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INDUSTRIAL & TERMINAL RAILROADS & RAIL-MARINE OPERATIONS
OF BROOKLYN, QUEENS, STATEN ISLAND, BRONX & MANHATTAN:

RAILROAD OPERATED
PIER STATIONS & INLAND FREIGHT STATIONS
OF MANHATTAN

Less Than Carload Car Load LCL

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MAIN INDEX

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This page consists solely of pier stations or inland freight stations that were simply that:
a pier station or inland freight station with no other adjoining railroad facility, float bridge, or trackage.

Pier Stations with adjoining railroad operations are shown on their respective Offline Freight Terminal pages.

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Pier Station Overview

   Freight handling via pier stations was a very simple but laborsome affair, but pier stations were expeditious and very direct. There were two methods used for the transfer of freight to and from pier stations, and both utilized station / platform carfloats brought to the pier via the railroad's tugboat.

   In diagram 1, the carfloats are first accessed by doors on the sides of the pier shed. The pier sheds had doors placed at intervals for this purpose. Bridge plates (in yellow) usually made of steel plate or wood planks, are used to "bridge the gap" between the pier shed and the doorway of a boxcar.

   Note in the photo below how several bridge plates are used in succession to access the boxcars behind the worker.

   Referencing the diagram below, once the bridge plate was placed in position, the boxcar in red would be unloaded first. Once that was accomplished, the door on the other side of that boxcar would be opened and another bridge plate would be used to bridge the gap between the boxcar and the steel platform of the carfloat.

   Diagram 2 shows a combination piershed and bulkhead shed. In some cases, there would be no piershed and only a bulkhead shed. The inner carfloat (or the right carfloat) would be unloaded in the same manner as in diagram 1. However, the left or outer carfloat was accessed with a small wood bridge from the bulkhead shed door to the front ramp of the carfloat. Then the freight car that needed to be unloaded first (green in this case) was unloaded. This front bridging method could also be used in cases where there was no bulkhead shed, and where freight could be unloaded directly onto the bulkhead.

    According to the Joint Plan with Comprehensive Report, in most cases, the bulkhead shed was used for the loading of outbound freight, while the piershed, (being larger) was used for inbound freight that was unloaded. Consignors were usually given 48 hours "free time" (starting at 7 am the day following the freight's arrival), to come and get their freight. This 48 hour hold time requires a great deal of space, while consignors freight awaits pick up. Therefore the larger piershed was in most cases used for inbound freight. 

   In either diagram; once these bridge plates (in yellow) were in place, and the center platform of the carfloat is accessed, men with hand trucks, dollies or even forklifts could be used to unload / load freight from any of the boxcars on that given carfloat via that center platform (dotted yellow lines) . Unloading priority was given to perishables or expedited freight.

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   In some cases, a piershed would be shared between a railroad and steamship line.    

   To make those interested readers lives a tad easier, I have taken the time to create a comprehensive list of Pier Stations, Freight Houses and Freight Stations on both the Hudson and East Rivers, as shown on the 1943 Map of Railroad & Terminal Facilities of the Port of New York, as issued by the New York Central Railroad. It is by no means complete, as railroads would give up obsolete properties and acquire others in a different location, when needed.

   Dimensions given are taken from  the 1920 Joint Report with Comprehensive Plan & Recommendations issued by the New York Port & Harbor Development Commission..

RETURN TO MAIN INDEX

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Inland Freight Stations

   An inland freight station is nothing more than a railroad owned warehouse type structure set away from the piers or offline terminals for storage of freight.  

   They were used by the railroads to relieve congestion at the waterfront piers and offline terminals. Therefore, a customer could pick up or drop off their shipment at the inland freight station and avoid the hustle and bustle of the pierside location, and the railroad would take care of the transportation to and from the pier and inland freight station.

   The inland freight stations were also used for the long term storage of freight before consignees could come an pick up their items. Also, inland freight stations could have served to store "overflow" from pier stations when freight traffic was at it's peak.

   The Erie Railroad had several inland freight stations located in lower Manhattan at Leroy, Greenwich, Watts, and Hubert Streets. These were located one or two short blocks inland from the piers stations on the Hudson River.

   On September 16, 1932; the Port Authority of the City of New York dedicated the Union Inland Freight Station. This facility was also known as the Port of New York Authority, Inland Terminal #1. The Union Inland Freight Terminal was a 16 story building occupying the block between Eighth & Ninth Avenues and West 15th and West 16th Streets and opened for business in 1933.

