Simpson Street Subway Station and Substation #18 (IRT)
Why it's listed
Simpson Street Station in the Bronx is an elevated subway stop on the White Plains Road line, completed in 1904 as part of the first Interborough Rapid Transit line. Two side platforms with canopies are served by two Queen Anne-style control houses, covered stairways and decorative cast-iron railings. The downtown control house keeps much of its original finish, while the uptown house has lost many details. Next to the station, Substation #18 at 1043 Simpson Street is a six-story Beaux-Arts building with a limestone base, brick and terra cotta upper levels, and a Corinthian cornice, designed to resemble a carriage house or fire station. It converted alternating current to direct current for the system and is one of seven surviving substations from the original eight. The station is recognized for its role in transportation and in the growth of the surrounding Bronx neighborhood, which was then a developing residential area, and for its engineering and architectural design by Heins & LaFarge, working under engineer William Barclay Parsons.
Significance in brief: The station is significant for transportation, community planning and development, and social history, and for engineering, architectural design and art. It is one of 12 three-track elevated side-platform stations on the Broadway and East Bronx branches of the original line and retains a high degree of integrity. Substation #18 is one of only seven surviving substations built for the original IRT system and has a notable Beaux-Arts exterior.
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 04001027, listed September 17, 2004. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | Jct. of Westchester Ave., bet. Simpson St. and Southern Blvd., Bronx |
|---|---|
| County | The Bronx |
| Listed | September 17, 2004 |
| Reference number | 04001027 |
| Resource type | Structure |
| Period of significance | 1904 |
| Architect / builder | Parsons, William Barclay (engineer); Heins, George L. and LaFarge, Christopher G. (architects) |
| Architectural style | Late 19th & 20th Century Revivals/Beaux-Arts; Late Victorian/Queen Anne |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Transportation, Architecture, Art, Engineering, Community Planning and Development, Social History |
| Level of significance | National, Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | The downtown control house retains much of its original finish, while the uptown control house is in poor condition with missing brackets and cresting and covered windows. Substation #18 keeps its interior configuration and some original equipment, though most equipment has been replaced. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 40.82422, -73.89318 (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 04001027.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q2612718
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.