As part of the celebration of Babylon's history, the Town of Babylon Historic Preservation Commission celebrated History Day in the Town of Babylon, recognizing students who had written and been recognized for essays they had written on the Town's history. This year's theme was "Trolley Days," and students researched the time in Babylon when trolley's were operated. Part of that work was done with the help of the Amityville Village Historical Society, which opened its doors to the students showing them some of the memorabilia from that era and providing them with information about the trolley line that ran from Huntington through Babylon in the early part of the 20th Century.

An electric trolley car operated by the Babylon Railroad Co., 1910-1920. This trolley car, traveling from Babylon Village to Amityville, passed through West Babylon, Lindenhurst and Copiague, along a route which ran south of the Long Island Railroad tracks. (Photo courtesy of the Town of Babylon Historic Photograph Collection, Town of Babylon Office of Historic Services.) A History of Babylon's Trolley

Though it may be hard to imagine in our modern era, there was a time when trolley cars were a popular form of transportation in and around the Town of Babylon. For nearly fifty years, from 1871 to 1920, horse-drawn trolleys, steam powered trolleys and electrified trolleys operated for the convenience of local residents and visitors.

The Babylon Railroad

David Sturgis Sprague Sammis, a prominent Babylon Village businessman, opened the Surf Hotel on Fire Island in 1855. In order to transport hotel visitors from the Babylon Railroad Station to the ferry docks, Mr. Sammis established a horse-drawn trolley line in 1871. The horse-drawn line traveled 1.53 miles from the railroad station, proceeded south on Deer Park Avenue, crossed Main Street and continued south on Fire Island Avenue to the Babylon Docks. The entire operation consisted of two trolley cars and two horses.

By 1890, Sammis increased the rolling stock, or trolley cars, to three closed cars and one open car. The closed cars were enclosed with sides, while the open cars were exposed to the weather elements. The fare from the railroad station to the docks was 6 cents. In response to the 1892 cholera epidemic, Mr. Sammis sold the Surf Hotel and surrounding property to New York State for the quarantine of cholera patients. The land that once housed the majestic hotel is now part of Robert Moses State Park.

The demise of the Surf Hotel did not destroy the trolley business. In 1898, a New York City firm purchased the trolley line, known as the Babylon Railroad, and installed steam power motors in the trolley cars. A steam boiler located in the yard north of the Babylon Village Odd Fellows Hall generated the necessary steam. Steam power was effective, but it was unpredictable. After just two years of steam power operation, Babylon resident William De Garmo leased the trolley company and reinstated the horse-drawn service. While horse service may have seemed a backwards choice, Mr. De Garmo's initial year of operation realized the first profit for the Babylon Railroad - a total of $1.00.

The next owner of the Babylon Railroad was the Long Island Consolidated Electrical Company (a subsidiary of the Long Island Railroad), which had plans to electrify the line, but the financial Panic of 1907 delayed their plans. In 1909, the final transfer of the Babylon Railroad occurred when it was purchased by the South Shore Traction Company. The name "Babylon Railroad" continued to be used.

By the early 20th Century trolley lines were built all over the United States and Long Island was no exception to the "Trolley Fever." The original plans of the South Shore Traction Company were to build a 51-mile trolley line from Manhattan, through Queens, Freeport, Babylon and Patchogue, ending in Brookhaven. Although the South Shore Traction Company operated several small trolley lines, those full-scale plans never materialized.

In 1909, the South Shore Traction Company successfully electrified the existing trolley line between the Babylon Railroad Station and the docks, and extended the line westward through West Babylon, Lindenhurst and Copiague, to the Amityville Railroad Station. The approximate route of the Babylon Railroad, east to west, was this: starting from the Long Island Railroad Station in Babylon Village, the line proceeded west, on what is now known as Trolley Line Road; continuing through West Babylon, the line traveled along the south side of the Long Island Railroad tracks, known as Railroad Avenue; in Lindenhurst, where the road becomes Hoffman Avenue, the line turned south from Hoffman Avenue along the approximate route of East Gates Avenue crossing Broadway to West Gates Avenue; entering Copiague from West Gates Avenue, the trolley rolled westward down Scudder Avenue to Great Neck Road where it turned north and then quickly proceeded west on Oak Street; following Oak Street to Amityville, the trolley line ended at the Railroad Station.

On June 11, 1910, a reportedly rainy day, the new electrified trolley line officially opened with five small trolley cars, each with a capacity of 28 passengers. The fare for stops at West Babylon, Lindenhurst and Copiague was 5 cents, while the full trip from Amityville to Babylon cost 10 cents. The full trip took approximately 35 minutes and trolley cars operated at an average of once per hour.

Stories of trolley mishaps abound. Henry Ellis Willmont, a former trolley motorman, recalled that the trolley "used to jump off [track] quite a bit and we'd have to run it back on." Others have described the need to distribute passenger weight evenly on the trolley cars, otherwise the cars would tip. No reported deaths were attributed to trolley accidents, but one of the most memorable stories of trolleys gone awry was dismaying to many Babylon Village residents. On the southwest corner of Main Street and Fire Island Avenue, there was once a large, ornate, cast-iron drinking fountain for horses. The public fountain was demolished by a trolley that had jumped the track. The fountain had been a prominent feature in the heart of the bustling village.