   This Union Inland Freight Station was to be occupied by no less than eight trunk line railroads:

   It is understood that the purpose of the Union Inland Freight Station was to provide a convenient and unified location in Midtown Manhattan for the major railroads  in the New York Area.

   Inbound Freight would arrive from New Jersey via carfloat or lighter at the respective railroad's piers on the Hudson River. The freight was then offloaded and trucked to the Inland Freight Station to await pick up by the consignee / customer.

   Outbound Freight would be dropped off by the consignor at the Inland Freight Station at the respective railroads area, and consolidated with other shipments for transfer to the piers. Once at the pier station, the freight would be loaded into freight cars (already on carfloats) for transport to New Jersey where the freight cars would be pulled off the carfloat and subsequently shipped to their various destinations throughout the United States.

   In modern "lingo", the Inland Freight Station would now be referred to as a "shipping hub".

   Handling the freight twice may appear to be a waste of labor, but considering the limited space at the piers & wharves, congestion of horses & wagons, and later trucks necessitated moving the freight transfer point away from the piers & wharves.

   On 08 July 2010, I purchased an original agreement for the use of the Union Inland Freight Station, as issued to the Lehigh Valley Railroad. Upon reading the agreement, I learned that it was originally intended to construct two additional Inland Freight Stations in New York City per the success of the original station. I found evidence that the Port Authority constructed the Union Inland Freight Station #2, also known as the Union Motor Truck Terminal which was located by the Holland Tunnel; and of which appears to have not been utilized by the railroads. I have also not been able to locate evidence of the City actually constructing the third location.

   What makes the the Union Inland Freight Station unique, is that instead of being owned by any one individual railroad, it was owned by the City of New York, and they in turn leased space to the railroads. While the Port Authority would maintain the overall structure, heating, ventilation, electrical, and plumbing; the railroads would maintain the freight handling facilities, elevators and all specialty equipment.

   The following excerpt is from the "New York City Guide of 1939"

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   What year the structure ceased being the Inland Union Freight Station remains to be discovered. However, I have found reference to it as late as 1947. Referencing the New York Harbor Terminals Map of 1961, shows the location no longer referred to as the Union Inland Freight Terminal, and the location is simply marked Port Authority Building.

RETURN TO MAIN INDEX

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Facilities Map - 1943

   The map below will provide you with a guide as to the locations of the pier stations and freight stations mentioned on this page.

   Please keep in mind that this map is from 1943, and some pier stations may have been relinquished or may not have opened yet. Only the piers marked in red were railroad operated, but remember: carfloats and lighters could be spotted at any pier for a customer.

RETURN TO MAIN INDEX

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Index of Pier Stations

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Please note:
Different railroads may have occupied the same pier at different times in history, hence why you might see two railroads for the same pier.
Refer to the cross reference list to determine years of occupancy for a particular pier by a particular railroad.

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Legend

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HUDSON   RIVER      A/K/A     NORTH   RIVER

PIER 1 - PIER STATION
Hudson River, Manhattan

(PENNSYLVANIA RAILROAD)

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PIER 8 - RECTOR STREET PIER STATION
Hudson River, Manhattan

(LEHIGH VALLEY RAILROAD)

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PIER 11 - CEDAR STREET PIER STATION
Hudson River, Manhattan

(CENTRAL RAILROAD OF NEW JERSEY)

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Central Railroad of New Jersey - Cedar Street Freight Station / Pier 11 - ca. 1932
E. Galloway photo
NYPL Digital Archives
added 02 July 2009

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PIER 13 - CORTLANDT STREET PIER STATIO
Hudson River, Manhattan

(DELAWARE, LACKAWANNA & WESTERN RAILROAD)

DL & W Pier Station S

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   The Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Freight Station located on Pier 13 (Hudson River) was located at the foot of Cortlandt Street.

   According to Joint Report with Comprehensive Plan & Recommendations, 1920, published by the New York New Jersey Port & Harbor Development Commission; Pier 13 dimensions were 882' x 100'.

   The following is an excerpt from the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western RR 1952 Directory of Industries & Facilities:

   This Freight Station would share space with the Starin Transportation, Ben Franklin and New Haven shipping lines.

