New York Central Railroad — Corporate Overview

New York Central Railroad (NYC — 1853-1968) was one of the great American Class I trunk railroads, assembled by Cornelius Vanderbilt from a chain of upstate New York carriers and expanded into a Chicago-New York City system spanning New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Massachusetts. Its “Water Level Route” — the low-grade line following the Hudson River and Great Lakes — competed head-to-head with the Pennsylvania Railroad for a century.

Iconic NYC operations included Grand Central Terminal (opened 1913) and shared use of Chicago Union Station, the flagship 20th Century Limited New York-Chicago passenger train, the Collinwood Shop at Cleveland OH, and the Harmon Shop at Croton-Harmon NY for electric multiple-unit maintenance. NYC merged with the Pennsylvania Railroad on February 1, 1968, to form the Penn Central Transportation Company, which collapsed into the largest U.S. bankruptcy of its era in June 1970 and was folded into Conrail on April 1, 1976.

Documented ACM Footprint

Plaintiffs alleged in publicly filed U.S. asbestos personal-injury and wrongful-death litigation under the Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA) that New York Central Railroad — and its successor Penn Central and Conrail carriers — exposed the railroad workforce to asbestos through the following documented pathways:

  • Steam locomotive era: allegedly asbestos block boiler lagging, asbestos-cement smokebox insulation, and asbestos rope firebox packing (through 1950s dieselization)
  • Diesel-electric locomotive era: allegedly asbestos-fabric traction motor winding insulation, asbestos arc chute plates in traction control cabinets, and asbestos exhaust manifold gaskets on Alco, EMD, and GE locomotives
  • Passenger car: allegedly asbestos-cement body insulation panels, asbestos-fabric heating duct lagging, and Vapor Clarkson steam generators on 20th Century Limited and other named-train equipment
  • Freight car: allegedly asbestos brake shoe friction paired with WABCO / New York Air Brake / Symington-Gould brake components
  • Roundhouse / shop: allegedly asbestos pipe covering on shop steam mains, asbestos-fabric arc chute plates in shop switchgear, and asbestos-block bay lagging at Collinwood (Cleveland), West Albany, DeWitt Yard (Syracuse), Selkirk Yard, and Harmon shop complexes
  • Terminal operations: allegedly asbestos pipe covering and boiler lagging in Grand Central Terminal steam plant and Chicago Union Station mechanical spaces
  • FELA note: Railroad workers may pursue Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA) claims for occupational asbestos exposure — a broader remedy than state workers’ compensation.

Workers Allegedly Exposed

  • Locomotive machinists, boilermakers, pipefitters, and electricians at Collinwood (Cleveland OH), West Albany NY, DeWitt Yard (Syracuse NY), Selkirk NY, and Harmon NY shop complexes
  • Diesel-service and roundhouse workers servicing EMD, GE, and Alco locomotives across the NYC system
  • Railroad car repairmen (carmen) replacing asbestos brake shoes at NYC freight yards
  • Locomotive engineers, firemen, conductors, brakemen, and yard switchmen on NYC trains
  • Shop electricians (IBEW) working on allegedly asbestos-containing arc chutes in traction control cabinets and yard switchgear
  • Insulators (HFIAW) applying and stripping asbestos pipe covering on shop steam distribution and passenger-car heating systems
  • Grand Central Terminal and Chicago Union Station stationary engineers, powerhouse boiler operators, and maintenance mechanics

If You Worked for New York Central Railroad

If you or a family member worked for the New York Central Railroad — or its successor Penn Central Transportation Company or Conrail — at any shop, yard, roundhouse, terminal, or locomotive-service facility during the asbestos era and have since been diagnosed with mesothelioma, lung cancer, asbestosis, or another asbestos-related disease, you may have legal rights under the Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA) — a broader remedy for railroad workers than state workers’ compensation.

Free, confidential case evaluation: Speak with O’Brien Law Firm — (314) 936-2956

Plants by State

New York Central Railroad operated shops, yards, roundhouses, and terminals across multiple U.S. states. Detailed premises information is available on the following state jobsite pages: