The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1906-07-14
ERIE TO BUILD A
FERRYHOUSE
Fine Structure Is Now In
Course Of Erection At
Twenty Third Street, New
York
TO FACE A PUBLIC PARK

INIERESTlNG "REMINISCENCES
OF THE BURNED BUILDING
AND FAMOUS MEN INTEREST
ED IN 1T.
With the destruction Of the Erie ferry
house at the foot of West Twenty third
Street, to make room for new one, there
disappears an historic landmark of New
York city. When it was opened to the
public in May, 1868. Twenty third street.
now one of the busiest Of New York
streets, was little more than country
road connecting the city proper with
"Chelsea," then little more than a thrlv-
ing village within the city. The idea OF
establishing a ferry SO far uptown TO
connect with Jersey City terminal was
deemed chimerical by many. The only
rapid transit system of those days We're
huge, rumbling, uncomfortable busses
running through Broadway, With one line
going west through Twenty-third street
as far as Ninth avenue to the barns
Yet the Erie ferryhouse was consider
ed so much of an architectural addition
to the city that Harper's Weekly and
Frank Leslie's paper Of those days con-
sidered it worthy of illustration and elab-
crate description. The new ferryhouse
at once began to play an active part IN
the rapid transit of those days. When
the Erie's new ferryboats Erie, James
Fisk, Jr., and Jay Gould were put on the
route downtown business men who were
in a hurry to reach the Chelsea and
Greenwich village sections of the then
Upper West Side used to take the Pa
vonia ferry from Chambers street to Jer-
sey City and then the ferry boats from
there to Twenty-third street. This
route was even largely used at so late a
date as during the recent strike on the
subway. as a quick and sure route up
town.
This new water route achieved an in
stant success, and was so greatly an ac-
commodation to the public that the PENN
sylvania, and later the Lackawanna and
Jersey Central established ferry stations
adjoining the Erie The original Penn
sylvania ferry house still stands. The
destruction by fire in December last of
the newly-built Lackawanna and Jersey
Central stations is a matter of recent
history. The old Erie station, although
practically adjoining these stations, es-
capped the FIRE without even a scorching.
Wreckers are now accomplishing what
fire could not do by removing the old
structure.
In place of this historic old pile is now
rising new station of most modern con-
struction and with all the facilities that
The house is located on a plot 200x22S
feet and is two stories in height. The
building is of steel construction with as
little wood as possible used in its finish
ing. The party walls separating it from
the Pennsylvania ferryhouse on the north
and the Lackawanna on the south are of
fre-proof construction, extending from
the lowest surface of the water up to
and through the roof, which is what is
generally known as Stag roof. The
front elevation is to be entirely sheath
ed with decorated "copper", aged prema-
turely by a comparatively new process,
which gives delicate tint of green and
entirely relieves the sombreness usual in
copper-sheathed buildings.
The street frontage is 1S1 feet with a
height of 40 feet, except in the centre
where a decorative panel rises 10 feet
above the general height. This panel 10
feet in height and 80 in length. repre-
sents an old Roman galley with dophins
rampant, done in copper. The galley is
26 feet long at the base and II feet in
height. Over the centre of this and 20
feet from the street surface is a globe
inclosing ineandescent lights aggregating
500 candiepower. The entrances, which
are sheltered from the weather by cam
opy 80 feet in width, are also tudded
with electric lights. as is. the edge of the
canopy itself. Above these will blaze the
word Erie" also in electric lights, the
letters of the name being each FIVE feet
in height.
The river elevation, also finished in
copper, consists of three massive arches,
the upper and lower of which contain
the ferry slips. with accommodations for
the double-decked ferryboads. This 'front.'