Bainbridge Avenue & Jerome Avenue
Squire J. Vickers
1917
NR-P
Woodlawn Station is the northern terminus and last stop on the Jerome Avenue Subway line. Squire Vickers, along with his design and chief engineers, J. Cooperstock and Alfred Craven, respectively, designed the steel framed station. With two tracks and side- and island-platforms, this elevated station is architecturally significant for its Arts and Crafts design and use of ornamental concrete. Most elevated stations typically have rough, bush-hammered concrete surfaces, but the Woodlawn Station has a smooth and streamlined finish throughout. Cornell University-educated Vickers worked for 36 years as chief architect for the New York City Subway, and often utilized simple but colorful tiles in his work. Vickers painted as a hobby, employing dynamic colors and fantastical imagery. The high level of craftsmanship and material quality of these inlaid tiles are exceptional and indicative of his careful attention to detail. The Woodlawn IRT station is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Woodlawn Heights is located in the northernmost section of The Bronx, bounded by the City of Yonkers to the north, Woodlawn Cemetery to the south, the Bronx River to the east and Van Cortlandt Park to the west. The area, originally part of the town of Kingsbridge, was one of the first to be annexed to the City of New York in 1874, along with West Farms and Morrisania. For most of the 19th century, the area was largely rural, dotted with farms and woodlots. As is the case for most neighborhoods in the five boroughs, development was spurred on by the availability of transportation. Today, the neighborhood’s largely middle-class population of about 8,000 includes a significant portion that are of Irish descent, including more recent Irish immigrants. In fact, Woodlawn is affectionately known as New York City’s “Little Ireland,” physical evidence of which is found in its many Irish pubs along Katonah Avenue. This family-oriented neighborhood features a charming array of detached, one- and two-family houses, some apartment buildings and hilly streets. In May 2016, Woodlawn was down-zoned to maintain orderly growth and to avoid out-of-character mid- to high-rise development, thus preserving its low-rise residential character.
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