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PIER 16 - BARCLAY STREET PIER STATION
Hudson River, Manhattan

(NEW YORK CENTRAL RAILROAD)

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PIER 20 - CHAMBERS STREET PIER STATION
Hudson River, Manhattan

(ERIE RAILROAD)

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Erie Railroad - Chambers Street Freight Station / Pier 20 - 1942
Homer H. Poss, Jr. photo
(Mr. Poss was sightseeing in New York City prior to disembarkation for overseas duty during when he took this image.
His daughter, Sherry Fletcher; contacted me and presented this image (along with a photo of the DL&W Ferry "Ithaca") as gifts.
authors collection
added 23 November 2009

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PIER 21 - DUANE STREET PIER STATION
Hudson River, Manhattan

(ERIE RAILROAD)

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Erie Railroad - Duane Street Freight Station / Pier 21 - July 8, 1937
(with Baltimore & Ohio Jay Street / Pier 22 in background)
P. L. Sperr photo
NYPL Digital Archives
added 02 July 2009
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Erie Railroad - Duane Street Freight Station / Pier 21 - August 31, 1926
P. L. Sperr photo
NYPL Digital Archives
added 03 July 2009

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Erie Railroad - Duane Street Freight Station / Pier 21 - July 12, 1931
P. L. Sperr photo
NYPL Digital Archives
added 03 July 2009
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PIER 20 / 21 - DUANE STREET PIER STATION
Hudson River, Manhattan

(BALTIMORE & OHIO RAILROAD)

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Baltimore & Ohio Railroad - Duane Street Freight Station / Pier 21 (left) and Pier 20 (right) - ca. 1950
unknown photographer
E. Bommer collection
added 27 December 2011

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PIER 22 - JAY STREET PIER STATION
Hudson River, Manhattan

(BALTIMORE & OHIO RAILROAD)

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Baltimore & Ohio Railroad - Jay Street Freight Station / Pier 22 - unknown date
Photo taken by Interstate Commerce Commission and Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Inventory Crew between 1916 and 1920.
image courtesy of Joseph De May, Kew Gardens, NY
added 19 June 2010

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Baltimore & Ohio Railroad - Jay Street Freight Station / Pier 22 - ca. 1920's
E. Bommer collection
added 28 December 2011

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Baltimore & Ohio Railroad - Jay Street Freight Station / Pier 22 - ca. 1920's
Note the wood brdige to carfloat platform and safety net.
E. Bommer collection
added 28 December 2011

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Baltimore & Ohio Railroad - Jay Street Freight Station / Pier 22 - July 8, 1937
P. L. Sperr photo
NYPL Digital Archives
added 02 July 2009

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PIER 23 - HARRISON STREET PIER STATION
Hudson River, Manhattan

(BALTIMORE & OHIO RAILROAD)
(Pier 23 was formerly New York Central)

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Baltimore & Ohio Railroad - Harrison Street Freight Station / Pier 23 & Jay Street Freight Station / Pier 22 - unknown date
Erie RR Pier 21 / Duane Street facade showing in background above Pier 22 roof.
G. Hockaday photographer
L. Kilian collection
authors collection
added 26 Sept 2009

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PIER 29 - VESTRY STREET PIER STATION (PRODUCE MARKET)
Hudson River, Manhattan

(PENNSYLVANIA RAILROAD)

E RR / EL / Bronx Terminal / Harlem River / East 149th Street Terminal

Pennsylvania Railroad Vestry Street Produce Market / Pier 29 - October 24, 1934
(Canal Street left, Pier 29 right)
P. L. Sperr photo
NYPL Digital Archives
added 02 July 2009

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Pennsylvania Railroad Vestry Street Produce Market / Pier 30 (left) Pier 29 (right) - June 30, 1932
Aerial Explorations, Inc.
NYPL Digital Archives
added 03 July 2009

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PIER 30 - DEBROSSES STREET PIER STATION
Hudson River, Manhattan

(PENNSYLVANIA RAILROAD & LONG ISLAND RAIL ROAD)

E RR / EL / Bronx Terminal / Harlem River / East 149th Street Terminal

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PIER 34 - CANAL STREET PIER STATION
Hudson River, Manhattan

(LEHIGH VALLEY RAILROAD)

E RR / EL / Bronx Terminal / Harlem River / East 149th Street Terminal

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PIER 41 - LEROY STREET PIER STATION
Hudson River, Manhattan

(DELAWARE, LACKAWANNA & WESTERN RAILROAD)

E RR / EL / Bronx Terminal / Harlem River / East 149th Street Terminal

   The following is an excerpt from the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western RR 1952 Directory of Industries & Facilities:

