Historical eventOctober 271904
Early history of the IRT subway
The first underground segment of the New York City Subway opened, connecting New York City Hall (station pictured) with Harlem.
In context
- When
- Thursday, October 27 1904122 years ago
- Category
- Historical eventA dated happening — a battle, treaty, launch, discovery, disaster or decision — recorded on this calendar day.
- Era
- 20th century · 1900s
- Recorded from
- Wikipedia “On this day” feed
Russia, Greece and some other countries used the Julian calendar into the early 20th century, so local records may show a date up to 13 days earlier.
At a glance
Dates: From 1904.
What happened
The first underground segment of the New York City Subway opened, connecting New York City Hall (station pictured) with Harlem.
October 27 through the years
Other entries on the same calendar day, in order.
- 1904Early history of the IRT subway
- 1999Armenian parliament shooting
- 1999Nairi Hunanyan
- 2004Boston Red Sox
- 2011Michael D. Higgins
- 2014Operation Herrick
- 2017Catalonia
- 2018Pittsburgh synagogue shooting
- 2018Leicester City F.C.
- 2019Islamic State
- 2019The Mocking of Christ (Cimabue)
Also in 1904
- January 7Marconi CompanyThe Marconi International Marine Communication Company specified CQD (audio featured) as the distress signal to be used by its operators.
- June 15PS General SlocumA fire aboard the steamboat SS General Slocum in New York City's East River kills 1,000.
- January 8Blackstone LibraryBlackstone Library (pictured), the first branch of the Chicago Public Library system, was dedicated.
- December 3Himalia (moon)Himalia, Jupiter's largest irregular moon, was discovered by Charles Dillon Perrine at the Lick Observatory in California.
- June 28SS NorgeIn the worst maritime disaster involving a Danish merchant ship, SS Norge ran aground on Hasselwood Rock and sank in the North Atlantic,…
- December 6Theodore RooseveltPresident Theodore Roosevelt announced the Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine, justifying the exercise of "international police p…
- March 6Scottish National Antarctic ExpeditionScottish National Antarctic Expedition: Led by William Speirs Bruce (pictured), the Antarctic region of Coats Land was discovered by the…
- April 24RussificationRealizing that the Russification of Lithuania was not working, the Russian Empire lifted the 40-year-old ban on publications written in L…
Sources
- Wikipedia article (text, CC BY-SA 4.0)
- Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0 for adapted text · how we source this
Cite this page
“Early history of the IRT subway”, What's On This Date, https://whatsonthisdate.com/app/event/early-history-of-the-irt-subway-1904-october-27, accessed October 27, 2026.
Cite the underlying source as well — the source links above go to the record this entry is adapted from.
Questions about this entry
When did Early history of the IRT subway happen?
October 27 1904 — 122 years ago, on a Thursday.
Where does this text come from?
Wikipedia “On this day” feed. Summaries are short adaptations that link back to the source, not reprints.
How do I cite this page?
Use the ready-made citation near the sources at the bottom of the page, and follow the source link to cite the underlying record as well.
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