In his article "Recollections of the Trolleys," published in "A Backward Glance" by the Amityville Historical Society, 1980, Seth Purdy wrote: "Boys, who lived along the way on Oak Street in Copiague, were known to throw a wire onto the overhead lines causing a short and an unexpected stop of the car; a thrill to the youngsters but an annoyance to the motorman and the passengers."

For ten years, the Babylon Railroad transported residents and visitors across the southern part of the Town of Babylon. Despite its decadelong service, the trolley business was never a profit-making enterprise. On May 25, 1920, the operations of the Babylon Railroad ended.

The Cross-Island Line

The history of the Cross-Island Line, which ran across Long Island, from the Long Island Sound in Huntington to the Great South Bay in Amityville, began with the Huntington Railroad Company. In 1890, the Huntington Railroad Company established a three-mile long horse-drawn trolley line between Huntington Village and Halesite on the harbor.

The line was later purchased by the Long Island Railroad, which electrified it in 1898. The electrified line between Halesite and Huntington ran for ten years before it was extended 18.5 miles to Amityville Village, following the approximate route of the present day Route 110. The line traveled south through Melville, stopping at both the Farmingdale Railroad Station and the Amityville Railroad Station, to the dock in Amityville along the Great South Bay.

The trolley tracks traveled under the Long Island Railroad tracks at the Huntington and Farmingdale Railroad Stations, but were elevated over the tracks at Amityville. Car barns for the storage of trolley cars were maintained at both ends of the line, in Halesite and Amityville; and power substations were located at the Railroad Stations in Huntington and Farmingdale.

With construction complete, the Cross-Island Line was officially opened on August 25, 1909. The opening day in Amityville was a festive occasion, with an automobile parade, fireworks and other amusements. Maintaining an hourly schedule, a one-way trip, from end to end, lasted 76 minutes. The rolling stock consisted of six double-truck, semi-convertible cars and seven single trucks, which provided more frequent service to local railroad stations. The fare was 30 cents for the full trip, divided into six 5-cent zones, each approximately three miles long: (1) the Halesite terminal, (2) Huntington Station, (3) the DeForest Farm at West Hills, (4) the Duryea Farm at Melville, (5) Farmingdale Station, and (6) the terminal at Amityville. A spur track from Conklin Street to the Farmingdale Railroad Station was created so that trolley passengers could make connections with trains to and from Brooklyn and New York City.

The following year, in 1910, passengers could connect from the Cross-Island Line to the Babylon Railroad at the Amityville Railroad Station. With so many intersecting trolley lines, passengers had an increasing number of travel options. The trolleys were a convenient source of transportation for commuters, such as those who worked at the Fulton Truck Assembly Plant in East Farmingdale. The line was also frequented by beach goers traveling between the refreshing waters of the Long Island Sound and the Great South Bay. Benny Cirincione, a Cross-Island motorman, is remembered as serenading passengers with Italian opera arias, while collecting fares.

Comparable to the Babylon Railroad, the Cross-Island Line was not without its misfortunes. The Huntington Railroad could not compete with the increased use of personal automobiles and the rising costs resulting from the United States' entry into World War I. On September 23, 1919, the Cross- Island service to Amityville ended. However, the original trolley line between Huntington and Halesite, sold to the Huntington Traction Company, continued until 1927.

100th Anniversary of the Trolley

Lines

These two trolley lines are a fascinating part of Babylon Town history. To commemorate the upcoming 100th Anniversaries of the Cross-Island Line (August 25, 1909) and the Babylon Railroad (June 11, 1910), the Town of Babylon Historic Preservation Commission and the Office of Historic Services chose the theme "Trolley Days: A History of Trolleys in the Town of Babylon," for its Annual History Essay Contest.

The History Essay Contest has been held since 1989; however, this year's contest garnered the highest participation in its history. Over 1,800 4th grade students from 17 elementary schools throughout the Town of Babylon wrote essays about local trolley history. A selection of winning student essays will be posted on the Town of Babylon website (www. townofbabylon.com).

Winning students, whose essays were selected by their classroom teachers, received award certificates from Town Supervisor Steve Bellone, Town Clerk Carol Quirk, and the Historic Preservation Commission, at an awards ceremony held at Babylon Town Hall on May 30, 2009. Councilwoman Jacqueline A. Gordon and Councilman Tony Martinez were also present at the awards ceremony.

Two other award ceremonies were also held. On April 24, 2009, students at the Park Avenue Memorial Elementary School, Amityville, received certificates during the school's quarterly awards ceremony. Students from the John F. Kennedy Intermediate School, Deer Park, received awards certificates from Town Clerk Carol Quirk at a school ceremony held on May 28, 2009.

Article compiled and written by Mary Cascone, C.A., Director of the Office of Historic Services, and Thomas B. Smith, Town Historian, Town of Babylon.