Boston had nation’s 1st subway system, contrary to newspaper report
New York City transit says: “Yours was first, and ours is better’’
On Oct. 27, 1904, exactly 111 years ago, New York City’s subway cars started shuttling people beneath the streets of Manhattan.
It came about seven years after the nation’s first subway opened in Boston under Tremont Street in 1897.
USA Today apparently missed that history lesson. It celebrated the New York subway’s birthday Tuesday with a front page call-out, referring to the system as “the oldest U.S. subway system.’’
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For its part, the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority makes no such claim.
“No, yours was first, and ours is better,’’ MTA spokesman Adam Lisberg said in an email. “How’s that?’’
Let’s just call them sore losers. Even if they’re right.
Update:USA Today graphics reporter Terry Byrne said in an email that the term “oldest’’ referred to a pneumatic subway in New York with one station, built privately and used for demonstration purposes in the 1870s.
“It was my mistake to not notice the twisted reference before publication,’’ Byrne said. “I apologize to all Bostonians!’’
Byrne said readers here may be excited by a new graphic coming later this week, “which will declare that Boston is the American city most likely to survive a zombie apocalypse–and even more exciting, New York City is the least likely!’’
Here’s what the Boston public transit used to look like:
[bdc-gallery id=”56566″]
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