207th Street Yard-Signal Service Building and Tower B
Why it's listed
Tucked into the southeast corner of the 207th Street Yard in Washington Heights, this two-story brick building and the small tower on its roof served the subway system's signal needs from about 1930. The shop covers roughly 20,000 square feet, with plain walls, steel casement windows, terra cotta coping and a loading dock on the east side. Inside, repair areas such as the Relay Room and a parts room support the work, and original equipment and paneled wooden doors survive. A 1976 extension on the west side matches the original materials and proportions. Tower B holds a large manual switching device with its original Union Switch and Signal Company panel board, still controlling train movements at the north end of the yard. The building is the only one built to repair signals for the subway system and the only signal repair shop still in use. The yard around it was found to lack integrity, but the shop and tower were judged to meet the criteria individually.
Significance in brief: The nomination finds the building significant under Criterion A in transportation engineering and community planning and development. It is the only structure built to repair signals in the subway system, and the only remaining signal repair shop in use for the whole system. Tower B still uses its original manual switching equipment, a mode of operation described as vanishing. The building retains a high degree of integrity.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 06000018, listed February 9, 2006. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | W. 215th St. bet. Tenth Ave. and the Harlem R, Manhattan |
|---|---|
| County | Manhattan |
| Listed | February 9, 2006 |
| Reference number | 06000018 |
| Resource type | Structure |
| Period of significance | 1927-1930 |
| Architect / builder | Ridgeway, Robert (Engineer); Raisman, Aaron (Architect) |
| Architectural style | No style |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Transportation, Engineering, Community Planning and Development |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Still in use as a signal repair shop; Tower B's original panel board remains in use and controls train movements at the north end of the yard. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 40.86837, -73.91310 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For an income-producing building, listing (individually or as a contributing building in a district) is the gateway to the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit on qualified rehabilitation costs, often stackable with state credits. Work claiming the credit must follow the Secretary of the Interior's Standards and be approved in advance.
Listing does not restrict a private owner acting without federal money or permits; where federal funding or licensing is involved, Section 106 review applies.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 06000018.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikidata Q137219985
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.