Station signage for New York Central and Boston and Albany

I am curious what the station and other signs looked like, especially on the Boston and Albany division, both before & after the Central took over. Were the signs porcelain enamel or wood? And it's weird, any photos the signs appear to be black and white Is there a standards document?

They were some kind of metal. Quite heavy. Don't know if it was brass. They had raised lettering and when polished had a golden look. Framingham had a least five, a large one fixed to the station building and smaller ones on the awning posts on the westbound platform side. They were there into the MBTA ownership of the Framingham Line in early 1970s and lasted even longer, probably into the era of the B & M running the commuter operation. I saw one of the small NATICK signs at Brimfield about 25 or so years ago and had the $$$ to buy it, but I did not know how I could possibly lug it my car, it was so heavy.

The metal signs with raised lettering are cast iron, with gold leaf letters and edge trim on a black background. That's why they're so heavy!!

Elkhart Indiana cast iron sign.

This is a 1956 drawing for a standard passenger station sign made of 16 gage steel. Unfortunately, the top of the drawing is not shown, so any prior dates for this type of sign are unknown. I would conjecture that this was another cost saving measure from the 1950s.

Dave, the Elkhart sign is absolutely beautiful. Dave

Here's a nice photo of the old Holland Ave station on the Harlem division. The typeface seems a bit different than that drawing, but the blue and gold colors and general proportions match.

Everyone:

Good information about vintage New York Central station name signs - I remember best the cast
iron signs (with their curved incandescent lighting fixtures) in use at stations on the Lake Shore
Limited route (New York State "Water Level" west towards Chicago) into the 1980s.

The 1956 document shows that the NYC began to use porcelain-enamel signs with a base of 16
gauge steel for stations. These were likely very heavy - and durable - signs provided that they
were not chipped or damaged in a way that would expose the steel base. The time period for
the installation and use of these signs was 1956-1968 until the Penn Central merger.

The Holland Avenue picture dates from between 1968 and 1971 - when high level platforms were
constructed by the MTA for the deployment of the M1a MU cars. This is a good example of one of
the yellow on blue station signs in use - these likely were replaced with MTA typeface signs.

Does anyone have more photographs of these signs?
Better yet - does anyone have one of these signs in a personal collection or knows of one in a
museum or remaining in use today? MACTRAXX

Holland Avenue station, North White Plains, northbound only. The main station, North White Plains, southbound only, was about a quarter-mile away.

This is where the engine swaps were done for trains operating beyond the electrified zone. P-motors and T-motors came off, RS-3s went on, and vice versa southbound.

Stat:
Thanks for the reply...I did not realize that Holland Avenue was a closed station even though I
recognized the North White Plains Yard in the background. Was the current NWP Station created
with construction of the high-level platforms by the MTA in 1971-72 replacing Holland Avenue?

Do you (or anyone) know if Central Headlight (NYCRRHS) has ever written an article about NYC
station signage? MACTRAXX

NW Interlocking was spread out between N White Plains and Holland Ave platforms,the Mains were split thru the yard,the 2 center tracks were used for MU
Layups or short turnarounds of the N White Plains local back to GCT.
The P and T motors would lay up next to the "Electric" shop on the west side of NW yard,RS-3's would come out of the roundhouse on the east side of NW yard.
Believe Holland Ave was closed after N. White Plains got Hi-Level Platforms,and the FL-9's took over the Brewster/Put Jct trains in the PC era,
ending the power swap routine at NW.

Englewood Station or Englewood Union Station in Chicago, Illinois' south side. Englewood neighborhood was a crucial junction and passenger depot for three railroads - the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad, the New York Central Railroad, and the Pennsylvania Railroad. Englewood Station also served passenger trains of the New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad (Nickel Plate), which operated over the New York Central via trackage rights.
The New York Central (NYC) and the Rock Island shared trackage from Englewood to the north into LaSalle Street Station. At Englewood, they split: the Rock Island headed southwest, the New York Central east into Indiana.The Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) crossed the Rock Island at this junction.

Upon its opening in September 1950, Toledo Union Station was hailed in the New York Times as the “$5,000,000 Dream of 40 Years,” and a week of events was planned to celebrate the new building. Although constructed by the New York Central Railroad, the Union Terminal also served the Baltimore and Ohio, Chesapeake and Ohio, and the Wabash Railroad.