If you are a Rochesterian who drives along Culver Road regularly, this may be a scene that is familiar to you:

An indentation in the east retaining wall, south of the railroad bridge underpass on Culver Road between Humboldt Street and University Avenue.

This odd little nook is the result of a combination of two projects of the 1900’s: the construction of the new Morgan Machine Co. plant at University Avenue and Culver Road in 1905, and the digging of the Culver Road Subway beneath the New York Central & Hudson River Railroad tracks, completed 1909.

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The Morgan Machine Co.

According to vintagemachinery.org, “Morgan Machine co. was founded in 1894 as the Machinery Construction Co. Their specialty was box-making machines, including lock-corner machines and nailing machines. In 1898 the firm changed its name to Morgan Machine Co. and was located at 46-48 Platt Street in Rochester, NY. Within a few years the company was in new premises at 1230 University Ave., where they remained until the business was wound down in 1975.

The titular Morgan was Henry W. Morgan, who, from 1897 through 1932, received numerous patents for his machines. As of 1899 the officers were C. M. Loring, president; H. W. Morgan, vice-president and general manager; C. W. Buswell, secretary and treasurer; and Clarence A. Macy, superintendent.”

By the end of 1905 or beginning of 1906, the new factory plant for Morgan Machine Co. was constructed on the corner of Culver Road and University Avenue.

In her article “Do it for Rochester: What it Means to Live in a City of Optimism” in the 1910 Woman’s Home Companion, Anna Steese Richardson describes the grounds of Morgan Machine Co. as being one of Rochester’s “beautiful parks”, and “attractive”, adjectives which don’t ring as true for today’s vista on the same corner:

There’s some trees, I’ll give it that.

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Culver Road Subway

Our story begins around the turn of the 20th century; the land on either side of Culver belonged to Alice Elizabeth Ely Buell and her brother Lorenzo Douglas Ely, Jr. University Avenue had not yet been extended eastwards to meet Winton Road. The New York Central and Hudson River Railroad crossed Culver Road at a level crossing, causing much delay and danger to the denizens of that area.

At this early date there was already discussion of digging a subway. Note that this doesn’t mean an underground train, as we’re accustomed to using the term, but just digging a tunnel beneath a road/rail. In this case, digging beneath the N.Y.C.&H.R. R.R. tracks to allow Culver Road to pass the growing train line unobstructed. A similar subway had been constructed in 1899 with the University Avenue Subway [which had by this time been renamed Atlantic Avenue]. 

The discussion turned pointed as the number of tracks crossing Culver grew to seven, with the new Stromberg-Carlson Telephone Mfg. Co. factory desiring a possible eighth as a freight switch.

Excavation of the subway began in 1907; the project took two years to complete.

The view above is from the top of the Stromberg-Carlson factory looking north along Culver towards the Central tracks; Morgan Machine Co. is partially visible at right.

The 1910 map above shows Culver Road passing underneath the Central-Hudson RR via the Culver Road Subway. The retaining walls of the underpass extended nearly halfway to University Avenue.

The Rochester Box and Lumber Co., on the north side of the tracks, used “Culver Road Subway” as their address.

The above Morgan Machine Co. billhead shows the factory from the corner of Culver Road and University Avenue; the Culver Road Subway can be seen on the center left.

Whereas the photo in the advertisement below shows the Culver Road Subway at center right:

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The Driveway

By 1912 the retaining wall stretched nearly 2/3 of the way to University Avenue, and a ramped driveway was cut into the retaining wall to allow vehicles to reach Morgan Machine Co. parking along Culver Road.

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Come the Floods

One undesirable consequence to the excavation of the Culver Road Subway is one that is still being dealt with today: flooding. Dug deep below street level, the underpass relied on proper sewerage to shed its waters into the East Side Trunk Sewer, which had been expensively rerouted for the underpass itself.

Proper sewerage is not something that can be guaranteed. Soil from the retaining walls, garbage from the streets, detritus from the train tracks–all of these would gather in the low points of the subway and choke its drains, turning the underpass into a murky bathtub. The floods started coming soon after the costly improvement had been completed:

The above photo would seem to be prior to 1912 as no driveway is visible to the right side of Culver in the shot. A far worse flood would follow in March 1913, when a water main broke at East Avenue and Culver Road, sending a deluge of water along Culver Road which flooded the pass under the railroads with more than seven feet of icy-cold water.

Note that on the right-hand side of the above image one can make out the foot of the Morgan Machine Co. driveway.

The same flooding occurred in February 1923, when the main broke again:

The flooding problem continued into the 1960s, with even heavier-than-usual rains causing excessive flooding in the Culver underpass. City crews that worked to clear the drainage stated that the problem was an excess of litter clogging up the outflow drains. Some citizens bristled at the problem being laid at their feet, and pointed to a source of street-borne detritus caused by the city itself:

At the end of 1955, the East Side Incinerator was constructed on the west side of Culver Road, across from Humboldt Street. Garbage from Rochester, Brighton and Irondequoit was brought to the site in trucks to burn, and the ashes carted away to other processing locations. However, numerous citizens pointed out that these trucks of garbage left a wake of litter, which found its way into the underpass under the Central tracks and clogged the drains.

As if the low-lying roadway weren’t enough of an attraction to floodwaters, in 1978 it was decided the underpass would be lowered to increase clearence:

Here we are today, apparently still facing the odd flood. However, we now have a sign warning us to stay out of the floodwaters if they do manifest, after which I suppose you’re meant to back all the way up to University.

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After Morgan

Morgan Machine Co. closed the plant in 1981. The building was razed, and an office/distribution center for Burroughs Corp Office Products was built on the site.

I presume the driveway was probably removed at this point at the latest, if not earlier, leaving us with the familiar stepped wall.

Price Rite opened its second Rochester store on the site in 2008.

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Morgan Memorial Garden?

Here’s a little something I mocked up for fun: what if the little nook were a small public garden memorializing the Morgan Machine Co. of days past? Undoubtedly it would be less ugly than the below, but I did what I could with my limitations. Consider a nice coat of paint, the steps made into a terraced garden, some flowers and some murals, maybe a little bench.

I don’t know, I think it would be cute. Certainly a little nicer than what we’ve presently got.

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