in local streets and are partly followed by the HART H40 bus route.

  Source

• 1902

  Create a trolley connection after the loss of downtown rail passenger serviceStrategy

  Background

  Passenger access to the original Northport station had been disrupted by railroad realignment and the station’s abandonment. Trolley systems elsewhere on Long Island demonstrated the potential for local feeder and village service.

  Action taken

  The Long Island Rail Road established Northport Traction Company on April 17, 1902, with a single route linking the Northport East Station area to Northport Harbor.

  Aftermath

  The company operated one local line for approximately twenty-two years and did not expand beyond Northport and East Northport.

  Source

1. 1Northport Traction Companyen.wikipedia.org