Lackawanna Ferry and Railroad Terminal Foot of Hudson Place Kenneth W. Murchison 1907 (entire complex opened)

When ferryboats from Ellis Island crossed the Hudson River to Hoboken, immigrants landed at an ornate, copper-clad festival of a building—part ferry terminal, part railroad station. Some of the immigrants boarded trains to the coalfields of Pennsylvania and beyond; others settled in New Jersey and joined the enormous work force of ferry commuters into Manhattan. The Lackawanna Terminal, built by the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western, was consecutively the fifth on the site, and one of seven combination ferry and railroad facilities that operated simultaneously on the west shore of the river.

The entire ferry concourse and part of the train concourse and waiting room were built over water, on a concrete platform supported by 13,000 wooden pilings. Copper sheathing applied to the terminal's steel and concrete frame was not only visually striking, but also notably lightweight in contrast to masonry veneer. Murchison hoped the copper would conceal cracks caused either by settlement or the shock of ferryboats banging into the building. The station's 22-story clock tower (dismantled long ago and replaced by a radio antenna) was a Hudson River landmark, illuminated by electricity. The two-level, 500-foot-long ferry concourse was placed at a 120-degree angle to the attached railroad station, reconciling the direct frontage on the Hudson with the path of pre-existing rails. Double-decker ferries discharged passengers at the upper level and wagon teams to the floor below. The innovative Bush shed (covering 14 tracks over nearly five acres) and a railroad Y.M.C.A. (added later) were built on solid ground. Ornamental details of the head house were late French Baroque, designed by Kenneth Murchison, who studied at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris.

In 1981, New Jersey Transit, whose trains and buses now use this terminal, began an ongoing restoration of the entire complex. Uncovering the spectacular Tiffany glass ceiling of the 50-foot-high waiting room was simple and inexpensive compared to future tasks of stabilizing the terminal's underwater foundation (which is being attacked by marine organisms thriving in the improved water quality of the Hudson) and the copper cladding (which is being lifted by wind and vandalism). The huge upper ferry concourse is ornamented with classical detailing and the remnants of six Tiffany skylights. Years ago, from a balcony on the southern end, patrons at one of the terminal's two restaurants had a fine view of the river. Vacant and currently closed to the public, the enormous space is ripe for adaptive use. A very large, adjacent trolley terminal was demolished in 1949; trolley tracks are still embedded in the cobblestone streets outside. In 1989, a new eight-minutes-to-Manhattan ferry service was established. It departs from a wharf in front of the 1904 Pullman Building and immigrant Station (adjacent to the train concourse) that serves today as the ticket office and waiting area for ferry passengers. Used by 60,000 commuters a day, the Hoboken Terminal area is an inspiring example of in-progress, waterfront revitalization. NR. New Jersey Transit. Multimodal transportation center and commercial. END OF EXCERPT