South Farmingdale station

South Farmingdale was a station along the Central Branch of the Long Island Rail Road in South Farmingdale, New York, United States.

South Farmingdale
The site of the former South Farmingdale station.
General information
Location	Main Street (between Motor Avenue and NY 109) South Farmingdale, New York
Coordinates	40.725934°N 73.443145°W / 40.725934; -73.443145
Owned by	Long Island Rail Road
Line(s)	Central Branch
Platforms	1 side platform
Tracks	1
Other information
Station code	None
Fare zone	7
History
Opened	May 1873 June 1936
Closed	1898 June 26, 1972
Previous names	Farmingdale (1873–1876)
Services
Preceding station Long Island Rail Road Following station Bethpage Terminus Central Branch Babylon Terminus Breslau 19th century toward Babylon

History

This station first appeared on timetables of the Central Railroad Extension Company of Long Island (a CRRLI subsidiary) in May 1873, though service may have been delayed a month or two.^[1][2] In 1873, it was named "Farmingdale Station" despite the fact that the LIRR had its own Farmingdale Station. The station depot itself was not built until either August or September 1873, and was located on the east side of Main Street just south of W. C. Dupignac's Hotel. A freight house was erected by the railroad in either April or May 1874 but the station was closed on June 1, 1876. The station was reopened by the Long Island Railroad in June 1936 with a sheltered platform for a stop named "South Farmingdale."^[3][4]

In January 1945, local residents petitioned the Public Service Commission to have some Montauk express trains stop at South Farmingdale. The move was opposed by residents of Bay Shore and Islip who thought that it would make the trains too crowded.^[5] The station was closed as a station stop again on June 26, 1972, making it the last station to operate along the Central Branch. The station was closed along with two other stations due to low ridership.^[6] The station shelter was removed shortly afterwards.^[3][4]

In 1979, the Long Island Regional Planning Board undertook a study to determine what types of land use changes should be completed along the Route 110 corridor between the Northern State Parkway and Southern State Parkway. The results were published the following year in Industrial Location Analyses–1980. The study recommended reopening the South Farmingdale station but at the intersection of Route 110 and Route 109.^[7]

References

1. Seyfreid says: 1> the main line eastward was opened as far as Bethpage Junction [itself in Farmingdale] on May 26, 1873. 2> [South] Farmingdale Station first listed May 1873. 3> Tracks reached the Belmont Junction July 26, 1873. 4>Service to Babylon began August 1, 1873.
2. Huneke, Art (2016). "Central Branch and Belmont Junction". Arrt's Arrchives. Retrieved May 4, 2018.
3. Seyfried, Vincent; Emery, Robert; Huneke, Art; Erlitz, Jeff. "LONG ISLAND RAIL ROAD Alphabetical Station Listing and History" (PDF). trainsarefun.com. Retrieved November 24, 2017.
4. "South Farmingdale Shelter". TrainsAreFun.com. April 1963. Retrieved May 4, 2018.
5. "Commuters Protest Against Stop at Farmingdale" (PDF). The Suffolk County News. January 26, 1945. Retrieved May 4, 2018.
6. Perlmutter, Emanuel (June 18, 1972). "L.I.R.R. Improving Service on All Lines Under a New Timetable". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 4, 2018.
7. "A Review of Selected Growth and Development Areas, Suffolk County, New York" (PDF). suffolkcountyny.gov. August 2006. Retrieved May 4, 2018.