3. Port Morris Branch
The Spuyten Duyvil and Port Morris Railroad traversed the West Bronx and South Bronx, specifically from Spuyten Duyvil Creek to the Harlem River to the northwestern shore of the East River. The railroad was built in 1842 and was bought 11 years later by the New York and Harlem Railroad. By 1871, the railroad connected the Hudson River Railroad to what would become the New York and Putnam Railroad. The line was rebuilt in 1906 and was realigned along Marble Hill.
The Port Morris Branch was expanded in 1905, but by World War II, it faced underutilization due to rampant violence and poor drainage. After the construction of the Oak Point Link, the Port Morris Branch shut down in 1999 and was formally abandoned four years later. Due to garbage buildup and a homeless encampment that was removed in 2015, the corridor earned the nickname the “Mott Haven Swamp.” The branch remains abandoned today and was photographed over the years by James and Karla Murray.