Brooklyn Today for March 25
Good morning. Today is the 84th day of the year. On this day in 1900, digging began for the city’s first subway, the Interborough Rapid Transit (IRT) line in Manhattan (part of today’s numbered-line system). When the subway is finished, the Eagle reported with some exaggeration, “the Harlemite will be able to reach City Hall in 15 minutes.” The original subway line, from 145th Street to City Hall, opened in 1904. The line’s first extension to Brooklyn, which terminated at Atlantic Avenue, opened in 1908.
Well-known people who were born today include singer Aretha Franklin (“Respect,” “Think”), former baseball player Tom Giavine, former hockey player Carmmi Granato, singer-songwriter Elton John (“Your Song,” ‘Philadelphia Freedom’), basketball coach Avery Johnson, actress Sarah Jessica Parker (“Sex and the City,” “Honeymoon in Vegas”) and feminist author Gloria Steinem (original editor of “Ms. Magazine”).