New York City subway system turns 120 — here’s what it looked like in 1904

From guest starring successful classical romcoms to backgrounding successful our mundane humdrums, nan NYC subway is an icon.

And successful her 120-year work to nan city, nan ol’ gal has seen immoderate wilds. She’s had modernized upgrades to her look, routes and reach, of course. But also, she’s had changes to nan ever-evolving communities she’s zipped from 1 extremity of nan metropolis to nan other.

“We return it for granted,” Concetta Bencivenga, New York Transit Museum director, told The Post of nan subterranean system, which opened to nan nationalist connected October 27, 1904. The subway celebrates its 120th day Sunday, recognized passim nan boroughs arsenic “Subway Day.”

“But what happened 120 years agone was truthful shockingly caller and revolutionary,” continued Bencivenga, a autochthonal New Yorker. “The conception of asking group to get connected an electrified vehicle, erstwhile energy was still reasonably new, and move astir underground was wholly mind-blowing.”

Straphangers today, however, aren’t each that fascinated by nan trains’ functions.

Instead, it’s nan outré encounters and experiences they’ve had while walking astir 100 feet beneath nan actual — for illustration virally belting retired Celine Dion’s “My Heart Will Go On” pinch a subway car afloat of strangers aliases witnessing a pair of Brookynites tie nan knot connected nan L train — that guidelines retired most.

But arsenic New Yorkers bespeak connected their craziest, memorable moments, a below-ground shape for nan Big Apple’s astir uninhibited apt wasn’t what William Barclay Parsons had successful mind erstwhile he began designing nan railroad successful 1894. 

As nan first main technologist of nan New York Rapid Transit Commission, Parsons, a Columbia University alum, curated nan original plan for nan Interborough Rapid Transit subway — nan city’s first underground train system.

Chugging on arsenic a novelty to Manhattanites of nan early 1900s, nan IRT traveled 9.1 miles done 28 stations. It went from City Hall to Grand Central, ran westbound connected 42nd Street to Times Square and northbound betwixt Broadway to 145th Street. 

Bencivenga tells The Post that modern-day locals will get nan chance to thrust those pioneering routes this week.

“The depository has vintage Lo-V (low voltage) subway cars from 1917 that will recreation those original lines for our typical ‘Nostalgia Rides,’ ” she said earlier detailing nan rarified run. 

“We’ll commencement astatine nan aged South Ferry station, spell up nan West Side, move astir and travel backmost down nan East Side,” she explained. “We’ll extremity by looping done nan aged City Hall station, wherever everything sewage started.”

The Long Islander said nan old-school cruise will springiness today’s tastemakers a time traveler’s glimpse astatine 20th-century commuting. 

“We’ll get to see, perceive and consciousness what it was for illustration to beryllium connected 1 of those early iterations of a subway car,” Bencivenga said, adding that nan depository is besides featuring a historical, art-infused grounds entitled “The Subway Is…,” which will beryllium connected show done autumn 2025. 

“No aerial conditioning, vintage ads, porcelain grab-holds,” she continued of nan Nostalgia Rides. “It’s a nosy measurement to recreation backmost successful clip done Manhattan.”

She hopes nan nosy flashback to yesteryear inspires dream for nan future.

“We want group to deliberation astir what nan adjacent 120 years look like,” said Bencivenga, forecasting that nan subway will go moreover much inclusive, accessible and accommodating to citizens of Gotham arsenic clip rolls on. “The subway is for everyone. It’s nan awesome societal equalizer.”

“Whether your a billionaire aliases struggling to make ends meet, nan subway is often nan quickest measurement for a New Yorker to get astir and to beryllium exposed to truthful galore awesome group and cultures,” she added of nan little than $3 rides.

“For $2.90, you get to acquisition nan full world.”