Alfred Beach built America’s first operational subway in secret beneath 1860s Manhattan, decades before the city’s official electric subway line in 1904. He designed and commissioned a 300-foot-long, eight-foot-diameter tunnel 20 feet underground, built with a tunneling machine he invented for this purpose. The car moved quietly and silently, pushed by a 50-ton, steam-powered fan nicknamed "the Western Tornado," which pushed and pulled the single subway car through its sealed tube.

Beach envisioned a clean, quiet pneumatic railway that would shoot passengers up and down Broadway, revolutionizing urban transit. The entire city would enjoy this steampunk system of transportation. He was the right man for the job. As the editor of Scientific American magazine and the head of the nation’s leading patent agency, Beach was intimately connected with many of the nineteenth century’s most important inventors and inventions. When Thomas Edison invented the phonograph, the first person he showed it to was Alfred Beach.

But his dream was derailed by powerful political enemies, most notably Boss Tweed and the corrupt machine of Tammany Hall. Dreams of the project died after an economic crash in 1873.

Today’s guest is Matthew Algeo, author of New York’s Secret Subway: The Underground Genius of Alfred Beach and the Origins of Mass Transit. We look at a pivotal moment in the origin story of mass transportation in America, and themes that resonate strongly today: infrastructure gridlock, public-private conflict, and the long-standing resistance to bold transit reform.

Alfred Beach built America&rsquo;s first operational subway in secret beneath 1860s Manhattan, decades before the city&rsquo;s official electric subway line in 1904. He designed and commissioned a 300-foot-long, eight-foot-diameter tunnel 20 feet underground, built with a tunneling machine he invented for this purpose. The car moved quietly and silently, pushed by a 50-ton, steam-powered fan nicknamed "the Western Tornado," which pushed and pulled the single subway car through its sealed tube.
Beach envisioned a clean, quiet pneumatic railway that would shoot passengers up and down Broadway, revolutionizing urban transit. The entire city would enjoy this steampunk system of transportation. He was the right man for the job. As the editor of Scientific American magazine and the head of the nation&rsquo;s leading patent agency, Beach was intimately connected with many of the nineteenth century&rsquo;s most important inventors and inventions. When Thomas Edison invented the phonograph, the first person he showed it to was Alfred Beach.
But his dream was derailed by powerful political enemies, most notably Boss Tweed and the corrupt machine of Tammany Hall. Dreams of the project died after an economic crash in 1873.
Today&rsquo;s guest is Matthew Algeo, author of New York&rsquo;s Secret Subway: The Underground Genius of Alfred Beach and the Origins of Mass Transit. We look at a pivotal moment in the origin story of mass transportation in America, and themes that resonate strongly today: infrastructure gridlock, public-private conflict, and the long-standing resistance to bold transit reform.

For history lovers who listen to podcasts, History Unplugged is the most comprehensive show of its kind. It's the only show that dedicates episodes to both interviewing experts and answering questions from its audience. First, it features a call-in show where you can ask our resident historian (Scott Rank, PhD) absolutely anything (What was it like to be a Turkish sultan with four wives and twelve concubines? If you were sent back in time, how would you kill Hitler?). Second, it features long-form interviews with best-selling authors who have written about everything. Topics include gruff World War II generals who flew with airmen on bombing raids, a war horse who gained the rank of sergeant, and presidents who gave their best speeches while drunk.

A show about American history, world history, World Wars 1 & 2, the Civil War, and much more.

History Unplugged Podcast

For history lovers who listen to podcasts, History Unplugged is the most comprehensive show of its kind. It's the only show that dedicates episodes to both interviewing experts and answering questions from its audience. First, it features a call-in show where you can ask our resident historian (Scott Rank, PhD) absolutely anything (What was it like to be a Turkish sultan with four wives and twelve concubines? If you were sent back in time, how would you kill Hitler?). Second, it features long-form interviews with best-selling authors who have written about everything. Topics include gruff World War II generals who flew with airmen on bombing raids, a war horse who gained the rank of sergeant, and presidents who gave their best speeches while drunk.

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