Holland Tunnel, New York, N.Y.
Date1979
MediumChromogenic print on Kodak Ektacolor 74 RC-N paper
DimensionsImage: 10 7/16 × 12 15/16 inches (26.5 × 32.9 cm)
Sheet: 10 15/16 × 13 15/16 inches (27.8 × 35.4 cm)
Matted: 16 × 20 inches (40.6 × 50.8 cm)
Portfolio/Series"Groups in America" portfolio
Credit LineGift of The Estrin Family.
Object number2011.19.1.12
Copyright© Neal Slavin.
The images and text contained on this page are owned by Telfair Museums or used by the Museum with permission from the owners. Unauthorized reproduction, transmission or display of these materials is prohibited with the exception of items deemed “fair use” as defined by U.S. and international copyright laws.Label TextHolland Tunnel
275 employees
Tunnel Manager: Lawrence J. Lewis
Assistant Manager: Philip Leahy
Chief Tolls Supervisor: Marie Jones
Port Authority Police Commander: Captain Emanuel Greene
Assistant General Foreman: James Rich
Nurse: Camille Dorin
The Holland Tunnel shortens the time required to traverse the Hudson River from Canal Street in Manhattan to Jersey City, New Jersey, and handles approximately sixty thousand vehicles daily. It is open twenty-four hours a day. Employees must pass civil-service requirements. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which manages the tunnel, is a self-supporting, incorporating agency of the two states, functioning without burden to the taxpayers.
In 1906 legislation paved the way for a study for a bridge. In 1913 the commissions were authorized to consider a tunnel, because land in Manhattan needed for the bridge approaches was too costly. The commissions were given authority in 1919 to construct a tunnel between Canal Street in Manhattan and Jersey City. Clifford Holland, a young tunnel engineer, was chosen to build the tunnel. Construction began October 12, 1920. At five o’ clock on the afternoon of November 12, 1927, American flags were unfurled at each entrance to the tunnel by a button pressed at the White Hose by President Calvin Coolidge. Thousands of guests gathered to hear speeches and were permitted to walk on the newly finished roadways. The first traffic passed through at 12:01am, November 13. The tunnel was built by the New Jersey Interstate Bridge and Tunnel Commission and the New York Bridge and Tunnel Commission.
Since 1930 the Holland Tunnel has been owned and operated by the Port Authority. Many engineering problems were solved during the construction of the tunnel. The ventilation problem in a tunnel of such great length was fundamental. Four ventilation buildings, two on each side of the Hudson River, house immense fans which provide a change of air every ninety seconds. Methods and principles developed during the construction of the Holland Tunnel; form a basis for construction of underwater tunnels throughout the world. Three tunnel engineers served as Chief Engineers on the project: Clifford Holland, Milton H. Freeman, and Ole Singstad. Only Mr. Singstad lived to see its completion.
Length of north tube-8,558”; Length of south tube-8,371”; Width of roadway-20 feet; Operating headroom-12’6”; External diameter-93’5”;Cost up to 1973-$69,300,000.
From When Two or More Are Gathered Together (1976) by Neal Slavin.
