The Whitestone Branch was a branch of the Long Island Rail Road

Long Island Rail Road

The Long Island Rail Road or LIRR is a commuter rail system serving the length of Long Island, New York. It is the busiest commuter railroad in North America, serving about 81.5 million passengers each year. Established in 1834 and having operated continuously since then, it is the oldest US...

, running north and east along the left bank of the Flushing River

Flushing River

The Flushing River, more properly and historically known as Flushing Creek, is a waterway that flows through the northern part of central Queens in New York City, emptying into the East River...

 from the Port Washington Branch near the modern Willets Point, Flushing. It crossed the river on one of the three bridges later torn down for the Van Wyck Expressway

Interstate 678

Interstate 678 is a north–south auxiliary Interstate Highway that extends for through two boroughs of New York City. The route begins at John F. Kennedy International Airport on Jamaica Bay and travels north through Queens and across the East River to the Bronx, where it ends at...

, then ran north along Flushing Bay and east along the East River to Whitestone

Whitestone, Queens

Whitestone is a residential neighborhood in the northernmost part of the City of New York borough of Queens. Located between the East River to the north and 25th Avenue to the south. Whitestone is surrounded by College Point, Flushing, Bayside, Auburndale, Linden Hill, and Murray Hill...

. Originally conceived as a branch of the Flushing and North Side Railroad

Flushing and North Side Railroad

The Flushing and North Side Railroad is a former railroad on Long Island built by Conrad Poppenhusen as a replacement for the former New York and Flushing Railroad. The railroad was established in 1868, was merged with the Central Railroad of Long Island in 1874 to form the Flushing, North Shore,...

 that was intended to lead into Westchester County (a connection that never materialized) in 1869, it was consolidated into the Long Island Rail Road in 1876 when its owners, the Poppenhusen family, took over the bankrupt LIRR.

In the 1920's the branch began to lose patronage and the LIRR sought to rid itself of the line. There was a proposal for the city owned IND subway

Independent Subway System

The Independent Subway System , formerly known as the Independent City-Owned Subway System or the Independent City-Owned Rapid Transit Railroad, was a rapid transit rail system in New York City that is now part of the New York City Subway...

 to buy the line and incorporate it into the subway system. The deal never panned out most likely due the numerous grade crossings that would have cost the city a large amount of money to remove. The Interstate Commerce Commission

Interstate Commerce Commission

The Interstate Commerce Commission was a regulatory body in the United States created by the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887. The agency's original purpose was to regulate railroads to ensure fair rates, to eliminate rate discrimination, and to regulate other aspects of common carriers, including...

 allowed the LIRR to abandon the line in 1932.

Most of the branch was removed, except a small section of the line leading to the Corona yard which remained well into the 1970's when the LIRR closed the Corona yard. Today only a small section of track, just east of the former Shea Stadium station, remains branching off from the Port Washington branch. The Flushing-Main Street station of the Port Washington Branch

Port Washington Branch

The Port Washington Branch is an electrified two-track rail line and service owned and operated by the Long Island Rail Road in the U.S. state of New York...

 was so named to distinguish it from the Whitestone's Flushing-Bridge Street station. Despite the closing of the Bridge Street station the LIRR continues to use "Main Street" on signs and timetables to this day.

Stations

Station/ location	Station link	Miles (kilometers) to Penn Station Pennsylvania Station (New York City) Pennsylvania Station—commonly known as Penn Station—is the major intercity train station and a major commuter rail hub in New York City. It is one of the busiest rail stations in the world, and a hub for inbound and outbound railroad traffic in New York City. The New York City Subway system also...	Connections/notes	History
Begin at Port Washington Branch Port Washington Branch The Port Washington Branch is an electrified two-track rail line and service owned and operated by the Long Island Rail Road in the U.S. state of New York...  near Corona Yard.
Connection to Woodside Branch.
Flushing–Bridge Street			Bridge Street is now part of NY 25A.	Named to distinguish it from Flushing-Main Street Station. 1870-1932.
College Point College Point, Queens College Point is a working-middle class neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. It is located north of Flushing on Flushing Bay and the East River and is part of the Queens Community Board 7. Willets Point Boulevard and the Whitestone Expressway are often the neighborhood's...				1869-1932.
Malba Malba, Queens Malba is an upper middle-class neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. A small area on the waterfront home to some of the largest and most expensive private houses in New York City, Malba is bounded to the north by the East River, to the east by the Whitestone Expressway, to the south...				Only station on the line built by the Long Island Railroad; 1909-1932.
Whitestone–14th Avenue			Whitestone Trolley	1869-1932.
Whitestone Landing (at 155th Street).				Also known as "Beechhurst Yacht Club Station". 1886-1932.
The entire line was abandoned on February 15, 1932.

External links

• Whitestone Branch (Unofficial LIRR History Website)
• Like a Rolling Whitestone (ForgottenNY.com)
• Whitestone Branch Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Part Four, and Part Five (Arrt's Arrchives)