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| Binghamton; Edgewater, N.J.; September 27, 2014 |
A significant piece of railroad history sits partially submerged in the Hudson River in Edgewater, N.J. The ferry boat
Binghamton once served the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad, taking passengers from the Lackawanna's trains across the Hudson between Hoboken and Manhattan.
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| Binghamton; Edgewater, N.J.; September 27, 2014 |
The
Binghamton was built in 1904-'05 by Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry-dock Company, was launched on February 20, 1905, and entered service on April 3, 1905, for the Lackawanna's Hoboken Ferry Company. It was one of six identical ferry boats operated by the Lackawanna.
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| Binghamton; Edgewater, N.J.; September 27, 2014 |
Almost immediately the need for ferry service began to decline. The Pennsylvania Railroad and the Hudson & Manhattan (now PATH) both tunneled under the Hudson in 1907. The Holland Tunnel opened in 1927, with the Lincoln Tunnel following a decade later. The last ferry crossing by the Lackawanna was made on November 22, 1967; by then the Lackawanna had merged with the Erie Railroad to form the Erie-Lackawanna.
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| Binghamton; Edgewater, N.J.; September 27, 2014 |
In 1969 the
Binghamton was purchased by a contractor with the dream of converting it into a restaurant. In 1971 it was moved to Edgewater. The initial plans never materialized, but a new owner came on the scene in 1974 and the
Binghamton was moved about a half mile to its current location in 1975. Later that year the restaurant finally opened. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.
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| Binghamton; Edgewater, N.J.; September 27, 2014 |
The restaurant was shuttered in 2007 and the intervening years have not been kind to the Binghamton. Its owner applied for a demolition permit in 2011, but before any work could be done the boat took on water and became partially submerged it in 2012. Hurricane Sandy did major damage later in 2012 (the river side of the boat looks much worse than the land side seen in these photos) and a suspicious fire did further damage in May 2013.
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| Binghamton; Edgewater, N.J.; September 27, 2014 |
For now the
Binghamton holds the distinction of being the last double-ended steam-powered ferry left on the Hudson, but that won't last much longer. The current owner is in the process of paying fines he owes to Edgewater for various code violations and will hire a contractor to demolish the boat. A barge restaurant will ultimately occupy the
Binghamton's berth. For now, though, the
Binghamton remains in sad condition, it's wheelhouse sign that once proudly proclaimed its name resting on the ferry's roof. The boat was on borrowed time when these photos were taken on September 27, 2014. It's unclear just how much longer the Binghamton has left, but time is not on its side. More photos
can be found here.
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| Binghamton; Edgewater, N.J.; September 27, 2014 |
1 comment:
Nice try, dude, but to get viral attention you have to do this "urbex" style--climb over the fences, crawl onto the boat, and imperil your life by walking through with a bunch of other goons hiding their faces with kerchiefs, all shooting jerky, swaying video nonstop with your smartphones while you explore the ruins, try to figure out where the bodies are hidden, etc. until you're crawling back out of the thing under cover of darkness. Oh, and be sure not to give any hint as to where this "mysterious ruin" is or how it got there. Because obviously that the way you get hundreds of thousands of views on YouTube.
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