Tour of the Remnants of Penn Station
New York, New York
Trip Type: City Tours
Duration: 90 minutes
Amtrak officially acknowledges only one physical remnant of the old Penn Station, but on this special tour, participants will be able to see, touch and experience over a dozen remaining structural pieces of the grand McKim, Mead and White station. This special tour of the Remnants of Penn Station is developed by Justin Rivers, author and playwright of The Eternal Space, a play about the demolition of Penn Station. Weaving in never before published photographs, the tour will also cover the past, present and future plans for the transportation hub.
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Amtrak officially acknowledges only one physical remnant of the old Penn Station, but on this special tour, participants will be able to see, touch and experience over a dozen remaining structural pieces of the grand McKim, Mead and White station. This special tour of the Remnants of Penn Station is developed by Justin Rivers, author and playwright of The Eternal Space, a play about the demolition of Penn Station. Weaving in never before published photographs, the tour will also cover the past, present and future plans for the transportation hub.For more than a year, we’ve been bringing intrepid New Yorkers and visitors on a hunt of the architectural remnants of the original Pennsylvania Station still viewable inside and around the current station. There are few people that contest the tragedy of the demolition of Penn Station, which began on October 28, 1963, after the Pennsylvania Railroad found itself in serious financial trouble. The McKim, Mead and White masterpiece, only 53 years old, became a martyr for the landmarks preservation cause when the air rights to Penn Station were sold to accommodate Madison Square Garden, that perpetually moving entertainment venue.
As history repeats itself, the current battle for Penn Station usually includes the relocation of Madison Square Garden once again to accommodate a modern transportation that might better accommodate the needs of the 600,000 people that traverse through Penn Station each day – more people daily than the number that pass through the three major New York City airports combined. New plans generally also involve returning natural light to a station that has been illuminated by fluorescent lighting for decades.
As the latest grandiose plans get revealed for the station’s rehabilitation, it is more than likely that any improvement to the subterranean maze will require the station to remain operational during construction, which was the case during the 1960s re-do of Penn Station. This unique requirement has allowed many artifacts and remnants still standing within the current station.
Other Tour Highlights include:
As history repeats itself, the current battle for Penn Station usually includes the relocation of Madison Square Garden once again to accommodate a modern transportation that might better accommodate the needs of the 600,000 people that traverse through Penn Station each day – more people daily than the number that pass through the three major New York City airports combined. New plans generally also involve returning natural light to a station that has been illuminated by fluorescent lighting for decades.
As the latest grandiose plans get revealed for the station’s rehabilitation, it is more than likely that any improvement to the subterranean maze will require the station to remain operational during construction, which was the case during the 1960s re-do of Penn Station. This unique requirement has allowed many artifacts and remnants still standing within the current station.
Other Tour Highlights include:
- Penn Station's Art. Identify and learn the stories behind the amazing art installations in the current station often ignored by commuters and life-long New Yorkers.
- The Golden Ticket: Tour participants will be given their own ticket reproduction made from the very first ticket to Pennsylvania Station issued to an LIRR customer in 1910.
- Penn’s Demolition: Learn why Pennsylvania Station was demolished and exactly how it was done. Watch the process unfold in pictures taken by renown architectural photographer, Norman McGrath.
- The Largest Penn Remnant: It’s huge and it’s just about as close to the original Penn Station as you can get. Virtually no one knows it exists but tour participants will know where it is, what it is and the story behind it.
- Moynihan Station: Take a closer look at and learn the story behind the old station's sister building across the street including how its future may be the redemption of Penn Station’s past.
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