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PIER 48 - WEST 11TH STREET PIER STATION
Hudson River, Manhattan

(ERIE RAILROAD)

DL & W Pier Station S

Erie Railroad Pier 48 / West 11th Street Pier Station - unknown date
(possibly Southern Pacific Company?)
image courtesy of Joseph De May, Kew Gardens, NY
added 09 June 2010
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PIER 52 - WEST 12TH STREET PIER STATION
Hudson River, Manhattan

(BALTIMORE & OHIO)

DL & W Pier Station S

Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Pier 48 / West 12th Street Pier Station - September 1972
T. Flagg photo
added 13 January 2012
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PIER 68 - WEST 28TH STREET PIER STATION
Hudson River, Manhattan

(DELAWARE, LACKAWANNA & WESTERN RAILROAD)

DL & W Pier Station S

   The Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Freight Station located on Pier 68 (Hudson River) was located at the foot of West 28th Street.

   According to Joint Report with Comprehensive Plan & Recommendations, 1920, published by the New York New Jersey Port & Harbor Development Commission; Pier 68 dimensions were 621' x 50', with a track down middle of pier.

   The following is an excerpt from the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western RR 1952 Directory of Industries & Facilities:

   Even though this pier station would be flanked by Lehigh Valley and Erie Railroads, it would not be associated with a rail yard until 1960, when the Erie and the Delaware Lackawanna & Western Railroads merged, forming the Erie - Lackawanna Railroad.

Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad Freight Station / Pier 68 - May 29, 1931
P. L. Sperr photo
NYPL Digital Archives
added 02 July 2009
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PIER 72 & 73 - WEST 32ND & WEST 33RD STREET PIER STATION
Hudson River, Manhattan

(NEW YORK CENTRAL RAILROAD)

DL & W Pier Station S

New York Central Freight Station Pier 73 (left), float bridges (center), Pier 72 (right) - ca. 1929
(looking east)
unknown photographer
NYPL Digital Archives
added 02 July 2009
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EAST RIVER

PIER 7 - COENTIES SLIP PIER STATION
East River, Manhattan

(ERIE RAILROAD & BALTIMORE & OHIO? RAILROAD)

E RR / EL / Bronx Terminal / Harlem River / East 149th Street Terminal

Erie Railroad (w/Baltimore & Ohio? Railroad) Coenties Slip / Pier 7 Freight Station -  unknown date
courtesy of J. DeMay collection
added 26 June 2010

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PIER 21 - DOVER STREET PIER STATION
East River, Manhattan

(BALTIMORE & OHIO RAILROAD & PENNSYLVANIA RAILROAD)

E RR / EL / Bronx Terminal / Harlem River / East 149th Street Terminal

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PIER 26 - CATHERINE STREET PIER STATION
East River, Manhattan

(DELAWARE, LACKAWANNA & WESTERN RAILROAD)

DL & W Pier Station S

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   The following is an excerpt from the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western RR 1952 Directory of Industries & Facilities:

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Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad Catherine Street Freight Station / Pier 26 (East River) - unknown date
(looking north)
courtesy of J. DeMay collection
added 26 June 2010

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PIER 57 - EAST 47TH STREET PIER STATION
East River, Manhattan

(LEHIGH VALLEY RAILROAD)

DL & W Pier Station S

   The Lehigh Valley Railroad maintained a Pier Station located on Pier 57 (East River). While the description accompanying this photo was marked "Pier 97", the location given is the "foot of East 47th Street", and the pier is clearly marked Pier 57:

   Unfortunately, this pier is not listed in the 1920 Joint Report with Comprehensive Plan & Recommendations, published by the New York New Jersey Port & Harbor Development Commission; and no pier in the vicinity of East 47th Street is shown to be occupied by any railroad in the 1943 New York Central Railroad and Terminal Facilities Map of the Port of New York. (Matter of fact no piers are shown in that area, period.)

   Therefore the service years of  Lehigh Valley Pier 57 is not clear at this time.

   If in fact this pier was located at the foot of East 47th Street on the East River, it was most likely obliterated in the construction of the United Nations.

Lehigh Valley Railroad - East 47th Street Freight Station / Pier 57 (East River) - July 10, 1937
P. L. Sperr photo
NYPL Digital Archives
added 01 July 2009

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Cross Reference List - Pier Occupancy by Date

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   The following table reflects occupying railroads by pier and date, and was compiled from the assortment of Harbor Terminal maps that I have in my collection and by referencing various year property maps.

