Hempstead Branch

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For the former line operated by the Pennsylvania Railroad in southwestern Ohio, see Hempstead Branch (Ohio).

The Hempstead Branch is an electrified rail line owned and operated by the Long Island Rail Road in the U.S. state of New York. The branch leaves the Main Line at Queens Interlocking, just east of Queens Village station. It continues east to Hempstead via Garden City.

The reason for the high concentration of rail stations in the village of Garden City, can be traced back to the village's founder, Alexander Turney Stewart, who had initially created a railroad to service his town. The line west of Hempstead Crossing (between Garden City and Country Life Press stations) was once part of the Central Branch, which still exists from Bethpage southeast to Babylon. The former Central Branch ran through what is today Eisenhower Park, and portions of the trackage were in use up into the 1990s to carry freight into the Garden City and Uniondale areas, also known as Mitchel Field in the past. LIRR still uses a small portion of this line, east of Hempstead, as a place to store equipment, and each year the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus train uses this Garden City Secondary to reach the Nassau Coliseum.

[edit] Stations

Station / Location	Station link	Miles (Kilometers) to Penn Station	Connections/Notes
For continuing service to Jamaica and points west, see City Terminal Zone
Union Hall Jamaica			closed 1976
Hillside Jamaica			closed 1966
Hillside Facility			Employees-only station
Hollis 193rd Street and Woodhull Avenue, Hollis	[1]	13.6	Bus (New York City Transit Bus):Q2, Q3
Bellaire Bellaire			closed 1972
Queens Village Springfield Boulevard and Amboy Lane, Queens Village	[2]	15.4	Bus (New York City Transit Bus):Q1, Q27, Q36, Q83 (Late Night Only),Q88 Bus (MTA Long Island Bus): N24
Bellerose Commonwealth Boulevard and Superior Road, Bellerose	[3]	16.3
Floral Park Tulip Avenue and Atlantic Avenue, Floral Park	[4]	16.9
Stewart Manor New Hyde Park Road and Manor Road, Stewart Manor	[5]	18.3	Bus (MTA Long Island Bus): N25
Nassau Boulevard Nassau Boulevard and South Avenue, Garden City	[6]	19.3
Garden City 7th Street between Hilton and Cathedral Avenues, Garden City	[7]	20.4	Bus (MTA Long Island Bus): N40, N41
Country Life Press Damson Street and Saint James Street South, Garden City	[8]	21.0
Hempstead West Columbia Street, East of Main Street and Fulton Avenue, Hempstead	[9]	22.0	Bus (MTA Long Island Bus) at Hempstead Transit Center: N6, N15, N16, N17, N27, N31, N32, N35, N37, N40, N41, N46, N47, N48, N49, N54, N55, N70, N71, N72