Page:Vincent F. Seyfried - The Long Island Rail Road A Comprehensive History - Vol. 2 (1963).pdf/83

Operations on the Flushing and North Side view to extending the track to that point. The extension was to be only a half-mile in length and would have the advantage of serving the steamers which docked regularly at that point with excursionists.

In the fall of 1870 work began with the construction of a new pretentious depot at Whitestone to replace the wooden temporary structure in service. In September the foundations for a two story iron and brick building were laid. On January 30, 1871, the new building opened for use. Rather than build the Whitestone extension as simply another part of the Flushing & North Side R.R., the directors deemed it expedient to incorporate a separate company and to carry out construction under that name. Accordingly, on November 14, 1871, the Whitestone & Westchester R.R. was incorporated and a map filed. John J. Locke was named as president with Herman C. Poppenhusen, Conrad's son, as vice-president, and Elizur Hinsdale as secretary.

In August 1871 the extension was put under contract to Messrs. Smith & Ripley and a steam excavator was to be used to cut through the heavy grades near the shore. In January 1872, in the depth of winter, a large force was at work grading through the valley toward the bulkhead. In May two steam shovels, great novelties in that day, were at work cutting a very deep cut through the high land northeast of Whitestone station, and had reached 152nd Street by the end of June; two months later, in July, the steam-shovels were still chewing their way towards the dock.

Because the new right-of-way cut off five or six heavily-used Whitestone streets, the company contracted in December 1872 for the building of wooden bridges to carry each street over the railroad cut. Then, suddenly, in the midst of all this progress, all work came to a complete halt. What had happened? Weeks passed and then the story came out. It developed that in the month of July 1872 John D. Locke had made an agreement with Conrad Poppenhusen and Elizur Hinsdale for Mr. Locke to take the bonds of the Whitestone & Westchester R.R. Co. and furnish the cash for building the road. Relying on this agreement, Poppenhusen and Hinsdale turned over the management of the job to Locke. In September, when the contracts for the bridges were about to be let, the directors called on Locke to guarantee the cash for the contractors and he refused. Pressed by the village