   The 1907 map was issued by the New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad, and does not show competing railroad lines or their piers.

   1911, 1920 and 1930 are G. W. Bromley Property Maps.

   All other maps 1942 and after are either Port of New York or New York Central facilities maps (which were Port of New York maps with New York Central advertising printed on the map).

   Piers / locations are listed north to south with lowest numbers in the south.

   When referencing "old" pier numbers (pre ca. 1900), points to remember are:

   a) The head house was considered a seperate number from the pier, which is why you will see an old pier number (number in parenthesis) listed without a new pier number, and
   b) It appears each "ward" had its own set of pier numbers. When the city was consolidated, the result was numerous "Pier 1's", which became very confusing, so the new  
       numbering system was implemented.

   It should also be noted that the Harbor Terminals maps are not 100% accurate: Tom Flagg furnished a photo he took dated 1972 of loaded carfloats at Baltimore & Ohio Railroad's Pier 52 (Hudson River) and this contradicts the 1971 Map showing this facility as no longer occupied by a railroad.

Hudson River

date > Pier \/

1907 1

1911

1920

1930

1942

1943

1956

1961

1965

1968

1971

1977

notes

I

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

G

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

F

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

E

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

D

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

B

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

99

NYC

NYC

NYC

NYC

(15)

E

83 (13, 14)

NYC

NYC

81 (15)

CNJ

80

CNJ

CNJ

CNJ

79

P

P

PC

78

P

P

P

P

P

PC

77 (10)

P

P

P

P

P

P

76

NYC

73 (20, 21)

NYC

NYC

72

NYC

NYC

71 (5/14)

CNJ

NYC

NYC

68

DL&W

DL&W

DL&W

DL&W

DL&W

E-L

E-L

E-L

CR

67

Erie

Erie

LV

E-L

E-L

66 (16)

NYC (track)

LV

LV

LV

LV

B&O

B&O

B&O

B&O

CR

63 (21)

NYC

B&O

B&O

B&O

Chessie

62 (17)

P / LIRR

61 (14)

NYC

58 (5)

DL&W

56 (16)

LV

52

PRR

PRR

B&O

B&O

B&O

B&O

2

51

B&O

CR

50

P

P

P

P

P

P

PC

CR

49

P

P

P

P

P

48

Erie

Erie

Erie

E-L

E-L

E-L

E-L

46

LV

LV

LV

LV

45

B&O / CNJ

44 (5)

LV

41 (13)

NYNH&H

DL&W

DL&W

DL&W

DL&W

DL&W

40

NYNH&H

P

P

B&O / CNJ

39

NYNH&H

CNJ

CNJ

CNJ

B&O / CNJ

38

LV

LV

LV

34

LV

LV

31

NYC

30

P / LI

P / LI

P

P

P

Produce Market

29 (14)

P

P

P

P

P / E

P / E-L

P / E-L

E-L

E-L

Produce Market

28 (12)

P

P

P

P

P / E

P / E-L

P / E-L

E-L

E-L

Produce Market

27

P

P

P

P / E

P / E-L

P / E-L

Produce Market

23 (2)

WS

WS

22 (12)

B&O

B&O

21 (10)

E

E

20 (8)

E

E

17 (1 & 16)

NYC

NYC

16

NYC

13 (7)

DL&W

DLW

11

CRRNJ

8 (23 1/2)

CRRNJ

LV

(23)

CNJ / B&O

CNJ / B&O

CNJ / B&O

(22)

B&O

B&O

CNJ / B&O

CNJ / B&O

CNJ / B&O

8 (21 1/2)

(21)

E

E

B&O

B&O

B&O

E-L

E-L

(20)

E

E

B&O

B&O

B&O

E-L

(19)

E-L

E-L

7 (17)

B&O

NYC

NYC

NYC

5 (16)

PRR

NYC / O&W

NYC / O&W

O&W

5 (15)

NYNH&H

PRR

4 (14)

NYNH&H

PRR

4 (13)

PRR

DL&W

DL&W

DL&W

(12)

PRR

3 (10, 11)

P

CNJ

CNJ

2 (7, 8, 9)

LV

LV

LV

LV

LV

2 (7)

P

E-L

1 (5, 6, 6 1/2)

PRR

. East River

E 125th St

P

P

E 124th St

LV

LV

E 48th St

LV

LV

stock yards

E 34th St

LV

LV

LV

44

LV

LV

LV

42

NYNH&H

NYNH&H

NYNH&H

41

NYNH&H

NYNH&H

NYNH&H

40

NYNH&H

NYNH&H

NYNH&H

39

NYNH&H

NYNH&H

NYNH&H

35

NYNH&H

NYC

NYC

NYC / O&W

34

NYNH&H

NYC / O&W

NYC / O&W

33

NYNH&H

29

CV

CV

26

DL&W

DL&W

DL&W

E-L

21

B&O / PRR

B&O / P

7

E

LV

Abbreviations

Footnotes

1	data from NYNH&H lighterage map, no competing railroads shown except for the independant terminals in Brooklyn.
2	Tom Flagg's photo of 1972 clearly shows loaded carfloats at this location, in contradiction to the Harbor Terminals map showing this location was no longer served

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Inland Freight Stations

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   Inland freight stations were essentially nothing more than large warehouses that received, stored and distributed freight by the various railroads for their various customers.

   When the waterfront reached a point of saturation in relation to pier stations, and traffic to and from those pier stations, another location would be selected by the railroads to store freight for their customers. Obviously, these locations would be close enough to the pier stations as to be a short distance, but not so close as to add to the exisiting traffic congestion at the waterfront.

   As not every railroad customer would be able to or have the need to pick up their freight as soon as it arrived, the freight of these medium & long term storage customers were usually sent to an Inland Freight Station to keep the limited storage space within the Pier Stations themselves free for fast turnove receiving and shipping.

LEROY STREET INLAND FREIGHT STATION
Leroy & West Streets, Manhattan

(ERIE RAILROAD)

E RR / EL / Bronx Terminal / Harlem River / East 149th Street Terminal

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Erie Railroad Leroy Street Inland Freight Station - ca. 1926
Two page centerfold advertisement of Erie Railroad Inland Freight Station Facilities in New York & Chicago from:
"The Traffic World"
Vol... XXXVIII, No. 24 - December 11, 1926
authors collection
added 14 July 2009

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GREENWICH STREET INLAND FREIGHT STATION
Greenwich Street, Manhattan

(ERIE RAILROAD)

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Erie Railroad Greenwich Street Inland Freight Station - ca. 1926
Two page centerfold advertisement of Erie Railroad Inland Freight Station Facilities in New York & Chicago from:
"The Traffic World"
Vol... XXXVIII, No. 24 - December 11, 1926
authors collection
added 14 July 2009

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UNION INLAND FREIGHT STATION
Ninth Avenue & West 16th Street, Manhattan, NY

(BALTIMORE & OHIO / CENTRAL RR OF NEW JERSEY,
DELAWARE, LACKAWANNA & WESTERN / ERIE,
LEHIGH VALLEY / NEW YORK CENTRAL,
NEW YORK NEW HAVEN & HARTFORD / PENNSYLVANIA)

DL & W Pier Station S

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On 02 December 2011, I received an email from Greg Estren:

   I believe I can clarify some of your open questions, in particular the plans for multiple terminals and what ultimately became of this terminal.

   The Port Authority conducted research identifying the source and destination of freight shipments throughout Manhattan, then used this research to divide Manhattan (south of 59th Street) into 9 "zones" of equal freight distribution density. They intended to build an inland freight terminal for each zone, i.e. nine terminals in all.

   They prepared plans for the first terminal in the zone between Spring Street and Christopher / 10th Streets. But these plans were scuttled by the railroads, who worried that that location would disproportionately benefit certain railroad companies over others (due to proximity of railroad piers). So the Port Authority shifted plans to the current Chelsea location and ultimately built this building.

   The railroad's, for reasons I am still somewhat fuzzy on; never liked this building and never used it very much. This, combined with the Great Depression, completely undid the Port Authority's plans for more terminals, and as such they would never build another inland freight terminal. The "Motor Truck Terminal" you mentioned, by the Holland Tunnel, was a separate initiative intended for long-distance trucking, unrelated to the railroads.

   The original inland freight terminal continued on operating, well under capacity, through the 50's or so. I'm not sure exactly at what point the railroads stopped doing business there, but eventually the entire terminal area was given over to Railway Express Agency's operations. I would guess the name change from "Union Inland Freight Terminal" to "The Port Authority Building" reflected the Port Authority's trending tendency to play down the (essentially failed) freight purpose of the building. Also note that the term "Port Authority Commerce Building" always had a different meaning than the terminal.

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